Taaa Daaa! You finished your first draft. Now, it’s time to begin editing, revising, polishing your manuscriptand editing. Editing is a crucial process that should transform your rough draft into a polished manuscript ready to become a real book. Here are the important steps of the editing process.

But wait. Hold on a moment before you start. Before diving into the editing process, distance yourself from the story, allow your mind to reset. Some say, “Let it percolate.” Taking a solid break between finishing the first draft and starting the editing process helps you approach this phase with a fresh perspective, and the objectivity that is necessary to do a respectable job.

There is a debate about who said it first, but this saying has been around a time: Kill Your Darlings! This is the place where you will be following that advice. In some cases, we, as writers, find a phrase or two so wonderful we want it written down for posterity, but it has nothing to do with the story now or, it just drags down momentum. These are the deletes that hurt a little bit.

• Structural Editing: This is much more than proof reading. Start by assessing the overall structure of your story. Look at the bones of your story and is frequently referred to as the story arc. Does the plot flow smoothly? Are the characters well-developed and consistent? Look for plot holes, inconsistencies, or any areas that may require restructuring. Ensure that your story has a clear beginning, middle, and end, with a logical progression of events.
• Strengthen Your Characters: Characters are the heart of your story. Hopefully you took the time to complete character sketches for each of the key characters before you jumped in. Evaluate their motivations, desires, and conflicts. Are they compelling and relatable? Do any of the characters that appeared in the beginning melt away before the ending? Your characters must resonate with readers and contribute effectively to the narrative. No free loaders.
• Refine Dialogue: Dialogue is the life blood of your characters. Make conversations sound natural and authentic. Trim unnecessary dialogue tags, ensure each character has a distinct voice, and eliminate repetitive or unrealistic speech patterns. It helps to read the dialogue out loud as you’re going through it.
• Polishing the Prose: Refine your writing by eliminating clichés, redundant phrases, and awkward sentences. Look for opportunities to enhance your descriptions, creating vivid and engaging imagery. Keep your sentences concise and avoid excessive wordiness.
• Show, Don’t Tell: This is a big one and it’s hard to fully capture. Perhaps a blog on this one is in the near future. One common pitfall in early drafts is telling the readers what’s happening instead of showing it. Allow your readers to experience the story through sensory details, action, and dialogue. Instead of stating that a character is angry, show their clenched fists, furrowed brows, and terse words.
• Proofreading: Oh goodie! Back to the beginning! Once you’re satisfied with the content and structure, shift your focus to the dreaded details. Proofread meticulously, searching for errors in grammar, punctuation, and spelling. Pay attention to commonly misused words and typos. Consider using grammar and spell-checking tools or seek assistance from beta readers for a fresh perspective. There are so many freelance proofreaders out there. Well worth the money!
• Seek Feedback: Don’t be afraid to share your revised manuscript with trusted friends, writing groups, or beta readers. Constructive feedback can help identify blind spots, point out areas that need improvement, and offer valuable suggestions for further refinement. Embrace the feedback as much as you can! Listen to it because it will enhance your work. Not necessarily the way someone suggests a rewrite, but it shows weaknesses in the flow that you can fix.
• Repeat the Process: (Yay, starting over again!) Editing is an iterative process. Once you’ve implemented feedback and made necessary revisions, go through the editing cycle again. Multiple rounds of editing will help you polish your manuscript to a professional standard.

Remember, the editing process requires patience, dedication, and the ability to kill your darlings. Embrace the journey, knowing that each round of editing brings you closer to that book. Don’t become discouraged by the challenges you encounter along the way. It is an integral part of the process. Find the editing cartoons out there and keep them close. Stay entertained and get ready for the production portion of the process.

Poof You're A Project Manager And Other Delusions of Grandeur

Poof! You're a Project Manager from an Amazon customer

A. Z. Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2021

You might want to create two. One is targeted at your readers, you’re trying to connect with them and use this to help sell your book. Readers might be wondering why you wrote the book and what makes you qualified to write it? This one can be short, maybe five sentences that will likely land on the back cover of your book. There are a lot of samples out there, find them in your genre. Stick to writing in the 3^rd person.

Introduce Yourself: Start by providing your name and mentioning that you are an author. You can also include any relevant professional credentials or achievements. For example, “John Smith is an accomplished author with several published works in the mystery genre.”

1. Highlight Your Expertise: Mention your area of expertise or the genres you typically write in. This helps establish your authority as an author. For instance, “His writing expertise lies in crafting gripping suspense novels that keep readers on the edge of their seats.”
2. Share Relevant Accomplishments: Include any notable achievements or recognition you have received as an author. This can be awards, bestseller status, or positive reviews from reputable sources. For example, “John’s debut novel, ‘The Secret in the Shadows,’ was a New York Times bestseller and received critical acclaim for its masterful storytelling.”
3. Mention Your Inspiration: Discuss what inspires you as an author and what drives your passion for writing. This can be personal experiences, favorite authors, or themes that resonate with you. It gives readers insight into your creative process. For instance, “John draws inspiration from classic mystery writers like Agatha Christie and finds fascination in exploring the dark corners of human nature.”
4. Personal Touch: Conclude your bio with a personal touch that humanizes you as an author. You can include hobbies, interests, or any relevant details that showcase your personality. This helps readers connect with you on a deeper level. For example, “When he’s not immersed in writing, John enjoys hiking in the mountains and spending time with his two mischievous cats, Whiskers and Shadow.”

Remember to keep your author’s bio concise, engaging, and tailored to your target audience. It should give readers a clear understanding of your writing background and what makes you unique as an author.

It took me a while to get the hang of this because I worked in industry and had speaking engagements, so all my bios were about work life and never mentioned personal information – it was all business!

Poof You're A Project Manager And Other Delusions of Grandeur

Poof! You're a Project Manager from an Amazon customer

A. Z. Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2021

The amount of information you need to have about your book, once it’s completed, can be a little overwhelming. There are two major categories: The Physical and the Market.

For the physical, look at your word count. Better yet, explore the genre where you will probably wind up and what is the expected word count. For middle grade it’s at least 30,000. Now, writing to meet specifications can really take the wind out of your sales, however, having a target is wonderful. My first draft of The Zing Fling was 22,000 words long in a 30,000 minimum genre – whoops.

What is the physical size of your book cover, and therefore you book? Oak Line Press provides 3 choices for the basic package, 5.5” x 8.5”; 6” x 9”; 8” x 8.”

Now we are getting into the market area. Why is size so important? There is a cost element, the smaller the book, the more pages and that increases your costs. Also, there are industry standards and the expectations of those pesky readers. Another factor is the shelf sizes your book will be sold from… that’s those pesky book sellers… so your really need to go with the flow here.

There are a few reasons to pick up a few Comp Books, that’s the competition, but also, it’s a comparison for physical requirements. You must know the genre of your book – figure that part out early on.

Your comps are helpful for many of the marketing aspects. Find successful books that are in your selected genre to see what they do with sizing, artwork, colors, fonts, graphics on the outside cover and inside the novel. Trust me, I never imagined having to think about all these things while writing my first book. Turns out when the writing is done… ish, there’s a lot more to think about.

There is copy to be written for the back cover, as well as on your dustcover panels. Can you explain your story in three or four sentences? No, well if you don’t, you’ll have to pay someone who can because that’s all the room you’ll have on your back cover. Back to your comps on this one.

Getting your manuscript edited is critical to getting accepted for publication. Start with friends and family and beg them for honest feedback. If they get lost in the story or have questions about things that were unanswered, you need to know. Finding grammar and spelling errors is extremely helpful. I had two different paid editors look at The Zing Fling and was blessed that one of them looked at the content and gave me great suggestions to enhance the story. You pay extra for that kind of editing and then you are under the gun to make the changes.

Then there is your author bio, check out the Blog Writing an Author’s Bio.

When your manuscript has been written and properly edited, it’s time to fill out your form and there are several questions in there about these sorts of things. The first time I saw the questionnaire – I panicked a bit… hadn’t given any of it any thought. My message to you is just keep these things in mind and make notes as you go along so you’ll be much better prepared.

Poof You're A Project Manager And Other Delusions of Grandeur

Poof! You're a Project Manager from an Amazon customer

A. Z. Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2021

What do I have to write a book about? It’s a great question and I can promise you, there are more things than you think. But first – do you want to write a book? If the answer is “I don’t know,” or “no,” then read this in case you know someone who does. You can give them some ideas. Writing isn’t for everyone and that’s ok!

Your own experiences are the first area to search. Did you get through (or are you going through) a very difficult situation? Do you have a practice that you use to deal with anxiety when meeting new people or another situation? Have you made a discovery about something like finding the difference between loneliness and being alone? Think about the things you’ve lived through and search for an epiphany or discovery that changed how you do things for the better.

What about your family history? Was your childhood focused more on managing through trials and tribulations and worrying about mowing the lawn and doing your homework? Were you struggling in school until you found out you had a disorder that blocked some of your learning? How’d you get through it and look – Now you’re writing a book! If you have been through something difficult and found your way clear of it and want to share your techniques with others – that’s a book.

I am in possession of my parents’ love letters when my dad was in the Navy during WW2. That’s a book. I have my Aunt Elsie’s diaries – I haven’t read them yet but I’m sure they’re filled with life on the farm and some great stories – it could be a book, or it might ignite an idea for a novel.

Do you have grandparents or older aunts and uncles? Interview them, get their favorite stories on paper and maybe there’s a book there. How about recipes – or an instruction manual on how to do something?

You can create a family-based book that only appeals to your family and friends. That’s ok – it will bring joy. I’ll be doing one of those for my nieces and nephews.

If you’re thinking about a much wider audience, remember to first know why you will write this book. What’s the point? Who does it serve? I was lucky enough to attend a writers’ conference with a few very well-known authors. The best piece of advice I heard went like this:

Why do you want to write this book? Is it to make money? Is it because you think certain groups of people would like it? Well, just take what you’ve written, save everyone a lot of time and throw it away!  The best answer, the right answer sound something like, “I have to.”

That nearly knocked me out of my seat. But as soon as I heard it understood it. The book that I had started began because I was driven to do it. The next great piece of advice was to not hold back when writing, tell it all. If it’s about your experiences, don’t carefully craft it – tell it all. Again… that hit me hard and it stuck with me all night. The next morning, I wrote a new Chapter 1. You’ll find it in my book C’mon Let’s Play. I’ve received a lot of good feedback on that chapter… it starts the narrative on many, not all, but many of my mistakes.

Poof You're A Project Manager And Other Delusions of Grandeur

Poof! You're a Project Manager from an Amazon customer

A. Z. Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2021

Does the phrase, I Should Write a Book, sound familiar? Do you say, “I should write a book,” or “People say I should write a book,” or “I’ve always wanted to write a book.”  I was part of the latter group for years. The idea of writing a book seemed almost magical and totally impossible. I’d wonder, “how do people do it?”

It’s a process, but like all processes, first you must start. There are a million reasons out there for people to avoid the first step. I’m not … old enough, young enough, smart enough, tough enough. I don’t have enough time, I don’t know how, and on it goes. Let’s start with a new first step… KNOCK IT OFF! JUST WRITE D@MN IT!

The book I just submitted – 30,000 words started out as a one-page story idea. Then it sat for quite a while, maybe a couple years. My friends wanted to go to a writer’s group at the local library – both were working on books. I had 1poetry – turns out that didn’t work for this writers group. So, after some friendly prodding from Carole and Nan, I remembered I had that one-pager I could create a story from, and still hang out with my friends.

We decided to take a 4-session novel writing class. So, on the second Saturday, there I was eating breakfast and working on my homework before class. I needed to make a list of chapter titles and create a character sketch for my main character. I quickly did both assignments, during breakfast – sort of free writing, and a book was born. How did I do that? I just made it all up. I wasn’t worried about anything, I just let my brain loose and there it was, complete with a trace amount of strawberry jelly. This became the book I just submitted…yes it has been kicking around for a few decades. And yes, most of what I wrote that fateful morning is still part of my final manuscript. I call this the long-haul method of writing a book.

The first book I published started in a logbook that I kept at my desk during my last year of work in the corporate world. Every time I was irritated by the way something was being managed, I wrote a new chapter title for the book I would write someday. There were a lot of chapter titles, some quite colorful. As my retirement date grew near, another friend urged me to write a book out that log. That would have been a very long book, so I selected one chapter heading, Poof You’re a Project Manager and Other Delusions of Grandeur. It’s about how would select a great engineer or scientist or marketing manager and change their title to Project Manager instructing them to go fix the problems on the project.

In all honesty, this is how most of us got the job back in the day, but it was always bumpy and uncomfortable until those recently Poofed into the role, could find the needed resources to acquire the skills to do the role. Poof took less than a year from the first step to publishing. I call this process the rapid-fire style.

My last book, C’mon Let’s Play, was my most deliberate book. I felt that there was amazing information out there that I wanted to share about how we think and how the way we think affects our lives. I had a few excellent examples. Whether I was coaching a client looking for a new job, or coaching a client who felt lost in life, the message was the same – I just altered it to align with the environment where my client was coming from. I ask them to play with how they think about their own lives, or situation. What if you thought exactly the opposite of what you are thinking right now, what would that life look like?

I selected a few of my favorite pieces from the experts, my own mistakes, bad choices, and subsequent growth became successful in corporate and again when I decided to become an entrepreneur. I call the way I wrote this book the strategic selection style.

There are several ways to get through that first step, actually both first steps, and I know firsthand how hard it is. I made a few mistakes, ok, maybe more than a few but I’ve learned so much and I love helping people find their way too.

My new clients are those I can help get started on writing a book, those I can help finish their manuscript, and those ready to publish. The first meeting is free, and we spend 45 minutes discussing your possibilities and determining if we’re a good fit. For some of you this might be the jolt you need to get through both first steps and … just knock it off and write!

Poof You're A Project Manager And Other Delusions of Grandeur

Poof! You're a Project Manager from an Amazon customer

A. Z. Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2021

There are quite a few words in this language of ours that are confusing. I’m so thankful to have the automatic spelling and grammar check, but I still struggle. It gets complicated for me, particularly when I’m leaving a note for somebody… or someone… (phew, it doesn’t matter). Anyway, one of the reasons I thought I’d never be able to write a book is because I just could not spell, let alone take the time to memorize all of these. I have a few memorized, it helps when there are tricks to help me…

Dear Google & Microsoft, Thank you.

There They’re Their

• Where are the students? They’re over there waiting for their teacher!

Effect / Affect can be explained by the Raven

• Raven:  Remember Affect = Verb, Effect = Noun
• Affect is an influence; Effect is a result.

Lay / Lie

• Don’t just lie there (no subject)
• After a tough day I lie down to recoup. (No subject)
• I lay my phone (here’s your subject) on the nightstand when I lie (no subject) down.

Data / Datum

• Data is plural– All the data on this chart are correct.
• Datum is singular – The first datum in the 3^rd column is incorrect.

IE / EI

• I before E except after C and sounding like A as in neighbor and weigh
• Receipt
• Tier ,Tried, Movie

All ready / Already

• Are you all ready? (completely prepared)
• Don’t call for tickets, I already bought them. (Happened before now)

Any Way /  Anyway

• Any Way – Two words,  in any manner or by any means possible.
• Anyway – Regardless, despite the circumstances. It doesn’t matter anyway. Also – to resume where you left off… anyway, back to my story.

One important note for a writer. Try to get these tricky words right, but don’t worry about it on your first draft. Just get the story down first. The first edit will be simpler if you have at least some of these memorized but don’t stop your progress worrying about them. The first draft of The Zing fling, my newest book, was originally written using an old manual clickety-clack Royal typewriter. Again, I really mean it – thank you Microsoft and Google.

Poof You're A Project Manager And Other Delusions of Grandeur

Poof! You're a Project Manager from an Amazon customer

A. Z. Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2021

Here we are at the end of another year and things are still picking up speed! I had a quick and exciting trip to Nashville to witness the making of the audible version of C’mon Let’s Play, my latest book. The picture above is of the voice actor, Carrie Brewer, and me bursting with excitement to meet her! As a reminder, C'mon Let's Play is about playing around with different ways of thinking to move toward those things you’d like to achieve. I share a few stories and give examples of how it worked for me. This was such a great experience.

The advice from C’mon Let’s Play continues to work for me because I’m moving forward on my passion for writing and am officially announcing my new business: Oak Line Press.  Yep, that’s right, I’m publishing my own books as well as books for others looking to publish business books to share the wealth of knowledge they’ve gathered over the years. Creating an Audible book after publication of the print copies was a common request.

Have you already published? Let me know if you'd like to create an audible version - I'd love to help you!

There will be more about Oak Line Press and the release of my audio book in 2023. I've got to say that I am just loving closing 2022 with announcing a new book release and a new business. The C'mon Let's Play audio book will be out in Q1 2023.

We have a couple new webinar recordings if you didn't attend the live meetings go to the Coach & Free Webinar page to check them out. There's a lot good information there.

• Colleen Dixon and I had a great time creating Your 2nd Act. It's for those of you who are looking to begin a new role that is more in line with you'd really like to be doing with your time. Both of us have done this and have been quite happy with the outcomes.
• Gary Chin did a great job as always, on sharing the highlights of PMBOK 7 – plus he answered a lot of questions from the attendees.  

I was lucky to present From Research to Management - Making the Leap to a great group at the University of Illinois at the Chicago Campus. We had a great time and I had the chance to meet with some of the 4th year students afterward during lunch.

Matt Curin, Director, Nemolizumab Project Management at Galderma and I are getting ready to teach another session for the University of Chicago on Leadership and Project Management in Healthcare, staring in January 2023.

If you are looking to present some useful business information or would like to see a specific topic addressed in a webinar, please let me know – I’d love to make it happen! In the meantime… think about writing a book – I can help!

 Links

Want to write a book? Have a book you'd like extend into an audio book? Let's chat 

Colleen Dixon and Dee Suberla present Your 2nd Act – check out the video

Gary Chin shared his take on the new edition of PMBOK. Check out the video.

Poof You're A Project Manager And Other Delusions of Grandeur

Poof! You're a Project Manager from an Amazon customer

A. Z. Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2021

Things are getting back to… normal? New normal? Sort of normal, but still work from home sometimes? With no masks… some masks … We Don’t Need No Stink’en Masks, usually… well, if you have a cold… ok not back to normal-normal!

Let’s face it, our teams have been scattered for quite a while now and we can look forward to getting back to the office unless of course we’ve decided not to work that way anymore. Whatever the business decides, I’m thinking we need to take steps to Get This Band Back Together!

A great way to get people to reconnect (virtually or on site) is to get them calibrated to the structure of how we are doing business now.  We can find a couple of great tools for this in the Wiley Products I offer as an Authorized Partner. That means I can facilitate or set your organization up to do your own facilitations. Here are my favorites for 2021.

Cohesive Teams as a Self-Development Tool

This one is for individuals working on various teams. It could be given to an intact team, or a group of project managers working on different projects or a combination. It’s for people who work on teams as a project leader, SME, general team member and even our beloved extended team members. It even works for a functional team like, Stability Ops or, Regulatory Affairs or the Cross Functional Management Team, or an executive team. Ok, you get it right?

It operates on the Five Behaviors of a Cohesive Team pyramid that originated in Patrick Lencioni’s best seller the Five Dysfunctions of a Team. A best seller for over 17 years now. Attendees tune into the 5 behaviors, shown here:

Team Application of Emotional Intelligence

Another valuable option is the new Everything DiSC Agile EQ. It gives attendees the opportunity to calibrate to the same definitions of the 8 instinctual responses known as mind-sets. Attendees learn what their own go-to mindset style is, and then they learn how apply the other mindsets that may be better suited to a given situation. This role playing is great for learning and bonding. Again, perfectly suited for intact teams or complete strangers at any level in the organization.

Over the next few months I’ll be sharing more information on these tools through Facebook Live recordings and perhaps a webinar or two. Stay up-to-date by following me on LikedIn and Facebook.

Watch for news on upcoming webinars and book signing events – post COVID-19! Sign up for the newsletter!

 Next Month: Types of Trust for Teams

Poof You're A Project Manager And Other Delusions of Grandeur

Poof! You're a Project Manager from an Amazon customer

A. Z. Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2021

and the Do you believe that you cannot make decisions without consulting or gaining the approval of someone else? Are there circumstances that you feel dictate what you can and cannot do, such as a lack of money or education, a feeling you are too old or too young? Do you feel trapped and helpless to do anything about it? Are you waiting for someone to help you out of a dilemma?

If you’re an adult, it means that you may not have a sense of your own essential freedom. 

Maybe it’s due to negative childhood experiences or maybe as an adult, you have given something your all and it didn’t work. Maybe you experienced failure more than once or twice and gave up. Some people wind up trapped in the idea that they are now, and always will be, a failure. Someone else needs to call the shots because it’s obvious you can’t do it for yourself.  Yes, I'm afraid that this does mean you do not have a sense of your own essential freedom.

Get Your Copy of C'mon Let's Play

Sometimes, people remain in this situation because they believe have to depend on others – they know beyond a shadow of a doubt that they are failures and cannot can help themselves move forward. As we discussed in last month’s blog, once we convert thoughts into beliefs, we have a sense that they are completely and undeniably true facts.

Well, there are people out there right now who have been through what you have been through—some experienced much worse — and they got through it.  How did they get through it? Is it because fundamentally they’re better than you, stronger, luckier?

Nope! But let’s pause for a moment. Are you having thoughts of defending your belief that you are a failure on some level? Are you thinking that you can prove that you have failed? Ok, set that thought aside for a few minutes and just play with this idea. Think: what if there is another way? What if I’ve convinced myself of something that isn’t really a cold hard fact of life? And, what if I tried? What would my life be like if I could move forward? Then imagine positive answers to these questions, let them live in your heart and mind for a while – what does that feel like?

Many successful inventors, business people, spiritual people, ok all kinds of people have demonstrated that failure is the act of giving up. When you stop trying – you accept the failure. If you keep trying new things, learning all the time, you find what doesn’t work, and the things that didn't work are just more information on your way to success. Become inspired to look for another way that could work.

It’s an exercise in thinking and asking larger questions. What if you just experiment with it on your own, without the approval of anyone? Just decide to give it a go and see what happens. I first discovered this when I read Viktor Frankl’s book Man’s Search for Meaning. He was a psychiatrist and a survivor of the horrors of Auschwitz. Viktor discovered our fundamental freedom, the one no one can take from us no matter what he or she does to us. At one of the horrible points in captivity he thought, you can do what you want to my body, but you cannot make me hate. After that he worked to always find beauty in his surroundings. I highly recommend the book because we can truly grow and learn from others’ experiences.

If you’re feeling trapped and helpless spend some time thinking about anyone who was in a similar situation that got out of it. Because if anyone, even one person did it, well – so can you. Step one is to gather your strength and learn about others who found that there is a way.

I claimed my independence from a pretty difficult situation with the intention of changing my life. It’s not a light switch, it was more like creating an upward spiral while finding inspiration and opening myself up to the possibilities. I finally decided I was in fact worth it and I could be independent and my declaration was made at night, in the dark through tears.

What you think about your life, what you believe about yourself, and your willingness to work on clearing away stale “facts” of your life allows you to see the infinite possibilities. They are stepping stones on your path to move into your independence.

 Grab your ticket to this month's webinar

What Are You Thinking?

Tues 5/25 and Thurs 5/27/2021 6:00pm-7:30pm Central Time

Watch for news on upcoming webinars and on book signing events – post COVID-19! Sign up for the newsletter!

 Next Month: We are switching it up and talking about returning to the office in

Let's Get This Band Back Together!

A. Z. Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2021

A favorite book of mine is The Science of Getting Rich*. It’s not about making a big pile of money; it’s about enriching all aspects of life. Think about things like: our health, relationships, how we earn, and the environment in which we live.

While dealing with cancer, I found so much to be grateful for when it came to good health. Everything else was working. My biological system was affected, but my amazing system would recuperate. My heart pumped, and I could talk, read, comprehend, and write. Even at my worst, a whole lot was still going well, ok - except that I was bald. Plus, I could easily get to the freezer for my mint chocolate chip ice cream.

Wallace D. Wattles wrote about how everything begins with a thought, and my interpretation of his writing is that given enough time, that thought can become a belief and the belief can become a fact of our life. Repetitive thoughts and beliefs are signals to the Universe. They are tendrils sharing our desires, intentions, and expectations. The signals amplify when associated with emotional intensity. Emotions are the juice.

A [person's] way of doing things is the direct result of the way [s/he] thinks about things.

 

 - Wallace D. Wattles, The Science of Getting Rich (Virginia: Thrifty Books, 2009) Originally Published in 1910)

It doesn’t really matter if it is overwhelming gratitude for what we have or overwhelming despair over what we lack. When we focus our attention on something, the Universe reads it as our intention to have that, or more of that thing. After long periods of paying attention to something it becomes a belief like “I’ll Never Get Ahead!”  Yep, you’re right because you believe it and can even point to examples to prove it. When fueled by emotions like anger, frustration, and despair, your belief becomes a fact. Your reality, in this case, is that you can’t get ahead.

This works equally as well for both positive, and negative thoughts. For example, if you think, I’ll never get ahead, you get results that prove that thought to you.  When fueled by emotions like anger, frustration, and despair, your belief becomes your very own fact and reality. In this case, you chose to begin with the end of "you can’t get ahead".

So imagine the effect of pairing positive thinking, feeling, and beginning with a positive end in mind. This gives you responsibility for the life you would actually want to live. 

The message here is you can reverse the negative expectation that you may have. Begin by playing around with the concept of reframing your beliefs on something small.

Because I have found so much information on this topic and because I really enjoy the concept, I am offering a live What Are You Thinking? webinar in two parts on May 25 & 27, 2021 at 6:00 pm central time. 

Get Your Copy of C'mon Let's Play

If you believe that you are somehow less than other people, or that you’re stupid or unworthy of all the splendor the Universe has to offer, you’re not just speaking of yourself. The Universe is everywhere – right down to the smallest particles that make up everything, along with the spaces between. So, when you critique yourself, you’re actually critiquing the work of the Universe – is that really what you want to be doing?

I hope you’ll choose to enrich your life and give play around with this idea. Bring a little more joy into your life by changing just one negative thought about yourself or your capabilities. I’ll be sharing my first attempt in the May webinar. It’s accomplished by using the same process we’ve have used to find fault in ourselves. But now we’ll just come at it from the opposite direction.

Remember it’s 1.) what you’re thinking; 2.) how you’re thinking about what you’re thinking 3.) what you’re feeling about all what you're thinking. Okay, you might need to reread that a couple of times.

For this to work, you must be willing to play. To me, the payoff of being willing to play with all of this is to experience the freedom to think wonderful things about our lives and our possibilities. If you experience a lot of negative self-talk, it could take a little time, but just give it a try; C’mon Let’s Play!

 Save the dates for the webinar What Are You Thinking? 

Tues 5/25 and Thurs 5/27/2021 6:00pm Central Time

Watch for news the upcoming webinar and on book signing events – post COVID-19!

 Next Month: The Declaration is Independence!

 C’mon Let’s Play! Living, Playing and Moving Forward

A. Z. Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2021