Suzan Bond

…it took me some years to discover what I was.

Which was a writer.

By which I mean not a ‘good’ writer or a ‘bad’ writer but simply a writer, a person whose most absorbed and passionate hours are spent arranging words on pieces of paper.

Joan Didion

Thanks to Brain Pickings for reminding me of this quote. It's such a delicious quote about a topic I care deeply about. I too am a writer, compelled to pick up pencil and put to paper or to furiously type on a keyboard daily. Since I was a kid I've enjoyed many hours enamored with words on paper. While I've held a number of titles throughout my life–project manager, executive coach, CMO-for-Hire, buying assistant–being a writer is something that I am everyday regardless of my title. It's just a part of my genetic makeup. I simply can't help myself.

I have this notion that each of us have something that is so endemic to who we are that we are compelled to do it; a compulsion that comes within the deepest part of who you are. For me arranging words on paper is my compulsion. It helps me process my thoughts and to understand the world around me. When I am in my deepest despair you'll often find me curled into a corner of a library or bookstore. Once I've sorted through my thoughts I feel much more at ease. I suddenly know how to approach a problem or take a creative approach to a project. If I don't write for a day I just don't quite feel like myself.

Writing? It's just a part of who I am.

What is your compulsion? And what compels you to do it?

Lately I've been noticing the rash of writers who become chefs or take up serious cooking and then write a memoir about it. Of course by now you're probably familiar with Julie & Julia, the cooking experiment that became a movie and a worldwide phenomenon. You may or may not know about The Sharper Your Knife the Less You Cry in which a writer moves to France to become a chef. It's fantastic. Highly recommended. And now comes Apron Anxiety the memoir by Alyssa Shelasky that chronicles this writer's journey to becoming a foodie after dating this well-known reality chef.

Being a writer who is planning to write a book but is currently without a subject I'm starting to wonder if I should take up cooking? And…then I remember that while I adore good food–even consider myself a foodette–since I don't cook–I have no idea what to do with food except to eat it. And I don't enjoy preparing raw ingredients–like at all. The 10 minutes I spend preparing my green smoothie every morning aside–I have no talent at cooking food that people would actually want to eat. Sure, my dog loves everything I cook but then again she's eats anything she finds on the sidewalk so pretty sure she's not a good judge. In fact, it's pretty much a requirement for dating me that you know how to cook well. Or, love of good food and a willingness to eat out every night.  Also, I've lived with many chefs in part to get any of their delicious scraps. Given the evidence, or the lack of evidence of my cooking ability, I'm pretty sure writing a memoir about cooking is definitely not a good idea.

Still, memoirs about adventures in the kitchen are popular these days so perhaps I could whip something up (see what I did there?)  Here are some prospective titles:

Rosé, Prosecco and Tequila, Oh My!

All The Food My Ex-Boyfriend's Have Cooked

All the Ways I Can Make Toast

So…I'm thinking all of these will be voted down.

Shucks.

Back to dreaming up a new subject for my book.

It's been 10 years since I first heard about blogging. Those days I worked at an interactive agency during web 1.0. Back then updating content on a site practically required a degree or at least a minor in programming, so there were very few bloggers out there. OK. Maybe I'm being a bit facetious about the minor in programming but you definitely had to have some knowledge.

I only knew one blogger: Patric King.

He served as the Creative Director on several projects I led. A bang up designer, his voice was very clear–sarcastic, direct with a pretty good amount of bite to it.

His posts always sounded just like how he talked.

Although he worked hard to craft his blogging voice it never felt forced or contrived.

I loved it.

I loved that he  gave himself the freedom to articulate his thoughts even when they weren't NSFW. Which happened quite a bit.

These are some of my favorite posts:

- The one where he makes a packing list sound interesting.  And? You get a good sense of his personality. Through a list. Now that–is good writing.

- This beautiful aching rant is so intimate and raw. It's also right around the time the company we worked for was coming apart at the seams like the rest of those internet companies during the dot bomb. It reminds me of those early heady days on the web.

- Or, this short ditty about names. or, god save my fragile ego.

Sadly, I've fallen out of touch with pk (as he's also known) but thank god for the internets where his voice lives on for me. Although I wouldn't start blogging until a few years later he was my original inspiration.

pk was my blogging hero.

He was my champion for having my own unique voice.

And we all need one of those right?

ah, labor day. the gateway to fall and my favorite weekend of the year. i typically spend most of this weekend alone, reading, writing and reflecting on what i want for the rest of the year. this year's annual weekend wasn't too different than past years. well, maybe the first item was new. anyhow, here's what i did.

chased after a chicken to get it back in the coop.

discovered that i love gin. especially leopold's and caprock.

went yarn shopping for some amazing threads that soon will be made into something pretty and useful by the lovely and amazing sarah welch.

went out to a nice dinner wherein i proceeded to state that i would move for love. and then got called out for the truth. i would move for love. to new york, san francisco, london or paris. maybe denver.

had drinks with a dear friend.  attempted to take a self-portrait in the bathroom mirror. this i do at nearly every nice restaurant i go to when i remember to bring my phone in with me. one day i'll manage to take a good one.

watched a string 80's movies with nothing in common. dirty dancing, overboard, grease and blade runner. in truth, i only watched the first half of the last film, go depressed and then switched over to grease. one day i'll muster the spirits to watch the final half.

toured a craft brewery. and learned what a mash tun is. And that you're not supposed to go swimming in one.

slept in to a time that is way to late for someone over the age of 21.

read a book about a woman who traveled around the world to find true love and hoped i wouldn't have to do the same to find mine.

and…got back to blogging. put 3 more into the hopper. a post on this coming tomorrow.

what i didn't do

i didn't climb another 14er, yet. that's next weekend.

i didn't explore a new city. that will likely come later this year.

i didn't go to burning man. that may happen some time.

i didn't drink too much and regret it the next day. that's for another life time.

but i wasn't looking for these things. my quiet(ish) activities were the perfect to spend my favorite weekend.

so, how did you spend yours?

Be a ballerina like Natalie Portman in Black Swan? (Well, minus the crazy)

Be some other sort of performer?

Be an entrepreneur? One of my favorite VC bloggers, Mark Suster recently wrote a great post, Should You Really Be a Startup Entrepreneur? that was featured in the virtual tech bible, Tech Crunch. It really painted an accurate picture of what being an entrepreneur is all about. It's ALOT of hard work. It isn't always gratifying–especially in the short term.  Passion is likely a prerequisite for most. You're going to have to develop a thick skin to fend off all those no's until you get a yes. It reminds me of other similar posts written about other fields. There's this one, So You Wanna Be a Writer? which given the subject, is naturally written in the form of a poem–by Charles Bukowski.

The road to being successful professionally has a few things common. Here's how I see it:

- It's something you MUST do. Get ready to ride the up and downs.

- Practice. Practice. Practice.  Learn your craft. Well. Develop mastery. 10,000 hours according to this man.

- Two words: Dedication & Perseverance. Be willing forgo immediate rewards for longer term satisfaction or success.

The key to success begins with doing what you love and then a whole lot o' work. It's not all that glamorous. I know it's true. I've done it. I've watched , this entrepreneur, and this one among many others do it. If you want a life that is more remarkable than just punching the ole' time clock for 40 years while waiting for retirement it's something you MUST do. You want something better than mediocre right? It's not about being an entrepreneur. You can be a musician like Christine Bougie who follows these "rules." You can be anyone, doing anything. No matter your passion, you must be who YOU are. Follow what you naturally love to do (whatever that is) and become masterful at it.

Now get to work.

Future self. Imagine yourself five years from now. What advice would you give your current self for the year ahead? (Bonus: Write a note to yourself 10 years ago. What would you tell your younger self?)

- Floss your teeth every single day. Twice.

- Worry less, have more fun.

- Use your time most productively.

- You can do more than you think you can. Be the little engine that could.

- Be in the moment. In every moment possible.

- Save more money. It’ll make rainy days more pleasant.

- Forgive more easily. Have fewer regrets.

- Hone your technical prowess. (writing, photography, graphic design, coding)

- Have less in order to have more.

- Let go of anything that doesn’t serve you–immediately.

- Trust yourself more.

- Write, even just a few lines, everyday.

- Do what you want. Everything else will follow.

Try. What do you want to try next year? Is there something you wanted to try in 2010? What happened when you did / didn’t go for it?

There were a lot things I tried–and accomplished this year. More travel: 10+ cities. Climbing a 14er. Following the Paleo (eating) plan for more than 3 months. Speaking in front of nearly 900 people.

The thing I didn’t try enough of but will next year is simple. Writing.

Sure–I wrote this year. In fact I wrote 34 blog posts (including this one).  I’m always writing. At least in my head. Much of it never gets to written page because I’m otherwise occupied without a writing utensil (showering or driving typically). Sometimes it’s because I’m trying to write perfect first drafts. Other snippets get written down somewhere on a scrap piece of paper that I lose or that just never gets connected to something larger. Most of the time it’s because I don’t take the time to pull it together into a cohesive piece. Here are a few of my favorites that still need a home:

- My cape of shame.

- 24 years ago in my 18th year of breathing I had two crushing events whose impact has lingered until now. My 42nd year outside the safety of my mother’s womb.

- Just remember…we listen to ourselves.

- Why Nike’s Just Do It edict won’t help you just do it.

There are many more than this–probably better–well, hopefully better. In 2011 I will write more. Not just try. As the wise philosopher Yoda once said, “Do or do not. There is no try.” So I will do. Regardless of clients or other work. I will not just write but collect it into some sort of readable form and publish at least one book. Yep. I will write & publish at least one book in 2011.

Randomly…or maybe not so randomly…

I’d love to find a publisher to formally publish a new edition of this book and to publish my next one. Keep a look out for me huh? Remember: There is no try…do or do not.

Well hello again. Long time no…blog?? Did ya miss me? I missed you! Last week I spent a few days in New York visiting a dear friend. It was a fun  few days of madcap pace and folly’s–like running through Times Square–late to see Billy Elliot shrieking “Will run for theatre!” (Yep. True Story.) After that I slowed waaaaay down in the Bahamas on Exuma Island where I’ll be until just before the New Year.

11 Things. What are 11 things your life doesn’t need in 2011? How will you go about eliminating them? How will getting rid of these 11 things change your life?

#1 Drama (Especially other people’s drama.) Don’t want it. Don’t need it. Done with it.

#2 Clutter (Physical, mental…even social)

#3 Believing I can’t do (insert anything here)

#4 Sugar (Time to get rid of this…again)

#5 Doing the same things over and over again (Let this be a year of 1sts!)

#6 Being just a wee bit late (Sure it’s usually only 5 minutes but still)

#7 An overflowing inbox

#8 I forget what 8 was for but 9, 9…

#9 Thinking travel is too expensive & I don’t have time (More travel in 2011. And maybe, one day I’ll be a vagabond for a while like Andrew Hyde)

#10 Worrying about not being a true artist/writer/creative (and just create!)

#11 ______________________

I feel like those are the biggies that quickly spring to mind. I’m sure there are at least a couple of other things I just don’t need. What would you suggest as the 11th thing I don’t need in my life in 2011?

Community. Where have you discovered community, online or otherwise, in 2010? What community would you like to join, create or more deeply connect with in 2011?

2010 began for me with a relatively small community in my new city of Boulder. I had always wished to more. It quickly grew. In the past year I’ve discovered community with…

- The tech startup world of Boulder. I’d been out of that world for a while and it welcome surprise to find out that it still resonated and felt like home.

- Twitterers. I started following just a few and now have more than 700 (and growing) kindred spirits who enlighten, educate and entertain me daily.

- Boulder. Very livable city, great people, near the mountains. Enough said.

- The local fire community. I found this community by trying to support a dear friend during the massive Boulder Fire.  I’ve met incredible people who volunteer their time to fight fires and helped co-found an organization that raises money to support them.

- The dearest friends ever. Although I’ve lived in 5 cities, this is the place where I feel like I have the deepest and most connections I’ve ever had. Including Cali, the author of this prompt.

- Riders. As a baby snowboarder, they took me to the slopes and forced me to challenge myself–bringing out an inner athlete I didn’t know I had.

- Igniters. Geeky presentations that auto-advance every 15 seconds? I’m there. I was lucky enough to be able to speak at Ignite 10 & happily cheer on anyone with courage to speak in front of more than 900 people. If you have the chance–do it.

- My family. This year I really discovered how much I really love my family. How much I am like them. I’m very happy about that. My “other” family in Boulder is Atlas Purveyors. If you want to know where I am most days look here first. They not only know my name…they know my drink.

- Writers. Writing made a BIG comeback for me in 2010. Friends who are writers, 750words.com and Reverb 10 have provided a great home for this revival.

So those are (some) of my peeps. In the past I’ve had this habit of thinking that no one understands me. That I’m too unique. (A throwback from my tortured teenage days) If you hear this from me I give you full permission to put this post in my face as a reminder.

Yeah–I’d say I discovered Community with a capital C in 2010. Turns out it was pretty easy for me. This is a pretty big deal for someone who was convinced they never fit it. So, so, so looking forward to the deepening of this community and the new ones I create in 2011–especially with other tech entrepreneurs.

Make. What was the last thing you made? What materials did you use? Is there something you want to make, but you need to clear some time for it?

Let’s just be blunt. I’m not a good cook, drafter or painter (all proven). Given this lack of technical talent with my hands I tend “make” things that are generally less tangible. My raw materials are me.

I make…

- (er, write) books.

- New ideas every day.

- Friends easily.

- Meaning. From everything.

- Collections of my nieces’ art work.

- Decisions. Usually good ones.

- People smile cuz I’m usually riding the “fun bus.”

- Collections. (Buddhas, Ganeshas & Owls are my favorites)

- Things happen. You want something done? I’m your person.

- People feel accepted & cared for.

- Community and connections wherever I go.

- A mess of my room & then clean it up–daily.

- People (including clients & my dog) do things they don’t know they can do.

On a tangible note: I used to bake. Biscuits from scratch. Vegan cookies that tasted “real.” I once even made chicken pot pie. OK–I made the crust and assisted with the chopping. My Kitchen Aid mixer is one of the favorite material things I own. I plan to get back to it one day.

Right now though…the things I really want to make more of are books. Like the one I wrote on one of my favorite topics. I’m off on a nearly month-long trip in a few days where I intend to write more books.

And you? What do you like to make? How do you make time for it?