Blisscraft Life With Christina Katz

I had been writing for publication and teaching mom writers for years when I wrote Writer Mama. I always take the best of what I have learned from working with students and pour it into all my books.

January has been an amazing month for me in terms of personal satisfaction. I always push myself to innovate something new each year, even if it’s just adding one new class to my teaching repertoire. Several years ago, I launched my writing training groups for mom writers and they have been incredibly inspiring and rewarding. And then this month, I added my new 21-day monthly writing challenges to my schedule. We have almost completed round one and we are about to launch another round and a round two. So now I have writing training for moms and writing training for any kind of writer.

So here it is only February and I’ve already innovated not just one, but two new things in 2013. This feels really good and it’s part of a promise I made to myself to preserve my energy so that I could be more creative, healthy and personally satisfied in 2013.

But just because I am starting new things doesn’t mean I don’t value the things I’ve been doing for years. I have been teaching my mom writers class, Writing & Publishing The Short Stuff (Especially For Moms) for six years straight. That comes to 4-5 rounds of classes a year for the past six years or about 24+ classes of eager mom writers. That’s a lot of work I’ve invested—a lot of getting to know women writers through their writing and a lot of responding to questions and reviewing work.

Collectively we have created a staggering amount of published work. Today, many of my mom writer students go on to participate in the WPSS Dream Team, my mom writer training program, where they work even more closely with me, applying what they just learned in the class to real-life professional situations. A lot of learning takes place in my WPSS class for mom writers, but a lot more learning begins to take place when students start to apply what they have learned in a training program like Dream Teams. It’s always pretty awesome when you have the privilege of witnessing the successes of people you just taught.

I have been training mom writers in groups for years. Students apply what they learned in my class and achieve results consistent with their focused efforts and professional attitude.

I still enjoy working with mom writers just once in any of my classes, but what I’ve really come to value over the years are the writing students who work with me over time. Whether in continued classes or a back-and-forth between classes and training groups, it’s personally enriching, when you pour as much positive energy into your work as I do, to have people work hard and treat you respectfully, especially while you are constantly pushing and prodding them to be work harder and realize more of their potential.

Some days when I get some good news from a mom I’ve worked with, which is most days at this point, I burst into tears. It’s not because I am taking credit for their hard work; it’s because I am so proud of them and so proud myself. I could have quit teaching these classes at any time. But I didn’t, because teaching mom writers is important work. And training mom writers over time is hard work, but I love it. I’m so proud when they find the focus and determination to succeed in achieving a goal that is meaningful to them. And PS this means that they learn they can do set and achieve goals in any arena.

I also feel proud that I found the focus and determination to coach my students on a path that leads to daily opportunities for personal empowerment and self-expression. It has taken an enormous amount of work to develop and launch quality classes that effectively build professional skills in writers. I have been doing it formally and consistently since 2001, and I am so glad I’ve stuck with it, no matter what.

And maybe the best part of it all is that I can look out my office window, not the one next to my desk, but the one that connects me to the whole world, and I can see the results of my hard work paying off for my past students all over the Internet in published works, professional quality websites, book deals, self-published e-books, happy editors, and eager readers. That’s when I know I have the best job. Because I don’t just throw information at people. I genuinely care about and monitor the results of my efforts and continually strive to improve.

I have also offered a writer mama scholarship for every WPSS class since January 2008. Caring about mom writers is my legacy and I’ve sustained it over many years. That’s not luck: that’s hours and days and months and years of consistent effort working with students. I’m proud of my work and I’m proud of my mom writer students. And I look forward to working with them for many years to come.

Thank you, ladies, for working with me, for trusting me, and for sharing your journeys with me. I appreciate how hard you work, what you are up against, and how bumpy career growth can often be. Clip by clip. Pitch by pitch. Book by book. We just stay the course. So look out world, because here we come!

Anyone can write well if they apply themselves diligently to the process of writing. The only thing that separates quality writing from junk is whether or not you spend time working your writing muscles today. If you don’t work your muscles, you will likely not become a better writer today. But if you work your writing muscles every day in a focused manner, you likely will become a better writer. It’s that simple.

Whether you are coming back for round two of 21 Moments or you are brand new to the experience and eager to try it for the first time, you won’t be disappointed with the uptick in your writing productivity.

This is not your typical daily writing prompt. The 21 Moments Monthly Writing Challenge is created to echo the learning process that some of the greatest writers of all time have used to master their craft.

And now the 21 Moments Monthly Writing Challenge comes with more writing instruction, including examples of moments and how to find and write your moments all month long.

The 21 Moments Monthly Writing Challenge launches each month on the first day of the month at midnight. Hope you can join us for the next round, which starts Friday, February 1st.

Here’s 21 reasons you may wish to join in the fun:

1. Because you signed up for round one enjoyed it and now you want to try round two (by invite only).

2. Because you heard from a friend who tried writing 21 Moments and liked it.

3. Because you always wanted to take a class with me, but you couldn’t afford to take a six-week class.

4. Because you journal and writing a moment a day will focus your journaling.

5. Because you want to buy yourself a Valentine’s Day present.

6. Because you miss the prompts since they stopped on January 21st and you are eager for a new batch to begin again.

7. Because you want to sign up with a friend.

8. Because you don’t need a ton of structure, you just need a enough structure and encouragement to keep working on writing better every day.

9. Because you are feeling kind of bored with your own writing.

10. Because you want to write long works but you are not yet writing short.

11. Because January was not a good time for you but you can find a few minutes a day in February to write.

12. Because your year got off to a good start in January and you want to keep going.

13. Because you have an idea for a longer work and you are ready to start drafting.

14. Because you write nonfiction, fiction, poetry, or scripts or all of the above.

15. Because a moment is a great starting point for writing anything.

16. Because you enjoy being inspired by quality writing.

17. Because one well-written moment can lead a writer to more strong writing.

18. Because writing moments is like flexing your writing muscles. It’s a great warm-up for the rest of your day.

19. If you won’t spend your day writing, but wish you did, writing a moment a day can give you the satisfaction of having already written today.

20. Because you are working on a big project and you either don’t know where to start or you frequently lose your way.

21. Because writing one moment is a great way to ground and center yourself as a writer. Because writing isn’t like anything else.

Being a professional writer means always creating new building blocks of written material. So spend at least part of your day like a working writer. Write today. And if you need help, check out the 21 Moments Monthly Writing Challenge. Hope you can try it!

I have noticed that up-and-coming writers often make the mistake of thinking that the best things in their career are either free or close to free.

The problem with attitude is that it sets you up to overlook the very tools that lead to expanded success.

The tools that are free or almost free often don’t come with the same peace of mind and flexibility as tools that you pay for.

I started using Constant Contact many years ago because I was growing an e-mail newsletter list and, at the time, they were pretty much the only game in town.

There were some other services around back then but the quality differential was dramatic. Over the years, other companies have emerged that have provided similar services, but I’ve stayed with Constant Contact even though my monthly fee for using the service has gone up, not down.

Why do I use and stay with Constant Contact?

I have had a newsletter for many years. Constant Contact has been my primary way of communicating with and keeping in touch with readers. I completely trust Constant Contact with all of my precious subscriber information.

Constant Contact has steadily improved their services. They offer a wide variety of templates and even the potential to customize your template if you like.

When customer service is good and the quality of the experience is high the partnership becomes frictionless. Constant Contact has been a boon to my writing business and has helped me keep in touch with fans and expand my services.

I have never had a desire to seek the same services elsewhere and I cheerfully pay my Constant Contact bill each month. For me, working with them is as much a part of being in business as paying my taxes or blogging. I can’t imagine where I would be without their excellent tools.

If you are a writing professional and you need to keep in regular contact with any group of people or, even better, with multiple groups of people, I highly recommend Constant Contact.

Creating and keeping up with your e-mail lists is a crucial part of career ownership. Historically writers have had trouble remembering that we are responsible for our own success over time. Once you start using Constant Contact, you will never again forget who is responsible for your writing career. It’s the person sitting behind the Constant Contact control panel. It’s you.

If you would like a free trial, you can click on the badge below and you will get 60 days worth of free service and I will get a $30 credit. I don’t usually crow about the day-to-day services I use, but it recently came to my attention that writers, who are growing a career, need to hear how important it is to keep in touch with your readers and nurture your relationships with various groups. Constant Contact makes this process a whole lot easier and more enjoyable for writers.

Okay, I lied. You actually can’t turn off your monkey mind.

At least, it’s not as easy as flipping a switch.

But what you can do is get in the habit of challenging your monkey mind.

Your obnoxious monkey thinks he’s pretty smart, but he really isn’t. He likes to sit back and judge you. And according to him, in case you hadn’t noticed, you will never measure up. There he goes, shaking his head at you and clucking his tongue.

Monkey mind thrives on your fear, anxiety, low self-esteem, and self-doubt. And everything he says and does will trigger these things in you.

So you could be having a perfectly good day until monkey mind comes along and poops on it with his evil jaded ways.

Monkey mind is mean. He’s a Nazi-perfectionist. He’s the king of the sarcastic eye-roll.

Most things he says sounds like, “So how did you royally screw up this time?”

Don’t let him get away with it. Challenge him. Talk back. When he gives you crap, tell he him he doesn’t know everything. Maybe he doesn’t know anything.

Maybe he is just a roiling cauldron of internalized negative voices that have become much more vicious than the original voices ever were.

In that case, it’s your job to tell him that your job is holding up your end of any commitment and then letting go of the results and moving on to the next thing on your to-do list. And that’s it. So go jump off a cliff, you mean ol’ monkey.

Tell him that he over-reacts about everything. Tell him, you are not a hyper-sensitive ego-maniac like him. Tell him, you are aware that everything in the world is not all about you, and that is why you don’t totally lose your squash if you are not perfect in every moment.

You will have seemingly perfect moments in life. At least I hope you will. These are moments where all seems right with the world. Like everything, including you, is in perfect harmony. These moments are awesome. And fleeting.

So tell that damn monkey, he can think you are superhuman if he wants, but remind him that you are not. Remind him that you are merely human, just like everyone else and if he doesn’t like it, he can suck it.

In fact, the best thing you can do to immediately wrestle your monkey mind to the ground and pin him there until he says uncle is remember that you play a role in the world—one role. Not THE role, just a role like everyone else.

Monkey mind is very black and white. You are either the best ever or you are the worst ever. There is no playing one role to him.

Don’t fall for it. You are fine. When you mess up, you can own it and move on. The world will not spin or stop based on how perfect you are.

You can be a hot mess and the world will just turn, turn, turn.

The truth is that you are fundamentally okay and madly imperfect like the rest of us, and we like you this way. The rest of us are not expecting perfection from you, whereas monkey mind will NEVER let you off the hook.

So the heck with that monkey. What does he know, anyway? Who put him in charge?

You did. You put him in charge. And you can fire him, too.

So tell the monkey to take a hike and get back to the single next thing you need to do, which is likely full immersion in one task at a time until a larger job is done.

~ photo by JamesCalder

Is your New Year off to a productive start? I hope so!

If it’s not as great as you had hoped, writing-productivity-wise, I hope you will check out my new monthly writing challenge for writers in any genre.

For the first 21 days of February 2013, you can receive a daily example of excellent writing ultimately covering every genre. From there you will undertake writing 200-500 words a day with the goal of writing 21 completed moments within one month.

Designed to deepen your writing practice, improve the quality of your writing, and help you go straight to your most compelling material, the 21 Moments Monthly Writing Challenge is an easy, inexpensive way to raise the bar of your writing experience, quickly.

You can squeeze this workout into an already busy life. Kick-start your best writing efforts in only 21 days and you will have an entire month to complete your assignments.

You will gain confidence based on your own experience, exercise your writing voice, and learn to love writing well for its own sake.

This is the first time this challenge has been made available to the general public. A group of my newsletter subscribers have already test-driven the challenge and I have received enthusiastic feedback from them. Be part of the second group to try the workout for the introductory price of only $21.

You’ll get:

• A list of reasons to write, so you can write for the reasons most compelling to you
• A simple method for idea-keeping, so you won’t lose a single idea
• 21 examples of excellent writing curated by Christina Katz delivered right to your inbox
• A deadline: your goal is to write 21 200 – 500 word pieces by the end of the month
• The opportunity to submit one of your moments as an example for future participants
• All for only $21 – that’s cheaper than most community education classes. And you never have to leave home to participate.

Beta Price: $21.00

And yes, you can purchase this challenge for a friend if you want to. You asked for it, so I’ve added a friend button to the registration page.

And you can come back and do another challenge, if you enjoyed the first round. I have created a second round of prompts for those who took the first round already. I will send a registration e-mail to former participants if you did it already and you want to sign up for the next round. Please register using that e-mail link for round, two rather than registering on my website, so I’ll know that you are in the second round and not the first round.

I know the 21 Moments Monthly Writing Challenge works because I’m seeing an improvement in my own writing and an increase in my enthusiasm to write well.

And I can’t wait to do it all over again. I hope you can join us!

New Participants: Learn more and register here

Some of you may remember that I conducted an interview with Malia Jacobson about seventeen months ago at the launch of her first e-book, Ready, Set, Sleep, 50 Ways To Help Your Child Sleep So You Can Sleep Too.

Today I am thrilled to announce the launch of Malia’s second e-book, Sleep Tight Every Night, Helping Toddlers & Preschoolers Sleep Well Without Tears, Tricks or Tirades.

Malia is a nationally published health journalist, columnist, sleep expert, and freelance writer. Her articles on sleep and health appear regularly in national media outlets, including Women’s Health Magazine, Costco Connection Magazine, Pregnancy & Newborn Magazine, ABC News, and MSN Healthy Living, as well as over 80 regional parenting magazines across the US and Canada.

Malia appears regularly on television and speaks to parenting groups about healthy sleep support. She blogs about sleep and parenting at www.thewellrestedfamily.com, where she answers parents’ sleep questions in a popular “Ask Malia” series.

Know any parents who would like to get their babies or young children to go the heck to sleep? If so, check out some of Malia’s thoroughly researched sleep secrets right here.

Q. In the intro to Sleep Tight, you say that kids who sleep well through the night are in the minority. Why is this?

According to a new study from the University of Houston, 70 percent of children under 10 experience regular sleep problems. And I know from both my personal experiences as a mom and my professional life as a health and sleep journalist that the toddler and preschool years are a particularly tough time for sleep, simply because children change so quickly during this time period. They’re transitioning from a crib, dropping their nap, starting to have nightmares, potty training, sometimes learning to sleep alone or sleep near a sibling for the first time. They’re dealing with an astounding amount of change in a short time period, and that can be extremely hard on their sleep.

Q. What kinds of problems can crop up for kids who don’t sleep soundly?

Children who don’t sleep enough are at an increased risk for weight problems, diabetes, mood disorders, even ADHD. Doctors now know that some children who have been diagnosed with ADHD are actually just overtired—they call this syndrome of fatigue-induced hyperactivity “faux ADHD.”

Q. Just to hop backwards a bit and remind folks about your first e-book, Ready, Set, Sleep, what ended up becoming the advice readers appreciated most?

It’s hard to say; every reader seems to take something different from Ready, Set, Sleep, depending on their child’s age and stage. But people really seem to love the parts about gently shifting sleep associations, helping babies and toddlers learn to sleep in their beds, and how to handle tough stuff like screaming and crying at bedtime.

Q. You decided to write this second e-book because of the questions you received from readers of your first e-book? What were some of their biggest challenges that you address in Sleep Tight?

I tackle 12 common toddler and preschooler sleep problems in Sleep Tight, including helping kids learn to stay in their own beds all night, helping parents transition siblings to a shared bedroom, dropping the afternoon nap, learning to stay dry at night, and addressing nightmares, which begin to crop up around age 5 for many children.

Q. Are different kids wired for different sleep schedules?

Absolutely. In fact, learning about your own child’s unique sleep requirements is at the heart of many of my recommendations (and I tell parents just how to do that, quickly and easily). Mistaken beliefs about how much a child should be sleeping are a factor in well over half of the sleep questions I receive from parents—your unique child may need much more (or less) sleep than you think.

Q. One of the twelve topics you address in Sleep Tight is how to manage sleep for kids who are sharing bedrooms. If getting one child to sleep well is challenging, I can only imagine that getting two to sleep well in the same space in nearly impossible. Can you give us a few hints?

The biggest challenge parents often face is syncing up the sleep schedules the children who will be roommates. Siblings just a couple of years apart can have vastly different sleep needs, and wake up, nap, and go to sleep at different times at night. A room-sharing scenario works best when everyone hits the sack at the same time each night, so I walk parents through how to make this happen.

Q. Okay, Malia, you are a sleep expert and journalist. You know sleep advice like nobody’s business. If you were going to give just five pieces of advice to every parent about how to raise healthy sleepers, what would those five short tips be?

A child experiencing sleep problems is trying to tell you something. Instead of asking “Why is he doing this to me?,” flip the dialogue to focus on your child and his needs. What does he need sleep-wise that he is not getting, and how can you better support those needs?

Don’t rely on charts, books, or your friends to tell you how much sleep your child needs. Chart your child’s sleep to uncover how much sleep he or she really requires.

To avoid stealing from nighttime rest, don’t allow children to nap for more than two hours in the afternoon.

Don’t get married to the idea of a 7 p.m. bedtime, if that is no longer working for your child. Clinging to your child’s babyhood bedtime well into the toddler and preschool years can lead to a boatload of problems, from hours-long bedtimes to painfully early wakings.

You can’t force a child to sleep more than her personal sleep needs dictate. If your child is ready to give up his nap or no longer needs as much sleep as he once did, supporting his unique needs will bring success; fighting his needs will be miserable. I help parents work with the sleeper they have, not the sleeper they wish they had.

You can learn more about both of Malia’s awesome e-books, Ready, Set, Sleep: 50 Ways to Help Your Child Sleep So You Can Sleep Too and Sleep Tight, Every Night, Helping Toddlers & Preschoolers Sleep Well Without Tears, Tricks or Tirades at MaliaJacobson.com.

Help Malia end sleeplessness by spreading the word about Ready, Set, Sleep and Sleep Tight Every Night. And thanks for helping me support Malia’s second e-book launch!

I cannot personally work with everyone, that’s a given. There is only one of me and there are many of you.

However, if you are a positive, productive writer or you are ready to become one, I would love to work with you.

Here’s how to get the most out of my trail of prosperous breadcrumbs:

1. Start by reading my books. My specialties are nonfiction writing, selling your words, finding your specialty, building your platform, getting published and micro-publishing. Writers often comment that my books are helpful no matter what your genre and are even helpful for non-writers. READ

2. Sign Up A 21 Moments Monthly Writing Challenge. This is my latest offering and folks are LOVING it! You will begin receiving writing for pleasure prompts beginning the first day of the month following the month you sign up. Why not register for the next round and see what my high-quality coaching can do for your writing in just one month.

3. Sign up for my e-zine, The Prosperous Writer. Now you won’t miss any news. And that’s good because I have lots of news coming. SIGN UP

4. Subscribe to this blog via e-mail or RSS feed. Then you will be keeping up with all my news and all my best ideas for writers on an ongoing basis. SIGN UP

5. Join Writers on the Move. This is not writing coaching, but it’s great to have an accountability group for getting into shape and staying in shape. The endorphins you get from working out will do your writing good. JOIN

6. Read My E-books. My e-books contained boiled down advice that can help any writer today and in the future. Don’t forget to add these ideas to your checklist of things you are working on. READ

7. Follow me on social media. Let’s get connected and stay connected. I don’t spend a lot of time chatting on social media, but I do make an effort to put positive inspiration out into the writing world on a daily basis. And who doesn’t need more of this? CLICK ON THE BUTTONS ABOVE RIGHT

8. Work with me. If you feel like my work resonates with you but you need more individual assistance or attention, consider taking a class with me. If you can’t afford one now, don’t forget my scholarship opportunities and all the payment options that Paypal offers. I allow returning students to make payments in advance, so long as all payments are made by the time class begins. LEARN MORE

9. Hire me to coach you. If you have read all my stuff, applied what you can, signed up for my e-zine and blog feed, connected with me on social media, and signed up for Writer’s on the Move, and you are still not seeing the results you would like to see in your bottom line, you can sign up for five-month coaching on my Dream Teams. Actually most people sign up because they are already starting to see results and they want more results. But either way, Dream Teams are where we do the work together. LEARN MORE

10. E-mail me for a half-hour or an hour of coaching. Chances are pretty good that I can help you, especially if we have worked together before. After all, I’ve been coaching writers for eleven years and writing for publication for thirteen years. If you are writing, selling, specializing, promoting, or micro-publishing, let’s talk! LEARN MORE

My approach is writer-centric, which means I am on your side. When you work with me you are going to get a personal approach that comes from working with a person who cares. You can always trust that my advice is coming from the gut, from a genuine desire to empower writers, and from years of experience partnering with other professionals, writing organizations, and publishers.

Thank you so much if you have already taken any of these steps. I love what I do and I will continue to work hard to make sure writers prosper today and tomorrow.

Happy 2013, writers. I hope your year is off to a great start so far!

My New Year’s Resolutions are win-win-win, meaning they benefit me, you, and the world. This year, I will do nothing unless it meets these criteria.

1. I will take exceptionally good care of myself. It’s hard to do this and write and promote traditionally published books. So this year, since I’m not traveling, I will take exceptionally good care of myself, so that I can write more traditionally published books in the future. My global fitness accountability group, Writers on the Move, will be a big part of this effort. It’s awesome to have a motivated group of writers to be accountable to so we can encourage each other to eat healthy and stay fit. Look for me to have an increased commitment to eating healthy this year to accompany my regular workouts. I commit to drinking more water, eating more whole grains, eating less meat, eating more fruits and veggies, and eating fish twice or more each week. And that’s just to get started.

2. I will take exceptionally good care of my family. If it’s hard to take exceptionally good care of yourself and write and promote traditionally published books, then it’s even harder to do these things and take exceptionally good care of your family. I think I’ve done a pretty good job, and I’ve also had a great partner in my husband, Jason. This year, without a book deadline or a book tour, I can devote more time and energy to my family. When I was working on my books, Jason and Samantha supported me. Now it’s payback time. All good things must come into balance. I owe them, big time. I’ve been making up for it in extra hugs all along, but I am excited to have more time available to support them, for a change.

3. I will stay home and inspire more writers than I ever have before. I wrote and toured three traditionally published books in seven years, so, I’m curious to find out if I can reach as many, if not more writers, by staying home using the technology I know and love. I feel I am off to a great start with my 21 Moments Monthly Writing Challenge. Because of this initiative, I’m already working with more writers than I ever have before and it’s only the third day of the year. This feels good because when I work directly with writers, I can make a positive difference in their writing lives. And PS, I’m doing the writing challenge myself, and so is Jason, so it definitely feels win-win-win.

4. I will continue to offer my classes and dream teams to mom writers who are interested in establishing and growing professional writing careers. In combination, my classes and dream teams create the most powerful learning experience a relatively small amount of money can buy. Of course, I realize that these classes and training groups are an investment. I also realize that they require a consistent amount of effort from the students who participate. But if you could see the progress and professional strides that I see in writers in just a short, consistent amount of time, you would sign up right now. Why not take a look at my classes, for now, since Dream Teams for the next five months are already in session. I have worked hard to create and update these classes and training groups, and they rock. And so do the writers who take them seriously. Here’s to our continued success!

5. I will do more good in the world. I was inspired by the election in two ways. On the one hand, my respect for politicians who strive to do more good in the world deepened. And on the other hand, I realized that there is a lot more good I can do in the world without becoming a politician. So I am renewing my commitment to making the world a better, more creative, more joyful and prosperous place. And I am focusing my energy on the people right here in my community, who are suffering. I will start close to home and contribute money, time and energy to alleviate human suffering right here in Clackamas County, Oregon. I would love it if you would join me by committing to alleviating suffering around you, wherever you live. Many people are struggling with the basics right now, and those of us who are prospering should not turn a blind eye to them. I’m not rich. And I know most of us aren’t. But we need to remember that the government is not going to fix local problems. People helping people is what solves problems. Look for more reminders from me throughout the year to look for ways to give back locally in whatever ways you can.

6. I will ignore people who treat me badly and/or display a lack of integrity. When you stand up for yourself, it’s inevitable that you are going to catch some flack, especially if you are a woman. But life is way too short, I work way too hard, and I give way too much to tolerate this type of baloney. I don’t have time or energy for mean or disreputable people. Wasting energy on negative people or situations hurts my creativity, which in turn disrupts my ability to serve my family and the world. So, see you later, negative nellies! I wish you the best of luck turning those frowns upside down.

7. I will promote the idea that women are the future leaders of a caring world. I am tired of waiting for male leaders to stop being so greedy and lecherous and uncaring. Seriously. What is the point in pretending that the majority of men in leadership are going to come around some day and start behaving more decently? Sure, some do. Some will. Some might. And I admire those men who are good and do good. But there are not enough of them and there are certainly not enough women in leadership being given the chance to contribute. So enough already. Let’s get more women in leadership. Let’s empower women everywhere to help transform the world into a place where equality has a fighting chance. We are so not there yet. And we won’t get there until every woman steps up and starts asking: what do I have to offer, not just my family, but also the world around me? We won’t have equality until every woman starts expecting and demanding equal treatment everywhere, whether that is in the home or in the government.

Take care of yourself, take care of your family, and then give from your natural abundance to the world. The world needs you now. We can start by alleviating the suffering that is all around us, as I already said, but we can finish by collectively ignoring men who abuse power and give the attention we would have given them to women who are stepping up, contributing, and caring. Go, women!

8. I will find new ways to serve every day and act on them swiftly. My word for 2013 is “now.” This means no more procrastinating. No more dragging my feet. If I see a need and I can fill it, I’m doing it. And I’m doing it now. I have paid my dues. I have earned my stripes. I have given back some, but I have an awful lot more to give. I have been given opportunities, I have risen to the challenge. And in 2013, I’m staying home and getting some serious work done.

2013 is here. I’m ready for it. I’m psyched. I’m warmed up. How about you?

Happy New Year, everyone! I hope you will give the world the BEST you have to offer in 2013.

Start small. Act locally. Do whatever you can to make a difference.

Profile Theatre's Master Harold & The Boys

Happy New Year!

Did you ever dream big and then dare to act on that dream?

Well, Wilsonville Oregon native, Sam Benedict is not just daring—he’s doing.

And on January 3rd, he’s leaving the place he’s called home for many years and heading East to New York, New York to give his regards—and hopefully soon his talents—to Broadway.

Sam is a former student of my husband Jason’s. Many moons ago, Jason, directed Sam as Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof and also as Hamlet in the Shakespeare play of the same name.

More recently, last spring, Sam assisted my husband at the high school as music director and choreographer for a hand-crafted collaboration called A Night On Broadway.

In between, Sam attended Western Oregon University and got a BFA in acting in five years. While there and since graduating, he’s been cast in shows by many Portland theater companies including Broadway Rose, Profile Theatre, Bag N’ Baggage, Lakewood Theatre, Stumptown Stages, Public House Theatre, and Artists Repertory.

But success isn’t just about what you’ve done; it’s also about how you’ve done it. Sam is one of the most positive and motivated guys I know. He is known through our family as one of the best huggers ever. Like many inspiring people, Sam’s can-do attitude and drive to continually improve himself is inspiring to others. Just watch, I bet we see more actors from Wilsonville Oregon migrating east soon.

In a November 2005 Oregonian article written by Catherine Ryan Sam said that he was once a high-risk student. He said, “In a way, [theatre]’s been my saving grace. It’s my absolute motivation for going to college in the first place.”

And not only did Sam stay in college for four years, he stuck around for five to turn his BA into a BFA. Since graduating from high school, he’s been in A Chorus Line, The Producers, The Drowsy Chaperone, White Christmas, To Kill A Mockingbird, and this past fall nabbed the lead in Master Harold…and the Boys.

Sam wasn’t lucky; he was smart. He is a young man who found something he could invest in and succeed at and poured his considerable energy into every opportunity he could. And even though it can’t have been easy, once Sam found his place on the stage acting, singing, and dancing he’s been on track ever since.

Sam has worked his way up to the point where he it’s time to leave his home and give Broadway a shot. He knows what he’s up against. He knows that he’s going to need more skills and to find a day job that will mesh with his theatre gigs. I have a feeling he won’t be getting too much sleep. So, look out, New York, cuz here comes Sam Benedict!

I wanted to throw a little online going away party for Sam. If you would like to join my family in sending Sam off to New York with a little bit of money in his Paypal account to fall back on, feel free to make a non-deductible donation of any size below. All donations go directly to Sam.

If you are a theatre lover or a New York lover or a Sam Benedict fan, feel free to chip in and help make one actor’s New Year dream come true.

I cannot wait to see his name in a Broadway playbill!

Good luck, Sam! We’ll miss you. And your hugs.