“Times like these…”


Research your own experiences for the truth…

Absorb what is useful…

Add specifically your own…

The creating individual is more than any style or substance.

                                                                          Bruce Lee

There are quite a few things that I am still trying to work out. Anger, frustration and just plain exhaustion are never useful when it comes to get any creative efforts done with any satisfaction.

There are times when you just have to take a pause. But life goes on regardless of the conditions you are in.

Sometimes, you try to keep different parts of your life separate from each other. Sometimes it works. And sometimes it does not.

The picture here is of the Ropes Course, that I have been part of for about 28 years now. I am not going to mention the name of the organization here. The reason is that I try to keep what do here and what I have to do on the course separate.

As for the Ropes Course I have acquired “knowledge” over the years. I would never call myself the be all and end all “expert”. I do not believe they truly exist. And I try to avoid any long term contact with anyone claiming to be one. The reason is every time I run the course I learn something new or have to deal with a situation I never encountered before. There is process on the course. And that process need to be run over and over again while making adjustments to conditions on hand at the moment.

The Ropes Course has a series of events that designed to help people with team building, problem solving, trust, planning, decision-making, communication, leadership and self-esteem. The course has had its “ups and downs” over the years. The problem is that this is an “experience’ and it is not “required” for advancement. We live in a society at the moment that is more fixed on checking off a box. Plus, people do not want to risk having an experience without a guarantee on the outcome. All I can do on the course is set the “Parameters” the actual “Experience” is what the person is willing to do with it in that moment. I also think the more memorable experiences happen when they come without a preconceived notion. Or one that was required beforehand.

I only am mentioning this because a similar thing happened (and still is) with my writing.

Steven Pressfield’s idea of Resistance as he described in his book The War of Art is dead on accurate. I can testify to that. But would anyone listen?

It has been hard to get any real face to face feedback on what I write. I do not like talking to people who stare at floors. And two word answers are not very useful, And certainly not very engaging. But it is what is. Being acknowledged and to be in some validated is the Mirage on the Edge of Cyberspace. I have to move towards it but getting there may not happen. Using WebStats is not the best Metric either. Social media can be very (for the lack of a better term) Temperamental border lining on Apathetic. It just the most available promotion tool at this time on the Internet.

Ben’s essay The Kind of Writer You Want to Be started me thinking. And where to begin. So I am starting with the Blog. I like when I get ideas that are in my head out. I have Stream of Conscience going when I write many of them. I like getting ideas out and how they may be related to other ones. Basically, it is more about where I find myself in that moment. I know I am not for everyone. Believe me. But the blog is first for myself to get those ideas out. And see where they may go. But I hope that if someone reads the post they may find something for themselves in it. Or would be to add something I may not have considered. The blog is where I find myself at that Present Moment

As for long term writing goals, I am going to follow the advice of Derek Sivers Keep Your Goals to Yourself. But I will say, it involves fictional writing.

To borrow an idea from baseball.

You can have what is considered to be a successful career by being a .250 hitter. Who is also .750 comes to Swing and A Miss.

As I have to remind myself on the course start with the process and keep working it. Stop over thinking the end Product. Be present in the moment.

Also I need to remember to keep an eye and an ear out for things that may help along the way. And pass them along.

Finally, give credit when it’s due.

#OurCreativeBoat is courtesy of Mentorless.com. There are a lot of articles there I have bookmarked for later reading. The problem is I do not have Internet access at work due to company policy. And Windows 10 does not save articles for off line reading. Does anyone have a solution for this problem?

#ShowYourWork is courtesy of Austin Kleon and his book “Show Your Work”. It is book I continue to reference as a reminder for myself.

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