If I had difficulty accepting the fact that I survived writing one essay a week for a year, then two years, it comes as a major shock to me to accept the fact that I have now been doing it for three years. Remarkable, to say the least! It is not just the fact that I have now published on the blog 156 essays (representing approximately 156,000 words!), but that it has taken place uninterrupted, that I had enough “unique” ideas to come up with that many essay topics, and that I have not only maintained interest in doing it but have had great fun as well.
I keep a list of the essays I write, and when one of them is posted on the blog, I put a big, bold, checkmark next to it. In that way, it helps me not to repeat posting an essay previously posted. I just counted the number of essays on the list without a checkmark next to it, and that total is 42. Forty-two unchecked essays represents ten essays short of a full year of essays, so the stockpile is sufficient, and essays are currently posted through the end of 2010. (There must be a stockpile to allow me time to pursue my other writing projects.)
Some of the essays I write are for cathartic release and will never see the light of publication on the blog. They are written for my own personal delight and satisfaction!
For this anniversary essay, I want to talk about more than simply what I have and haven’t learned from writing essays or the contentment and joy that has resulted from writing them. I have mentioned both of these in the previous two anniversary essays. Rather, I want to take a brief moment here to take stock. At the risk of sounding totally self-absorbed, self-indulgent, and self-important, I simply ask readers of my essays to allow my self-obsession in this single essay. This is my “taking stock” opportunity, and despite the egotism it reflects (those who know me well would never suspect the least bit of egotism! —I need a smiley emoticon here!), I will proceed unabated.
I took courses and fulfilled my master’s degree requirements with hours. I never wrote a master’s thesis at the University of Michigan, and I regretted passing on that opportunity, but it was the easiest route to completing the degree before leaving for Indiana University. I had written a number of papers for the courses I took, and I felt that I was a good writer (egotism displayed early!)
More papers accumulated at Indiana along with a dissertation, “The History of the Lyceum Movement in Michigan, 1818-1860.” The writing of that dissertation taught me two things: 1) I was not a very good writer, and 2) I could be a much better writer. But, the dissertation launched me on a professional academic career that lasted over thirty years.
The reason that choice—“a professional academic career”—is important is simply the “publish or perish” commandment that accompanies the choice. Some academics condemn it; some attempt to avoid it (often those drop out of academia); and some try to substitute for publications, other work (e.g., presenting papers at conferences, directing radio or theater productions, or serving in administrative positions). I accepted it and abided by it.
What “publish or perish” did for me was provide the motivation to write, and the beginning of my professional academic career certainly offers a benchmark for a high-level of productivity. I have to say, too, that there was another reason involved. Money. Financial incentives resulted primarily from publications, and when I determined that most of my faculty colleagues were not publishing and that an annual pool of “merit money” was available for distribution, I did everything in my power to obtain a portion of that pool—annually.
During my professional career I had 16 of my speeches published in Vital Speeches of the Day, and I wrote close to 100 “scholarly” publications. I place the word “scholarly” in quotation marks for a couple of reasons. First, most of the writing I did was of an instructional nature, and although the journals where those articles were published were academic, many were not really labeled “scholarly.” Second, when you read sophisticated theoretical articles that argued, advanced, or proposed new theories and then you read my contributions, you would quickly come to the conclusion that mine were not “scholarly”—academic yes, but not scholarly.
In 1973, a colleague of mine, Saundra Hybels, whom I met in a graduate class at the University of Michigan, asked me to co-author a college textbook called, Speech/Communication. This is when my textbook writing began. Counting just the textbooks (and not each of the revisions), I wrote close to ten. A couple of those were very successful. My book, Understanding Interpersonal Communication, went through seven editions, and my book (co-authored through 1999 with Hybels) Communicating Effectively, went through ten editions.
Because college textbook writing produces its own financial rewards, textbooks are given little credit when it comes to distributing merit. It is for this reason—as well as the desire to write a great new book (there’s that ego coming into play again!)—that two of my professional colleagues and I chose to write the book, Research in Speech Communication. At that time, it was considered the book for beginning graduate courses in speech communication.
When I began writing textbooks, I often thought about the time I could retire from teaching and just write for a living. When I chose to take early retirement from college teaching, I was able to spend time writing other things than “scholarly” articles and textbooks.
It was only after retirement from teaching that I began writing essays for The (Toledo) Blade—and only after the minister of our church at that time, talked about one of his that had been rejected. He cited the perameters of published essays in his sermon. I had sixteen published, but it ended abruptly with the retirement of the editor who began the column, “Saturday Essay.”
That was the time—the termination of that Blade column—that the web site, www.andthensomeworks.com was launched, and I began writing weekly essays and soon after, a five-day-a-week blog.
Soon after the creation of the blog came the establishment of my own publishing company, And Then Some Publishing, LLC, and the publication of my first collection of 50 essays, And Then Some: Essays to Entertain, Motivate, and Inspire, Having proven successful, I went on to publish five more books or collections: 1) Public Speaking Rules: All You Need for a GREAT Speech! 2) SMOERs: Self-Motivation, Optimism, Encouragement Rules, 3) You Rules—Caution: Contents Leads to a Better Life, 4) Relationship Rules: For Long-Term Happiness, Security, and Commitment, and 5) Laugh Like There’s No Tomorrow: Over 2,000 Jokes from the Internet.
That is the way my writing career has progressed; thus, this anniversary is more than a celebration of 156 published essays. It is, for me, a personal celebration that represents a successful writing career with more essays and books to follow. What’s fun about that is simply that it has been a writing career—And Then Some!
-----
At the Writer’sDigest web site, at “There Are No Rules,” Jane Friedman writes a delightful little essay, “Your Writing Career May Depend on Someone You Never Meet,” about Andrew R. Malkin. Friedman writes: “Read that blog entry describing [Malkin’s] history and his shift into the electronic book publishing industry and you may come to understand better "what" is happening to ebook publishing as the big guys take over, and why they do what they do despite anything we can do or be or become.”
At the web site, Best Children’s Books, Steve Barancik has written an essay entitled, “Here's an HONEST writer's bio of me, Steve Barancik....” This is an entertaining, very insightful, autobiography (year-by-year) of Barancik. What is so interesting about his development as a writer is that he is brutally honest. So, if you have any desire to become a writer, this is a great place to begin. Congratulations Steve! Great essay.
-----
Copyright September, 2010, by And Then Some Publishing, LLC.
Showing posts with label Weaver essays. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Weaver essays. Show all posts
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Get Organized
I’ve never been convinced that “organization skills” can be taught; those who are organized can become better organized, and for those whose natural inclination is chaos — disorganization — you can offer guidelines, suggestions, and recommendations and, if you’re lucky, some may penetrate and get used, but in the end, I think, disorganization tends to win out because of the habitual penchant toward disarray. I have no evidence of this, just an observation based on teaching organization skills for 30 years.
I wonder whether those whose lives — at least behind the scenes — tend to be messy and haphazard might be encouraged to make changes if they knew the benefits of getting organized. The key to remember is, “Organized minds make successful people.” At Life Organizers.com, Maria Gracia, in an essay entitled, “10 Little-Known Benefits of Getting Organized,” lists ones that I have discovered in my life as well. The first one is that becoming organized will give you more time to relax. When things are in their proper places, you can find them quickly, but you must remember to put them back for the next time. Remembering to put them back is difficult, especially for procrastinators who will always claim, “I’ll do that later.” Just that little act — remembering to put them back — is likely to be a key to lowering blood pressure and stress.
Another benefit is that getting organized will give you more time to do other things. I am often asked, “How do you get so much accomplished?” The simple answer is organization. I always wish I could be more organized, but if you are a workaholic, the pay off is clearly in the bottom line — quantity. Quality occurs in how you go about getting the results. More time to do other things includes more time for yourself, loved ones, family, and friends.
For me, Gracia’s fourth benefit is especially important: feeling good about your environment. Often, just before beginning a new writing project, I will clean up my entire study and try to get rid of all the excessive and unnecessary pages or manuscripts. My problem is clutter, it is true, but what is most important is that I know where things are when I need them.
Professional improvement and being a role model do not concern me as much as Gracia’s final, tenth, benefit: “You'll achieve more. When you're disorganized, there are always barriers that keep you from reaching your goals. But organized people find ways to eliminate tasks that aren't necessary and to streamline those that are taking too much time. This leaves plenty of time to work on achieving all of those goals on your list.”
It may be that none of these are sufficiently enticing, or it may be that even though they are, you may still wonder how you — personally — can get organized. My suggestions are incredibly easy and, for me, successful. Often, the primary problem boils down to one thing: you! You are likely to be your own worst enemy. There are four overall characteristics that will guide you in following each of the suggestions: 1) commitment, 2) self-discipline, 3) eliminate procrastination, and 4) ignore distractions. If just a little push is necessary to start the process, then here is that push.
My first suggestion is to begin using a planner. This is more important for those who have a lot of appointments or for those whose days are so varied that it is difficult to keep track of the schedule. You can do this the old-fashioned way with a pocket-sized notepad, or use a PDA, Blackberry or palm Pilot. With a PDA, if you back it up at least once a week, and back up your computer at least once a month, you will always have a copy of your address book, calendar, and task list.
Closely related to using a planner is the “to-do-list.” I like daily lists, then those items not completed are simply carried over to the next list. When very busy, it helps to free your mind so you can concentrate on what you’re doing right now: you just don’t have to think or worry that you might forget to do something. PDAs hold lists, prioritize items, and assign each a due date.
Making a “to-do-list” is also useful for combining similar activities. For example, I have a list for everything I want to do when I get in the car to run errands. Order on this list is important for saving time. Completeness is important for finishing everything in a single trip. You can get organized in much the same way by doing things at the same time: making your phone calls, paying your bills, and getting your e-mails answered.
Another simple suggestion is to organize your work space. The space I work in is extremely important. Give everything you use and need a separate, convenient, and clearly designated space. Everything I need is at my fingertips — paper, dictionary, thesaurus, pens, pencils, markers, scissors, rulers, tape, stapler, a clock, telephone, and supporting books and documents. What is unnecessary is thrown out. Examine how you use your space and design it to be efficient and convenient.
Related to space concerns is the aphorism, “A place for everything and everything in its place” to which I just referred. Find a specific place for your keys, cell phone and charging station, checks (if you use them) and bills. I also have a place for my wallet, daily journal, dark glasses, pen, single blade knife, lip balm, and change. When leaving the house no time is spent looking for essentials.
Another simple suggestion for getting organized is multi-tasking. Technology has assisted. Organize your study, a drawer or cabinet, or do dishes while talking on the phone. Fold clothes or towels while watching television. Listen to books-on-tape while driving
Realize that making these changes overnight — as small as some of them are — is almost impossible. Change cannot take place that quickly. Disorganization is as much a habit as getting organized, once it is accomplished. Make little changes, starting for example, with one small area of your life or living area — papers, computer files, clothes, linen closet, kitchen, mail, children’s room. When successful there, move on to another area. Now, reward yourself for the completion of each goal you set — a night at a favorite restaurant, a movie, or a relaxing walk in the park. Getting organized may be tough, but the rewards make it worthwhile; it is an important area for self-improvement.
-----
At WebMD, there are at least 16 tips on how to get organized in the essay there, “How to get organized—Finally!”—an essay by Hara Estroff Marano reprinted from Psychology Today. Just enter “Get organized” into the Google search window, and you will get nearly 20 million hits.
At WikiHow, there is so much information in the essay, “How to be organized,” that just reading it or clicking on the additional resources icons will keep you busy for a day or two. This is an excellent website.
There are 13 suggestions in the essay, “How to get organized,” at the eHow.com website. I have discovered—as I’m sure you know already—that organizing skills at home or at work, carry over nicely into all other areas of your life; thus, putting these ideas into practice will assist you in a wide variety of areas.
-----
Copyright August, 2010, by And Then Some Publishing, LLC.
I wonder whether those whose lives — at least behind the scenes — tend to be messy and haphazard might be encouraged to make changes if they knew the benefits of getting organized. The key to remember is, “Organized minds make successful people.” At Life Organizers.com, Maria Gracia, in an essay entitled, “10 Little-Known Benefits of Getting Organized,” lists ones that I have discovered in my life as well. The first one is that becoming organized will give you more time to relax. When things are in their proper places, you can find them quickly, but you must remember to put them back for the next time. Remembering to put them back is difficult, especially for procrastinators who will always claim, “I’ll do that later.” Just that little act — remembering to put them back — is likely to be a key to lowering blood pressure and stress.
Another benefit is that getting organized will give you more time to do other things. I am often asked, “How do you get so much accomplished?” The simple answer is organization. I always wish I could be more organized, but if you are a workaholic, the pay off is clearly in the bottom line — quantity. Quality occurs in how you go about getting the results. More time to do other things includes more time for yourself, loved ones, family, and friends.
For me, Gracia’s fourth benefit is especially important: feeling good about your environment. Often, just before beginning a new writing project, I will clean up my entire study and try to get rid of all the excessive and unnecessary pages or manuscripts. My problem is clutter, it is true, but what is most important is that I know where things are when I need them.
Professional improvement and being a role model do not concern me as much as Gracia’s final, tenth, benefit: “You'll achieve more. When you're disorganized, there are always barriers that keep you from reaching your goals. But organized people find ways to eliminate tasks that aren't necessary and to streamline those that are taking too much time. This leaves plenty of time to work on achieving all of those goals on your list.”
It may be that none of these are sufficiently enticing, or it may be that even though they are, you may still wonder how you — personally — can get organized. My suggestions are incredibly easy and, for me, successful. Often, the primary problem boils down to one thing: you! You are likely to be your own worst enemy. There are four overall characteristics that will guide you in following each of the suggestions: 1) commitment, 2) self-discipline, 3) eliminate procrastination, and 4) ignore distractions. If just a little push is necessary to start the process, then here is that push.
My first suggestion is to begin using a planner. This is more important for those who have a lot of appointments or for those whose days are so varied that it is difficult to keep track of the schedule. You can do this the old-fashioned way with a pocket-sized notepad, or use a PDA, Blackberry or palm Pilot. With a PDA, if you back it up at least once a week, and back up your computer at least once a month, you will always have a copy of your address book, calendar, and task list.
Closely related to using a planner is the “to-do-list.” I like daily lists, then those items not completed are simply carried over to the next list. When very busy, it helps to free your mind so you can concentrate on what you’re doing right now: you just don’t have to think or worry that you might forget to do something. PDAs hold lists, prioritize items, and assign each a due date.
Making a “to-do-list” is also useful for combining similar activities. For example, I have a list for everything I want to do when I get in the car to run errands. Order on this list is important for saving time. Completeness is important for finishing everything in a single trip. You can get organized in much the same way by doing things at the same time: making your phone calls, paying your bills, and getting your e-mails answered.
Another simple suggestion is to organize your work space. The space I work in is extremely important. Give everything you use and need a separate, convenient, and clearly designated space. Everything I need is at my fingertips — paper, dictionary, thesaurus, pens, pencils, markers, scissors, rulers, tape, stapler, a clock, telephone, and supporting books and documents. What is unnecessary is thrown out. Examine how you use your space and design it to be efficient and convenient.
Related to space concerns is the aphorism, “A place for everything and everything in its place” to which I just referred. Find a specific place for your keys, cell phone and charging station, checks (if you use them) and bills. I also have a place for my wallet, daily journal, dark glasses, pen, single blade knife, lip balm, and change. When leaving the house no time is spent looking for essentials.
Another simple suggestion for getting organized is multi-tasking. Technology has assisted. Organize your study, a drawer or cabinet, or do dishes while talking on the phone. Fold clothes or towels while watching television. Listen to books-on-tape while driving
Realize that making these changes overnight — as small as some of them are — is almost impossible. Change cannot take place that quickly. Disorganization is as much a habit as getting organized, once it is accomplished. Make little changes, starting for example, with one small area of your life or living area — papers, computer files, clothes, linen closet, kitchen, mail, children’s room. When successful there, move on to another area. Now, reward yourself for the completion of each goal you set — a night at a favorite restaurant, a movie, or a relaxing walk in the park. Getting organized may be tough, but the rewards make it worthwhile; it is an important area for self-improvement.
-----
At WebMD, there are at least 16 tips on how to get organized in the essay there, “How to get organized—Finally!”—an essay by Hara Estroff Marano reprinted from Psychology Today. Just enter “Get organized” into the Google search window, and you will get nearly 20 million hits.
At WikiHow, there is so much information in the essay, “How to be organized,” that just reading it or clicking on the additional resources icons will keep you busy for a day or two. This is an excellent website.
There are 13 suggestions in the essay, “How to get organized,” at the eHow.com website. I have discovered—as I’m sure you know already—that organizing skills at home or at work, carry over nicely into all other areas of your life; thus, putting these ideas into practice will assist you in a wide variety of areas.
-----
Copyright August, 2010, by And Then Some Publishing, LLC.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
