Notes from Minnesota

Hey Freelancers!

I can't believe it's '08 already. I'm beginning to feel old. :)

I was thinking about you guys last month while at my husband's annual sheet metal Christmas party.

It's quite a deal. All these deaf guys (they pound sheet metal all day) talking loud, having a blast, talking shop.

Talking shop: that's something most freelancers don't get to do much.

Ours is a solitary profession. That's often just fine, but I sure get charged up when I hang out with other “crazy folk” just like me.

So, I decided to do something about my (and perhaps your) lack of “talking shop.”

I'm hosting a monthly Freelance Round Table where a bunch of us just get together and discuss a topic. It's like a writing group via the phone lines. We'll pick a discussion topic, chat about it, then throw caution to the wind and shoot the breeze for a while.

Sounds kinda fun. And the freelancers I've talked to about this agree.

Here's the rub, though. I've got nearly 10k freelancers who will read this message. I'm purposely keeping the numbers of the Round Table low so we can have a decent discussion without too much background noise.

That's why I'm keeping this activity limited to the people who have subscribed to the Creative Mindset Newsletter.

So, if you want a great thought-provoking, profit producing, chuckle inducing, mind expanding newsletter topped with free teleseminars, free books, special reports, meditation CDs AND a monthly writing discussion via the telephone, be sure to check out the CMN.

I LOVE chatting with freelancers and found the teleseminar environment to be a little too restrictive for me. That's why I dreamed up the Freelancer Round Table.

I hope you'll join me!

Best,

Beth

P.S. Just click here for all the juicy info.

Beth's Hot Pick of the Week

Ohmygosh! When this author e-mailed and told me the title of his book, I didn't believe him. No way, no how could he put into one short volume, everything you need to know to be a six figure freelancer. Now... I'm not talking six figure copywriter, I'm talking six figure freelancer. Big difference.

Sound a little hypey? Yup. I worried about that.

But he sent me a copy. And I read. And read. And before I knew it, I was devouring it.

Great stuff. If you're a serious freelancer, highly recommended. (I even learned a few new tricks. They're working very well for me.) Yippee!

Kudos, David!

Click here to find out more.

The January Issue of The Creative Mindset Newsletter

Resolutions? Bah humbug.

I'm anti-resolution, pro-productivity, pro-fun, pro-getting paid what you're worth.

Subscribers will also receive a top secret phone number, date, time, and entrance code to the first ever Freelancer Round Table. Yup. We're getting together to talk shop. Of course, it's free for every one of 'em. :)

The January issue of CMN is all about the above minus the resolutions.

Here's the link: http://filbertpublishing.com/creative.html

P.S. Did you know that every single subscriber to the Creative Mindset Newsletter will also receive Filbert Publishing's next meditation CD titled, “Blasting Through Writing Blocks”? You missed the last one, don't miss the next. Also, you'll get in on every Writing Etc. teleseminar absolutely free. Sign up today to get all the juicy info.

A Tale of Two Lives

Beth Ann Erickson

Two family members. Two circumstances.

Family member one developed cancer twenty years ago (give or take). He's fighting bout number four this holiday season.

The man wants to live.

My New Years celebration consisted of being the family point person, relaying his latest health information to other family members, at one point reporting the nurses and hospital Chaplain wanted the family to say their final farewells.

They refused to let him go and opted for the ventilator instead.

Last I heard, he'd pulled out the tube and was conscious.

A million decisions resulted in the moment where he lies speaking with his family.

No. He's not out of the woods. But he finds himself exactly where he is.

Family member number two, supposedly on her way to alcohol treatment. DUI, three times the legal limit early December. Her daughter was in the car. Husband in jail. Kids taken from her home. Dragging feet on her way to “treatment.”

The anger's palpable. Whoever doesn't do exactly what she wants, when she wants it, is on her personal sh*t list.

It's been surreal watching a beautiful vibrant young woman succumb to the ravages of alcoholism, the horrible transformation from a caring, empathic person to a self centered, the-world-revolves-around-me, everyone's-done-me-wrong, alcoholic mentality.

The road to alcoholism is paved with a million little decisions.

And this leads me to you.

The tiny, seemingly unimportant decisions you make each day have a profound effect on where you find your writing career today.

Sure, fate has a hand in many of life's circumstances. But overall, we spend every moment making little decisions that when culminated will lead us exactly where we were yesterday, where we are today, where we'll find ourselves in the future.

Want to skip writing today? Sure. Go ahead. But how will that small decision impact your tomorrow. Don't feel like marketing. It's your decision. But don't whine when you aren't earning what you'd like.

Sound harsh? When you consider the alternative, it really isn't, is it? Life can be harsh. It can be a joy. It all depends on myriad of decisions you make today.

And if you really want to bend your mind into a pretzel, ponder this for a moment: these little decisions have the power to give someone with incurable cancer a few more days to live. They also possess the power to decimate a young woman's life. But when you think about it, what is the worse fate? Living in untouchable pain those last few days or the chance at a new beginning, a (somewhat) clean slate.

I guess the answer to those questions is in itself a decision, isn't it?

So, as we begin '08, I want you to ponder your little decisions, the seemingly unimportant actions you choose to take part in. Where do you want to find yourself one year from today? I'm quite positive that family member number one isn't thrilled with where he's found himself today although I'm sure he's pleased to have a few more days on the planet... for now. I'm equally positive that family member number two has a long road to health, continually unbraiding and repairing unhealthy decisions she made long ago.

Without waking up and becoming consciously aware of all these (often) unconscious decisions, there's no telling where we'll end up. Without a road map of some sort, your writing career can wind up no where near your ultimate goal, your original dream.

And because of these profoundly sad circumstances, I'm holed up in my office pondering where I find myself today, my ultimate goals, what my future holds. It's a sobering activity.

I hope you'll take a few moments do the same thing.

~~~

Beth Ann Erickson is the “Queen Bee” of Filbert Publishing. She’s also the author of numerous titles including “101 No Cost and Low Cost Secrets To Turbo Charge Your Freelance Income.” Pick up your copy today at http://filbertpublishing.com/101.html She’s also a busy copywriter, speaker, and publisher of Writing Etc., the free e-mag for writers. 

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