On Writing "Pushing The Boundaries"
Writing this book has involved a real turn of events for me. When I first started conducting interviews for "Pushing The Boundaries", it was based on a fairly straight-forward notion: people will be fascinated to read about folks who do extraordinary things… individuals who push aside conventional boundaries by thinking outside the box and coloring outside the lines. Seemed to me like a winner.
But then my son Charlie, who’s an educator and a very intelligent guy, asked me, “Dad, what’s your thesis here?” Truth be told, I hadn’t gone that deep in my thinking to even have a thesis. But as Charlie and I discussed it more, I began evolving the feeling that there was a real opportunity here: yes, people could read about fascinating folks, but they could also learn from them. Here was an opening for readers to take steps to blend the strategies of the individuals they meet in the book, and incorporate them into their own approach. In that way, they would end up getting more out of life.
And so, Jack Canfield became my Foreword writer. Jack (renowned co-author of the hugely successful “Chicken Soup For The Soul” series, and for whom I’m indebted for writing his wonderful opening piece) introduced the concept of taking risks in order to move ahead. He asks us…
Are you ready to take chances to achieve your goals? Or is fear
standing in your way? The fact is, fear is the single biggest thing
that holds us back. Unless you can step past that fear, you’ll just
end up playing it safe and avoid trying new things. And that means
it’s unlikely you’ll ever fulfill the dream most of us have of living a
more rewarding life. But remember this: fear is all about what might
happen, not what will happen. And even more importantly, all your
fears are self-created by your imagining a negative outcome. You
have the power within you to overcome that fear by using the same
power of imagination to envision the positive outcome you want,
and then take the kind of calculated risks that can lead to success
- just like the people you’ll read about in this book.”
Indeed, my son’s encouragement to explore this thesis, and Jack’s urging to get beyond your fears, have combined to produce a better book. So, if you’ve got the wherewithal to throw aside caution, push some boundaries and take on new dimensions, then for sure you’re going to get more out of this book. And a whole lot more out of life. And doesn’t that just fit well with my overall mission of writing books that inspire people to expand their opportunities to heighten their existence.
Writing this book has involved a real turn of events for me. When I first started conducting interviews for "Pushing The Boundaries", it was based on a fairly straight-forward notion: people will be fascinated to read about folks who do extraordinary things… individuals who push aside conventional boundaries by thinking outside the box and coloring outside the lines. Seemed to me like a winner.
But then my son Charlie, who’s an educator and a very intelligent guy, asked me, “Dad, what’s your thesis here?” Truth be told, I hadn’t gone that deep in my thinking to even have a thesis. But as Charlie and I discussed it more, I began evolving the feeling that there was a real opportunity here: yes, people could read about fascinating folks, but they could also learn from them. Here was an opening for readers to take steps to blend the strategies of the individuals they meet in the book, and incorporate them into their own approach. In that way, they would end up getting more out of life.
And so, Jack Canfield became my Foreword writer. Jack (renowned co-author of the hugely successful “Chicken Soup For The Soul” series, and for whom I’m indebted for writing his wonderful opening piece) introduced the concept of taking risks in order to move ahead. He asks us…
Are you ready to take chances to achieve your goals? Or is fear
standing in your way? The fact is, fear is the single biggest thing
that holds us back. Unless you can step past that fear, you’ll just
end up playing it safe and avoid trying new things. And that means
it’s unlikely you’ll ever fulfill the dream most of us have of living a
more rewarding life. But remember this: fear is all about what might
happen, not what will happen. And even more importantly, all your
fears are self-created by your imagining a negative outcome. You
have the power within you to overcome that fear by using the same
power of imagination to envision the positive outcome you want,
and then take the kind of calculated risks that can lead to success
- just like the people you’ll read about in this book.”
Indeed, my son’s encouragement to explore this thesis, and Jack’s urging to get beyond your fears, have combined to produce a better book. So, if you’ve got the wherewithal to throw aside caution, push some boundaries and take on new dimensions, then for sure you’re going to get more out of this book. And a whole lot more out of life. And doesn’t that just fit well with my overall mission of writing books that inspire people to expand their opportunities to heighten their existence.