Today, I got a great reminder from Michael Hyatt on the keys to being a successful creative.
7 WAYS SUCCESSFUL CREATIVES THINK DIFFERENTLY THAN UNSUCCESSFUL ONES It Takes More Than Talent
It’s definitely worth reading. Too often, creative people rely on talent. It also takes the right attitude, the ability to work with teams and do the hard work. It’s a great reminder that talented people don’t get a free pass to be difficult geniuses.
I have to brag on my wife. She is a children’s pastor and very big on equipping her volunteers. The other week, she had a training for her volunteers. It didn’t involve push-ups or burpees. Instead, it focused on relationships and building connections with parents as well as children.
One of the scariest situations anyone ever faces is when they enter a new situation without any training or preparation. It is much better to put in the sweat and prepare yourself for any situation. One of the most important tasks anyone can do is work with children. I am so appreciative of the teachers and volunteers that put in the effort every day to be the best at reaching kids.
I drew this cartoon for Kidzmatter Magazine.
In September 2016, I wrote a blog post for Phoenix-based Career Connectors. It covered two of my favorite subjects; Evernote and LinkedIn.
In my job search, I found both of these to be valuable for keeping track of new contacts, as well as networking efforts. Evernote has made a great effort to make the best use of scanned documents and business cards. Even if you aren’t currently job searching, you will find this article helpful.
Last week, I was surprised to find the local coffee spot was closed at 6:00 PM. It is supposed to be open until 9:00 PM. There was no sign, just a dark storefront. So I sent the following tweet:
When your @Kroger @Starbucks is closed at 6 PM. #mourning #notpossible #smalltownproblems
— Kevin Spear (@KevinHSpear) November 1, 2016
The reason I sent it wasn’t because I was upset. It was partly because this wasn’t the first time this Starbucks storefront had been closed. Once it was in the middle of the afternoon for a water problem. Also, it was partly because I was curious how these two companies I like and value would respond. How did they respond? Cue the crickets, please. That’s right, I got no response. No apology. No acknowledgment. Life went on. My wife and I went back to the church, I found a Keurig pod and we enjoyed a little caffeine on a
And how did they respond? Cue the crickets, please. That’s right, I got no response. No apology. No acknowledgment. Life went on. My wife and I went back to the church, I found a Keurig pod and we enjoyed a little caffeine on a fine fall evening.
If you listen to the news media for very long, you get the feeling everything is falling apart and everyone is ready to strangle each other. It can leave you with a feeling of fear and despair. You get the impression apocalypse has already come and the only thing left to do is write off the world and call it a day.
But if you unplug, take a drive across the country, and get out into nature, you get an entirely different feeling. The forests are unaffected by news hype. Mountains and valleys care little about the elections and the latest violence to hit the streets. True, what mankind does to nature affects it. But the story mankind tells itself is much scarier than the reality of a quiet trail, or a babbling brook. Just don’t take in some media before you leave. You’ll probably see a story about a man-eating cougar, a rabid bear or a bigfoot sighting.
The news media itself is suffering from downsizing and cutthroat competition. Perhaps the media loves to scare us because the typical news reporter is scared he or she will lose their job next week. Perhaps when you focus on the worse of humanity, you begin to believe your own hype.
It is so much easier to focus on the worst of humanity. It is so much more difficult, but rewarding to balance it with the good of nature as well as the best of humanity. It is out there. You just have to be intentional and escape the 24 hour news cycle once in a while.