Passions, Part 8: spunkybean and Writing

Remember way back 2 or 3 years ago when spunkybean was this idea for a pop-culture site, but really was just a place I’d write about American Idol? Well, unlike many “crazy ideas” I’ve had, I’ve kept at this one (unlike my idea for a “hands free” device for your car that looks like two hands holding a steering wheel at “10” and “2” that would keep a person from being pulled over by the cops, because they’d always see two hands on the wheel …they’d also see four hands if you were then steering with your knees and using your real hands to smoke a cigarette and talk on the phone …still working out the kinks).

Where was I? Oh, yes. spunkybean. It’s clippin’ along. We have added another writer who does fashion reviews of award shows and helps me recap The Bachelor. Plus, I also have a “web guy” and not like a Spiderman “web guy” …but a super smart guy who knows about computers and webpage building and analytics. He’s been doing some great things and we’ve now got nearly 50,000 readers each month. Cool right.

For the record, my recaps of last night’s Top-12 Girls and Tuesday night’s Top-12 Boys are posted. I may have uncovered a vast right-wing conspiracy, to boot.

Then, get this …while writing as a hobby, somehow I’ve been able to pick up a few clients who pay me to write stuff for them. In their voice. So that means, with spunkybean in the mix, I’m currently writing about pop-culture, luxury real-estate, triathlons, and now …this will blow your mind …metaphysics. Not to mention the book I’m co-authoring on “sales” and general motivation. Things are really happening.

So …feel free to leave a comment saying “congrats” or “wow, Don! I marvel at you.” It would be appreciated.  And if all that wasn’t cool enough, someone who read my previous entry about Patrick Stumps solo EP called to tell me that Patrick Stump had done a recording session with Daryl Hall of all people. Yes …the Daryl Hall from Hall & Oates. And on YouTube there’s like seven songs which is totally awesome because (a) I’ve always loved Hall & Oates and (b) I really dig Patrick Stump, formerly of Fall Out Boy. So …if you are me, you will def’ enjoy this offering. And if you are sorta like me, or just want to give it a listen …here’s Daryl Hall and Patrick Stump performing Fall Out Boy’s “Sophomore Slump.” Enjoy.

Inspiration, Part 10: The Daily Success Journal, Day 2

I think I figured out why I didn’t ever finish Tony Robbins’s “Personal Power II” originally. It’s because I locked myself into this “must do this for thirty days straight – 30 days, no more, no less”, and when I got off course, I quit. Pretty much what I do with everything. If Bilbo had entrusted “the Ring” to me …well, Middle Earth would’ve been screwed. What were those things? Orcs? Um, yes, I would avoid any situation where those things might’ve been looking for me.

Anyway, as some of you know, I have a full time job and three kids and a wife (and, no, I’m not comparing any of them to Orcs), so thinking I can do anything for 30-days straight is fool-hearty. Heck, and those of you with kids can back me up on this …even making a goal like “sleep through the night” or “eat” for 30 straight days can very easily get derailed when you add kids into the mix.

So, here I am …Day 2, and the lesson was “identify four things; write them down; analyze it.” Specifically, (1) Write down 4 Actions You Want to Take Immediately, (2) Write Down the Pain that Prevents You from Doing Said Action, (3) Write Down the Good Things that Happened from NOT Taking Action, (4) Write Down the OPPOSITE Result, Short-term and Long-term, that comes from NOT Doing the Thing, and finally (5) Under Each Action, Write Down Everything y You’ll Gain by Doing These Things – EVERYTHING – Short Term and Long Term.

Jiminy Christmas! That’s like homework. But, I did it. I’ll share that list in a minute. But there’s also this thing that I thought, “cool, I’m going to do that, too.”

My goal for this blog is to, someday, be an extension of my writing career. Meaning, I don’t necessarily think I’m going to make a living telling the world what I ate and what I’m doing and what I want for my birthday. But, my plan is to write a book(s), finish this amazing idea for a screenplay I have, and convince someone to pay me to write entertaining columns and articles. Hey, it could happen. Eventually, I guess this blog could generate revenue by selling my books and short stories. Or selling “I *heart* Don” t-shirts.

And now back to my 30-day Revolution …The Don Revolution …the Donvolution. ArmagedDon, if you will. And you may snicker at these “Four Things”, but they’re my four things. And the main thing I pick up from “Personal Power II” every time I start it (and then stop it), is that for the first few days, I get stuff done. Two things I’ve found universally true …writing stuff down (like a to-do list) helps keep you focused, and then doing those things makes you feel awesome and energized.

So, mostly for my own enjoyment, here are my “Four Things.”

1. Write Every Day (and Identify Writing Tasks That Move Me Toward My Ultimate Writing Utopia)
2. Organize / Categorize my Contacts and Distribution Lists (because then I might actually use them)
3. Send My iSonic Entertainment Center Back to Polk Audio to be Fixed (this is something that just haunts me because it’s a constant reminder that sometimes I’m just lazy)
4. Finish My Sales Book/Manuscript; Finish My Short Story Book

That last item …#4 …if I can follow through on those two things, maybe by Christmas time or sooner, you’ll be looking at one happy guy. Yes, ultimately it would be awesome to become a best-selling author, but the first task of writing a book from beginning to end will simply make me very happy. For the people who love me an encourage me, it will make them proud. I’ll feel accomplished in a way I doubt I’ve ever felt. Like the satisfaction I have from finally, after 9-months, of mailing back my iSonic, I’m guessing finishing a book will be 73x as exhilarating.  And then beginning the task of finding a publisher and readers …well …in order to lament that challenge, I’ve got to overcome the first (which I listed as the fourth and I don’t know why).

It’s Thursday, technically Day 4, and I just finished Day 2, but I won’t apologize. I will finish. I will do stuff. And if you are so bored that you’ll be following along, hopefully you’ll be a little entertained and inspired yourself.

Passions, Part 7: A New Logo and a New Song Obsession

This hardly seems like a worthy blog topic (wow …what an “attention getter”), but my alma mater recently unveiled a new logo. We’re (well we were) going from the sharp-cornered version on the left (see left) to the more war-like version on the right (see left, um, right …left/right …look over there!). To most adults and most people, it probably looks mostly the same. The cynic in me realizes that Nike is behind the move, and while they may have indicated to MSU that,  “through comprehensive study group research we determined greater marketability with this new logo.”  It’s very likely they  (Nike) mocked-up 4 or 5 different versions, me thinks, and this one came out the winner. And why? So guys like me feel compelled to buy the new version and update our wardrobe of sweatshirts, t-shirts, ball caps, mugs, shot glasses, car flags, and any other logo gear we can think of. Then, once we’ve done all that …well …they’d change it back in a couple of years. It would be like a “New Coke” experiment, but completely calculated. And I was fine with that. I like buying new things. I’m a consumer. Give me CDs, and I’ll replace every cassette I own. Give me an mp3 player, I’ll convert all my CDs to mp3 and keep upgrading my mp3 player. Give me DVDs, I’ll replace my VHS. And now I’m onto Blue Ray, baby!  Sooo …give a new logo and reason to buy things …dude, I’m there!

But now, it’s not changing at all because of outrage on Facebook and Twitter.  Will Facebook and Twitter change the world? No. But it will give a voice to acne faced, nerd shut-ins to go bananas about something very, very trivial like a college logo. I was just happy these idiots could pull themselves away from leaving hateful comments in the comment section of every article written by a non-Fox or non-Drudge related news source. They needed a break. A man can only call Obama a socialist dictator so many times before the words start to lose their meaning.

So, nothing changed. But, secretly, I hope they still offer some of this gear at the campus bookstore someday soon, cuz now I can wear it and be a rebel.

Didn’t get enough of me riffing aimlessly about stuff here? Check out my Bachelor recap over at spunkybean.

Also, how great is this song? Try and ignore the odd video and just listen to the song. If you need me, I’ll be sitting here listening to this 2o, 30, or 90 times in a row.  In case you want to know, apparently it’s called “Ambling Amp” by Yeasayer. Enjoy.

Passions, Part 3

This entry could’ve probably fallen under “Random”, but there’s actually a part of me that really enjoys my day job and the medium I sell – radio.  And weren’t most passions we have, at some point or another, just a random thought with little direction?  For example, for years, writing was just a random thing I did.  I took too much time to write simple emails to people, started a blog without much purpose, and pretty much just kept randomly thinking that someday I’d be a novelist, screenwriter, joke writer, comedian, or copywriter for an ad agency and …well …it was all random. 

Now, I am a writer.  Highly paid?  World reknowned?  Skilled?  Interesting?  I can’t claim any of those accolades, but I am a writer.  I love writing.  I love reading good writing from others. And if you want to read some other stuff I’ve written, check out the Mel Robbins blog, and specifically my entry using Die Hard as a life lesson – I’m creative.

And my other passion is radio …real, over-the-air, FM and AM radio.  I love old radio shows, I love how music and speech can force your brain to work and create images, and I love to hear something new or different that forces me to see something in a new or different way.  Good ol’ Roy Williams (aka “The Wizard of Ads“) gave me chills with his latest.  OK, I didn’t get chills …but I did scratch my chin and looked blankly into the distance pondering the words.

Radio is a mood selection device.  What do you want to feel right now?

And, finally, speaking of passion …there’s good ol’ blogosphere buddy, A Nickel for the Swear Jar. With my site, spunkybean, I’ve basically taken every good idea he’s had and made him put it on my site.  Now …he’s done and started writing a novel on his blog and, well, I can’t figure out any way to steal it.  Read it. Love it.  Enjoy it. Send it to your friends. A Nickel for the Swear Jar-guy, whom I call “EJ”, is one of the most gifted writers I know and I hope you agree.

And finally …there’s this.  Thanks for reading, friend.