A dream you don’t have to fight for isn’t a dream—it’s a nap. One changes your afternoon. The other changes your world. Keep fighting.
My wife took this photo the other day at a gas station. And I think it’s pretty weird.
If you can’t tell what’s happening, basically a guy in a truck has driven up next to a payphone so that he can make a phone call from his car.
Why is this photo so weird?
Because things have changed.
I think blogging is hard.
I’ve been doing it almost every day for the last four years and this is the conclusion I have come to.
It’s hard to build an audience, hard to create fresh content day after day, hard to know when it’s time to change things up and hard to know when you’ve strayed a long way from the goals that originally got you into blogging.
When I bump into those challenges, there’s someone I consistently turn to for help – Bryan Allain.
We’ve been friends for about three years now and he has generously helped me with any and every blog question I threw at him. Finally, after years of doing that for a lot of people, he wrote a book for bloggers.
It’s called “31 Days to Finding Your Blogging Mojo
I just bought a copy for myself. It’s only $4.99 and whether you’re a seasoned blogging pro or just starting to dip your toe in the water, this is an awesome book.
If you’re ready to overcome the blog challenges that wreck so many people before they really even get started on the fun experience a blog can really be, pick up a copy
Do you know why you have such great ideas in the shower?
Because it’s the only time in your life that you’re quiet enough to hear them.
Great ideas have to sneak up on you in the shower because the rest of your day is so loud.
Want to get better ideas starting today?
Last summer, my wife and I made a big decision.
After six years in Atlanta and 12 years in the same industry, we decided to move to Nashville. Why?
Because Dave Ramsey asked me to join his team.
A week ago, someone who follows me on Twitter tweeted this:
@jonacuff my wife read pg of Quitter and asked r u a Xian? I asked if she read your tweets? She said no bc you dont say funny stuff anymore
Awesome.
But there’s a really important principle in that tweet, and it’s only four words long.
Here it is:
A few years ago, I had a phone conversation with a screenwriter from one of the largest movie studios in the world.
He wanted to talk about turning my first book Stuff Christians Like
At first, I was excited but then I started getting really drunk on my own sense of awesomeness. I was getting arrogant and lost in the idea of the movie, until I talked to my daughter L.E., who was 5 at the time. Here’s how our conversation went:
A few years ago, I learned a parenting trick that changed my life. It wasn’t complicated. I didn’t find it buried in one of those 400-page-long, zero-pictures parenting books that you often assume everyone has read but you. It’s not even that long. You can master this trick in 4 seconds. What is it?
A friend asked me that question the other day, and I thought it might be good to answer it via video because it’s one that comes up a lot. Check out the clip, and let me know in the comments if you think authors need blogs .
Have you ever had writer’s block? Or maybe idea block? Or creative block?
In the midst of trying something new, have you ever bumped into a wall that seemed higher than you could climb?
I think everybody does at some point, whether you’re opening up a new business or trying to finish an album. I know I’ve had a creative block.
In the midst of writing my first book, I got stuck.
My creativity felt drained. My hope was gone. The project felt insurmountable. Surely someone smarter and funnier had already written the book I was going to write. Who was I to think I could write a book? I’ll never get done. Nobody will ever buy this book.
Those were the thoughts that bounced around my head, until a friend gave me a copy of a book that ended up saving my very own.
What book was it?
I like all three of those words.
And today, I actually get to use them. Why?
An organization called G5 Leadership is offering free leadership training to readers of this blog.
Normally, annual memberships are $129.
Today they are $0.
Just go to this page and enter code g5acuff
G5 Leadership is one of the best live, web training companies in the world. Think of G5 Leadership as a movie theater and the speakers and their topics as movies. G5 is a venue where people can go and select which “movies” they want to watch based on which topics are most important to them. It’s a great resource for anyone who wants to improve anything from overall leadership to individual elements like emotional intelligence.
Now if I were you, I would be thinking, “It’s probably free because the leaders doing the training are just a random collection of random guys with blue blazers, pleated pants, woven leather belts and anemic resumes/accomplishments.”
First off, well played on the woven leather belt idea.
Second, the leaders are actually the opposite of that. The leaders are ridiculously good.
My friend Tim Sanders, New York Times best-selling author of Love is the Killer App, is one of the leaders they work with. So is David Allen, author of the epic book Getting Things Done. And Bill Taylor, the founder of Fast Company magazine. And … you get the picture.
What/when is the next event?
G5’s next live keynote is on September 15th at 11am EST.
“Agreed” with David Marcum teaches you how to approach any negotiation and create the best outcomes for both sides. I am horrible at negotiating and need to watch this one.
The coolest thing about all of this? We get a free membership and, as a member, we can listen to any G5 leadership training event on-demand after the live session is over.
The desire to be a leader, grow as a leader, and serve as a leader is a pretty new experience for me. I’m going to do my best to partner with people/groups who I think can help me and you do that. I think G5 Leadership is one of those groups.