Got Weeds?

Several years ago I was drowning in negative thoughts and feelings. What was needed, I decided, was some physical activity. I decided to pull the weeds that had infiltrated my yard.

Once I got into the rhythm of the project, I had the idea to imagine that with each weed removed, a negative thought was being removed from my mind. By the time I finished my task I was feeling noticeably better.

I decided that weeding was a fine therapy and have consciously sought to keep my mind as weed-free as possible. It took a while to realize that intentional weeding is also an important aspect of growing a successful business.

If I were going to describe the entrepreneurial journey in two steps, I’d borrow the title of Geri Larkin’s marvelous book—Plant Seed, Pull Weed. That’s pretty much what we do day after day.

Unfortunately, many people are better at the first part than they are at the second. Not long ago, I got an e-mail from a woman who had started a business, hit a slump and  abandoned her project.

She ended her account of the short history of her joyfully jobless journey by saying, “I guess I’m not cut out to be an entrepreneur.” That sounds like a big nasty weed to me.

Like so many others, she is cultivating a crop of weeds, not nurturing the seeds of what she truly wants.

An old definition says a weed is merely a plant that growing in a place where it’s not wanted. Likewise, as entrepreneurs we need to decide what we want to allow to flourish in our businesses—and what needs to be removed.

The Joyfully Jobless life is participatory, not a spectator sport. Try things. Be willing to do things badly. Reconfigure. Learn to find creative solutions.

So don’t be afraid to get dirty. Realize that weeds are a normal part of any worthy undertaking.

As Larkin reminds us, it’s also an on-going process, but it’s one with delightful rewards. Plant Seed. Pull Weed.

 

A Few of the Books I Loved This year

This is the time when I traditionally pick my favorite title of the year. Looking back on 2008 (and my sagging bookshelves) I see that I had many new favorites in the past months. This is just a sampling of books that stayed with me long after I finished reading them.

It was only a few weeks ago that I discovered  Geri Larkin, but I think of her as an old friend. I’m equally wild about her Plant Seed, Pull Weed and The Chocolate Cake Sutra. Both are wise collections of life lessons from an author who obviously pays attention.

Another book that didn’t get nearly the attention it deserved is Thomas Moore’s A Life at Work which is a thoughtful exploration of the importance of discovering your right livelihood.

Getting a Grip by France Moore Lappe is another special title from the visionary author of Diet for a Small Planet. This one’s a call to action using the power of creativity to solve global problems.

Since I also spent a fair amount of time reading books about storytelling, I found one real standout: Annette Simmons’ Whoever Tells the Best Story Wins.  It’s a wonderful handbook on using story in business.

Not surprisingly, my list of favorites includes some fine personal storytelling. A book I couldn’t stop thinking about is Rafe Esquith’s Teach Like Your Hair’s on Fire, which isn’t just a book for teachers. It’s a passionate account of the power of learning.  You’ll wish every child you care about could spend a year in Esquith’s classroom.

Although the competition was stiff, there was one book, which I read early in the year, that beat out all others for first place on my list. That book is Bill Strickland’s  Make the Impossible Possible. Strickland’s personal journey is an inspiration—and so are the ideas that he shares.  

He eloquently tells how a chance encounter with an artist put him on a new path in his teens. Especially fascinating to me is his commitment to merging art and commerce and using both to change lives in dramatic ways. This may be one of the best stories ever showing how commitment to a vision can be the start of something extraordinary. 

When President Obama begins inviting innovators to the White House, I hope Bill Strickland gets a regular invitation.

I suggest that the only books that influence us are those for which we are ready, and which have gone a little farther down our particular path than we have yet gone ourselves. ~ E.M. Forster