Sometimes trying to get the 10,000 foot view on my computer screen makes me loco. Coo coo for cocoa puffs. Even my beloved Stickie and Evernote notes overwhelm. Too small. Too crowded. Too much.
Ever get so busy living your creative life–flitting from writing and consulting, implementing and brainstorming (or your version of this)–that you don’t take enough time to strategize who can best do “what” to free you up to do what you do best? (That made sense, right?) If you don’t yet have anyone on your official biz “Team,” I’m talking about support even for the smallest of tasks that can be carried out via your husband, your best friend, or your printer down the street.
I used to do everything alone. Well, mostly. Hence, I never slept. (Sadly, that’s not much of an exaggeration.) Slowly, and out of dire necessity, I connected with talented, big-hearted folks with skills I didn’t have for things like design, website creation, app wizardry, membership building, tech support, and so on. “Team L” started to cobble together, and with it, my growing peace of mind and earlier (much) bedtime.
None of us is very effective alone (nor should we strive to be). But there also comes a time when, if you’re not careful, you’re not able to maximize the skills of your Team because you’re too busy doing your part while also enjoying, finally, time for things like play, self-nurturing, and SLEEPING. You become too distracted to see the forest for the trees, as they say.
So…
Today it’s Old School Day over here at BookMama headquarters (that’s code for my kitchen island). Today it’s about lighting a candle, pulling out the pads ‘o paper, and scripting it out. No computers. Just pen and note pads. Ahhh. Even this tiny ritual, this simple first step, has already made my shoulders drop and my breathing deepen.
Lord in heaven. Blessed be. I have a team. That I love.
With these angels by my side, thinking of all I love to do goes from sometimes stressful to far more prayerful. Whether I’m writing, updating Your Big Beautiful Book Plan (YBBBP), doing press for The Boyfriend Log app, talking with applicants for our 2015 Carmel writing retreats, connecting clients with agents, adding even more value to The Beautiful Writers Group with Danielle LaPorte, answering email + phone calls, and assorted BookMama things in the works, I can breathe…
Big virtual bear-hugs today to Betsy Rapoport, Liz Eastwood Lehman, Nikole Gipps, Alyssa Patmos, Terrisa Coobs, Paul Jarvis, Jake Morton, Sandra Goodall, Bawtree Software, Infusion Accounting, and Team DLP. I don’t know how I got so lucky, but a day doesn’t go by where I don’t thank God for you.
Here’s to closing out a very good year, and meeting the next one with joy and ease. And for anyone out there building your own team, think about lighting a candle and grabbing some paper and seeing what real + magical support you can cook up in your own kitchen. (And, yes, you can get it all down onto your computer and Stickies and Evernote notes later. Promise:))
Yours,
Linda xo
P.S. Want to thank someone on your team, affirm your Dream Team Wish List, or give us tips for what you’re doing that’s working? Share your thoughts below in the comments. Because it’s fun, this sharing stuff…
