Andrew Luck Speaks for Humanity

“It’s taken the joy out of the game.”

 

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Andrew Luck is expressing a reality for all people. Pain can do that to us. Pain can take the joy, whether it’s in the game of football, relationships, a job, or daily living.

I get that. No professional athlete abilities, but I was a decent high school athlete. (As a caveat, my second cousin John Neidert played for the Jets and Joe Namath in the Super Bowl). I set several school track records (in the 70s), played varsity basketball, and varsity football as a starter.

In college, I thought track might be my sport, but almost immediately began dealing with leg injuries. Lots of time soaking, wrapping, flexing before every practice, let alone meet days. Finally, a visit to a team surgeon determined the extent of knee surgery needed to really get back my game. So, I get Andrew’s mindset, even in a miniscule way. The “joy went out of the game.” (BTW, I still deal with that knee thing forty-ish years later).

Athletics, however, are not the only place where the joy seeps out. What about those with chronic illness? There are the exceptions, for sure, but many people loose daily life’s joy from pain. Or what about a toxic relationship, whether marriage or friends. There can be pain that saps the joy with each interaction. Work, too, is a place where enough pain causes us to forfeit joy for what might even be our chosen livelihood. We continue going to our daily employ, like robots, but the joy and passion left long ago.

The late Stephen Covey asked how long will one endure pain before they say “enough” and make the appropriate decision. Pain can be physical. We often associate it there. Yet the category is large: mental, emotional, relational, moral, spiritual. So when in life have we suffered enough of our brand of pain to make the appropriate decision?

Andrew Luck is going to be criticized a lot in the coming days. Analysists are going to be at both ends of the spectrum about his decision. “Talking heads” are going to beat this up ad infinitum (and ad nauseum).  Those with money in the sport are going to be angry. Fans are going to tag him with whatever they believe about professional athletes. The reactions will be broad and varied.

But Andrew Luck is being forthright and honest as a human being. Sometimes, the pain (no matter the category; no matter YOUR category) is so much it “takes the joy out.” Thanks, Andrew, for knowing that reality and giving it voice

Writing Long-Haul

Endurance. That’s what I feel at times when it comes to writing.

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When I am asked about writing books, questioners often don’t want to hear the grit. Writing isn’t just writing and magically its ready for print. Writing is planning, crystalizing ideas, writing and rewriting, and editing…always editing. Writing is a long-haul endeavor. It requires a willingness for being your own worst critic.

Editing reminds me of the techniques in writing that have proved valuable over the years. From my published books to curriculum, my effort is the same.

1.  Collect and organize all the materials from the beginning. I learned this through unfortunate experiences. At first, I just wrote and organized along the way. The outcome was not having what I needed, then spending considerable time researching when I should be writing. Organization is also key. I lay out materials for each chapter so I can sequentially use it in the writing process. That’s a task in itself, but it makes the flow better. As a side, if you cite sources, make sure you get all the information during research. I have agony stories about failure here.
2.  Putting it in an outline. This, I learned, is part of effective writing. I outline in detail before I start writing. Here I sense the collected material’s flow and how it will unfold in a chapter. Never fails to guide my thinking.
3. Pen and paper. I often begin writing pen and paper before I move to the computer. That may seem old school, but it allows me to see and edit as I write. I am an advocate of using word variety. Writers get locked into word patterns. Putting it on paper helps me see it and remind myself of the 250,000 words in the English language available for saying the same thing without redundancy.
4. Just start. I find it’s sometimes hard starting. I don’t worry about what the first five chapters say, but that’s where constant editing helps. I edit as I write. I revisit the material almost daily to determine if there is flow and consistency. Past chapter five, writing starts getting clearer and patterns begin emerging.
5. Edit as I write. It’s been stated look for word economy. Yes. I try using action words, less prepositional phrases, fewer conjunctions. Editing while writing helps me see I have connected two sentences into one. Split them for easier reading.
6. Editing endurance. Here is the heart for me. Being my own worst critic. It’s often hard, but necessary. I ask if I could state things better. I watch for redundant words. Paragraphs too long? Then, the brutal use of Flesch-Kincaid for readability. I check this with each chapter. It requires knowing the potential audience. I often find inconsistency between chapters, thus these stats help me view where my efforts must be brutally applied to give full manuscript consistency.

Well, these are just a few items to my habits. I write and edit nearly every day. I am a morning person, so that’s prime time for me. I also know my point of mental fatigue. It’s there I stop for the day.

Writing is a long-haul enterprise. It’s rewarding in the end.

 

Personal mission: A guide for cutting and harnessing

“Deciding means to cut off something” was his opening line.

I love words and hadn’t heard the etymology for decide. Looking it up, the word “decide”  has its root in “decidere” (de meaning ‘off;’ caedere ‘to cut’). The meaning carries ideas for choosing, but the implication is cutting off one or more avenues for one pursued.

I like that. Deciding is cutting something off, like pruning. I garden and know the importance of pruning. It allows a plant to grow stronger, fuller, healthier. Cutting some things off in life acts the same. The question is what to eliminate.

I’ve likened decision making in my seminars to “opportunity cost.” In finances, this concept means if I use my money for one thing, it is not available for something else. Thus, deciding, knowing what to cut off, is valuable. If I choose one thing, my time, energy, even resources cannot be available for another thing, which may be more life-giving.

I’ve advocated and taught personal mission developed for thirty years. If we have a life mission, then we can make appropriate decisions along the way. Plans can be formulated that bring us to the point of living well guided by our mission.

“Mission is like a harness and a sword,” wrote international bestselling author Laura Beth Jones. “It helps us cut off those things that do not lead to purposeful life (cutting off; deciding) and a harness that pulls us to those things the matter, bringing richness, fullness, strength.”

Life provides hundreds of daily options. Start with mission as a guide. Decide to develop it today. Ultimately, mission will trigger what we cut off and harness.

 

Writing? It’s Complicated.

“My goal is writing a book. How long does that take?

I get this question regularly when I present public seminars. My seminars focus on personal mission and goal development. Attendees see I’ve written and published several books, so it’s natural for that question to surface.

The problem for me is there is no quick one-line answer to the query. The brain works in nano-seconds and mine, at that point, is in overdrive. My first book took five years. The second roughly the same. My current manuscript has been eight years in process from initial outline, to research, travel, writing, correcting and new research while writing, and now in the FIRST, I repeat, FIRST major editing.

Editing is something most don’t want to consider in their goal attainment, but it is critical. I edit at least twice while writing. I organize and write, then before I move on to the next chapter, I edit. Then before I put the chapter’s hard copy in my file (you know computers DO crash), I edit it again. I am currently performing the first major edit on my current manuscript. I’ve already rewritten the first six chapters. Reorganizing content, changing chapter breaks, checking sources, footnotes, making sure sentences are in active voice, watching for repetitious words (there are probably 250,000 words in the English language; I try utilizing them), checking grammar and spelling, readability (what grade level can read and comprehend the material) and eliminating redundancy.  Editing alone takes hundreds of hours.

Then there is finding a publisher, writing queries, publicity (yes, even if a traditional publisher takes your manuscript, YOU have to work at it also. With my first book, I set up bookstore appearances, contacted libraries, and more. Remember, we are not all J.K. Rowling.), considering self-publishing (which takes money; do you have enough?); well, you get the point.

And there they stand, waiting for a quick reply. Still in mental hyperdrive, I smile oddly and say, “It will take time.”

 

Here I am Again

It’s been a while. An intense career, a sudden opportunity for retirement, now three years of researching, writing, repairing, getting healthy, and living with less stress. It’s been a while since posting. Here I am again.

My blog, “Living Well,” was important for me in the past and is again. I deviated into a full website now closed (former davidlneidert,com) for sharing a busy career, hectic teaching schedule, and writing life. LinkedIn serves now as my only “business” portal. It all changed with retirement, so now, simplicity is becoming central.

My desk is filling with little paper slips and ruled notecards holding reflections since 2016. Research and writing? Wow! Several Office DePot file boxes contain my current biographical work on Daniel Otis Teasley–author, inventor, musician, newspaper editor, theologian, and more. My desk is covered with highlighters, pens, Post-It notes, paper clips, reminder scribbles, staplers, and a three-inch thick manuscript now in editing. A lot on my mind; much for sharing.

I’ve been simplifying possessions as well particularly my personal library. Five hundred books filling my home office might not be exact, but it’s not an over exaggeration. Former colleagues and students are now recipients of many as I cull what no longer remains necessary for this current life season. Ah, ridding of excess. It, too, is a stress reliever.

I am a reflective person with much on my mind and accumulating in my heart. So, here I am again looking forward to just writing, a place for working it all out of my mind and onto paper (well electronic paper).