LDSPMA

Empowering Latter-day Saints to spread light and truth by connecting them at the intersection of faith, creativity, and professional skill

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The Power of Asking ‘Why?’: Improving the depth and credibility of your writing

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When I emerged from the diminutive mosque in a remote African village, I had a burning question. It came to mind while sitting reverently during prayers which the Imam had graciously invited us to observe.

I was a writer and photographer in Sierra Leone with two senior missionaries and a two-person video crew for LDS Charities filming a documentary on clean water projects (see more).

The village was home to a thousand people: half Christian, half Muslim. After thanking the Imam for his invitation, I asked him, “How do you get along with the Christians?”

Asking the right questions

The puzzled look on his face mirrored his reply: “What do you mean?”

Stammering, I said, “Well, half of the village is Christian, the other half is Muslim. How do you get along?”

When he gave the same response again, I wondered how much English the Imam understood. Then I realized his point-of-view on world issues was vastly different than mine. The village had no electricity, no running water, no televisions, scant public transportation (unless you call the back of a motorbike or the top of a cargo truck public transportation), few cell phones, and no world news.

To provide perspective, I mentioned that throughout history Muslims and Christians had battled each other. Then I repeated my original question.

We work in the fields side by side just to survive. What is there to fight about?

The Imam answered, “You don’t understand.” Then he gave me perspective. “The Christians helped us build our mosque. We helped them build their houses. We work in the fields side by side just to survive. What is there to fight about?”

Perhaps I should have first asked “why.”

Getting to the point

Not too long after my trip to Africa, I interviewed a science professor at BYU in Provo, Utah. He was renowned for his work in a particular field. I asked him why his work was so important. He answered with a barrage of scientific jargon, little of which I understood.

Unfortunately, I repeated the mistake I’d made with the Imam by asking the professor the same question again. His answer was mingled with words such as “leading research,” “peer-reviewed trials,” breakthrough technology,” etc.

Flustered, I blurted, “Why should I care?”

Startled, he looked at me thoughtfully, then answered, “It’s a possible cure for cancer.”

“Now I have a story,” I said. And a headline, I thought. People don’t care about a process until they can see the potential impact it can have on their lives.

For example, when Joseph Smith walked into the Sacred Grove that spring morning in 1820 to ask which church he should join, he had little knowledge about the nature of God. He received an answer to the “which” question but also learned why. God revealed the nature of Himself and His Son, knowing it is easier for us to pray to a God we can comprehend rather than a nebulous, unknown being. And that understanding would be essential for the revelations that followed in the years to come.

Who knows where “why” will lead

My final story comes from a sister missionary in Germany. My wife and I were senior missionaries and district leaders for an all-sister district. Wanting to know why they decided to serve missions, we asked questions. Our dialogue with this particular sister went something like this:

“What did you do before you started your mission?”

“I played soccer at a junior college.”

“How did you do?”

“I scored a lot of goals.”

When you think you have all the answers, ask one more question.

I could have ended there, but I’d learned when you think you have all the answers, ask one more question.

“Why?”

“I was the smallest player on the team,” she said, “so I knew I had to be faster, smarter, and more determined than anyone else.”

Now I had something to write about. I knew the why as well as the what and how. In fact, the physical characteristics and personality of the female protagonist in my novel are based on our missionary’s answer. You never know where asking why will lead you.

Asking questions leads to discovery

Asking questions while researching your book (or preparing for a presentation, podcast, interview, etc.) will add depth and understanding to your work. Ask questions of your characters to understand them better and make them more believable to your readers. We told our missionaries in Germany to ask questions before they started teaching. It not only endeared them to their friends, but their answers about their joys, concerns, successes, and failures often led to gospel discussions.

The concept of asking the right questions is not new, as Simon Sinek described in his acclaimed book, Start with Why. His Ted Talk on the topic has 56 million views. Simon says every inspired leader or innovator asks the question “What.” A smaller number ask “How,” and very few ask “Why.”

The essence of “why”

The plot in my upcoming novel, Erika’s War, is about uranium being smuggled from Germany to Russia. There, the Russians will generate vast amounts of electricity and sell it to the Germans at an extremely low price. The conspiracy will drive renewable power and other sources of electricity out of business, eventually giving the Russians economic control over Germany on a scale not seen since the Cold War.

Plausibility for my plot is strengthened when I discovered that growth of renewable sources of energy is already faltering in Europe. Asking the right questions gave me the why. For example, I discovered that villages in Germany are taxing wind farms for noise pollution and limiting encroachment to two kilometers. This raises the cost of land acquisition and wind farm operation, and increases the likelihood of acceptance of lower-priced energy from Russia.

“Why” has to do with purpose, cause, or belief, not results. It’s the reason Christians and Muslims get along in Sierra Leone. It’s the reason the science professor spends untold hours of research. It’s the reason my soccer player was so good. And it’s the reason the protagonist in your novel just might prevail.

Author Bio

Howard Collett has two novels in production, Erika’s War, a spy novel set in contemporary Berlin, and Lost in the Wilderness, the tale of a 10-year-old girl lost in Utah’s Uinta mountains. He has published 1,600 articles and 300 photos in aviation, medicine, software, and education in national and international magazines. His capstone achievement documented life-saving humanitarian aid on four continents. Visit www.howardcollett.net for more information.

    Sometimes Things Do Work Out

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    By Steve Dunn Hanson

    I first met Bill in 1987. He was a regional representative for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and was visiting our stake in Orange County, California where I served as a counselor in the stake presidency. To this day, I can’t tell you why there was almost instant bonding between us, as he was over 20 years my senior. Maybe it was because we both loved to write. In any case, virtually from the git-go we traded writings. Mine, fiction and self-help articles. His, memoirs and personal history. And what a history! From a boy of small stature with a horrific stuttering problem and son of a coal-dust-eating railroad engineer, to a man known throughout the world for his accomplishments and contributions.

    I got the best of the bargain in our exchanges. Bill was not only the consummate “Martha” with his practicality and I’ll-figure-out-how-to-do-it genius, but he was a spiritual, poetic “Mary” as well, an extraordinary hybrid whose writing skill dwarfed my own.

    An Act of Kindness

    One of his stories was particularly poignant. As a boy, Bill lived in Provo, Utah, and his diminutive size and severe stuttering problem contributed to his painfully shy disposition. He was always the last one chosen for a team—if chosen at all—and was the subject of constant derision from many of his peers. He was maybe eight or nine-years-of-age when his grade school teacher gave the children an assignment to write an essay and then read the essay in front of the class.

    Bill’s turn came, and he fearfully stood, knowing what would happen next. His stuttering was so overwhelming that he didn’t get more than a few words out before he stopped. Embarrassed to tears, he started to take his seat when the teacher told him to stay where he was. “You will finish, Bill,” she said. She probably meant well, thinking that forcing Bill to go through this would help him overcome his stuttering. For Bill, though, his teacher’s act bordered on cruel.

    For the longest time, Bill just stood there. Then a remarkable thing happened. One of his classmates, a young girl by the name of Millie, who was sitting on the front row, reached out her hand, took his, then smiled up at him. That simple act of support calmed and strengthened him, and he finished his reading.

    That simple act of support calmed and strengthened him.

    Making Connections

    Such were the Bill Gould stories he shared with me, and for the next few years, we kept in close touch. Bill’s wife, Erlyn, was a beautiful woman. How he idolized her and cared for her. She was a cancer victim and graciously and courageously struggled to stay afloat. She passed away in 1992, and it was as though a chunk of Bill died with her. For the next nearly two years it seemed as though Bill just disappeared, and I had little contact with him.

    Then one day when my wife and I were in the Los Angeles Temple, I saw him. And he was not alone! When he saw me, his face turned total smile, and he pulled the woman he was with close to him. “Steve, do you remember one of my stories about a girl named Millie who held my hand to help me get through an agonizing ordeal when I was a boy?”

    “Yes!” I answered. “Who could forget that story!”

    Bill’s smile got wider. “This is Millie. Millie Gould now. We were married last week.”

    My turn to smile!

    Bill then talked about his funk when his wife, Erlyn, died. He was in an I’m-going-no-where morass, and he finally determined to get out of it. His plan was straight Bill Gould. He reviewed his life to determine those who had given him grace, who had made all the difference for him at critical times. Then one-by-one he sought them out to tell them thank you and to now impart his own grace to them to the extent he could.

    While this was happening, Bill’s daughter, who lived in Provo, was talking to her neighbor, a widow, about her dad. She explained how difficult his life was since his wife’s death and what he was now doing. When the neighbor heard that his last name was Gould, she asked what his first name was.

    “William,” Bill’s daughter replied.

    “Billy Gould?” the neighbor asked surprised. “As a boy, did he go to school in Provo by any chance?”

    The daughter nodded, and her neighbor, Millie, grinned. “Billy Gould and I were classmates in grade school.”

    Bill’s daughter told him who her neighbor was, and Bill put her on his thank you list to contact. The rest, as they say, is history.

    We Must Act for Ourselves

    Sometimes, things do work out, but I think things can just about always work out, but I believe it is our choice. I don’t mean in a Pollyannish kind of way, or that the results will always be what we initially desired. Rather, we can choose how any situation or circumstance we find ourselves in will ultimately affect us. We can literally shape the results of all our experiences. I believe that’s what Lehi meant when he said, “…The Lord God gave unto man that he should act for himself. … They have become free forever, …to act for themselves and not to be acted upon” (See 2 Nephi 2:16,26 emphasis added).

    Things can just about always work out, but I believe it is our choice.

    For a long time, my friend Bill was in a funk because of his wife’s death. Who wouldn’t be? But he was being acted upon. He let his circumstance dictate his mood. It controlled him. He was not free. Then he chose to be grateful. Instead of looking at his wife’s death as an emotional and debilitating black hole, he made her life a symbol of his gratitude. A catalyst for him to act. And, as I said, the rest is history.

    Bill’s experience and example has been an inspiration to me in my writing and in my life. While rejection, writer’s block, and a zillion other things can be gut-punches, I’m finding I can choose to turn the experience: To learn from it. To be a better writer. To be a better person. To make my experience a positive one for me. Granted, how it works out is not usually what I thought or hoped it would be. But because I choose to act, it becomes a blessing. Hopefully, it can for you too.

    Steve Dunn Hanson

    Steve Dunn Hanson is the author of several books, including inspirational and adventure fiction and self-help non-fiction, which have been traditionally published and self-published. In addition, he has had articles published in The Ensign, and writes poetry and hymns. He and his wife, Joyce currently live on a scenic hill in northeast Washington.

    Visit Steve Dunn Hanson at https://stevedunnhanson.com/

      Why We Should See Goals as the Means, Not the End

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      By Jeremy Madsen   

      We’ve all been there. We set a goal. We make plans to reach it. We have the best of intentions. We work hard. And then we fall short.

      For me, this happened a lot on my mission. Each transfer, my companion and I would set daily, weekly, and monthly goals for standards such as lessons taught, new investigators found, investigators in church, or investigators baptized. And most of the time, we ended each period with zeros for the last two categories and woefully low numbers for the first two.

      What frustrated me most was the seeming capriciousness of whether we met our goals. One week we could work incredibly hard and get ten new investigators; the next we could work equally hard and get one. There seemed to be no correlation between our efforts and how close we came to our goals.

      Now, the mission is an extreme example. Unlike most areas of our lives, success in mission goals depends almost entirely on the agency and choices of others. But even when we’re completely responsible for our goals, we still often fall short. For example, in the summer of 2017, I set a goal to write a novel from start to finish in a year. Four and a half years later, I’m barely two-thirds of the way through the first draft.

      But back to my mission. By the time I finished my two years of service, I had developed a dislike, or at least a distrust, of goals. Why set goals, if most of the time we fail to reach them? Why subject ourselves to feelings of inadequacy and frustration over and over again?

      Then, a few months after coming home, I was reviewing chapter 8 of Preach My Gospel (the missionary manual). The chapter, which was on using time wisely, had a section about goals. And I began to notice something. While the chapter talked a lot about setting goals and working towards them, it rarely talked about achieving goals. The closer I looked, the more I began to notice what the chapter didn’t say about goals.

      To illustrate, I have selected some statements from chapter 8, and beside each I have written what the manual doesn’t say:

      What Preach My Gospel says:What it doesn’t say:
      “Meaningful goals and careful planning will help you accomplish what the Lord requires of you” (p. 143).“Meaningful effort and careful planning will help you accomplish your goals.”
      “Through goals and plans, our hopes are transformed into action” (p. 148).“Through actions and plans, our hopes are transformed into reality as we meet our goals.”
      “When you fall short of a goal, evaluate your efforts and seek for ways to accomplish the goal” (p. 148).“If you fall short of a goal, evaluate your efforts and identify what you did wrong.”(Notice the contrast between if and when.)
      “For each key indicator, set goals that help you stretch, exercise faith, and work effectively” (p. 153).“For each key indicator, you must stretch, exercise faith, and work effectively in order to achieve your goal.”
      “The ultimate measure of success is not in achieving goals alone but in the service you render and the progress of others. Goals are a means of helping you bring about much good among Heavenly Father’s children” (p. 148).“The ultimate measure of success is in achieving goals. Only by achieving your goals can you render service and help others progress. By achieving goals, you bring about much good among Heavenly Father’s children.”

      This exercise taught me a powerful lesson. I had always seen goals as part of the end: we need to do x, y, or z, so we set a goal and work hard to bring about x, y, or z. But I was wrong. Goals are the means. And they aren’t the means to a certain achievement, prize, or destination. They are the means to a better journey—a better life.

      We set goals and strive to achieve them because by so doing, we exert greater effort than we would otherwise. Goals push us off the couch and out of our comfort zones. Goals motivate us to work harder and smarter than we normally would. Goals help direct our energy, time, and resources towards what’s truly important. As Preach My Gospel says, goals “help [us] stretch, exercise faith, and work effectively.”

      For me, the main takeaway from this realization is that we don’t need to feel bad when we fail to reach a goal. As long as the act of setting the goal pushed us to greater efforts—as long as the goal helped us be more godlike than we otherwise would—then it was a success.

      I’m learning to adopt this new attitude about goals. Remember my ongoing project to write a novel? A year ago, I set a goal to complete two chapters of my rough draft a week. The first week, I completed one chapter. The second week, I completed another chapter. Then it took me two weeks to finish the next chapter, and four weeks for the chapter after that. School, work, and family responsibilities pushed me farther and farther behind. But I didn’t despair. I didn’t get down on myself for not meeting my goal. Rather, I recognized that setting the goal had pushed me to complete four more chapters during a busy semester than I probably would have otherwise.

      So when the New Year rolls around soon and it’s time to set goals, don’t get down thinking about all the resolutions you failed to meet, the diets you failed to keep, and the books you failed to finish (or start) since the previous year. Think about how your goals helped you be a little better and work a little harder each day. Then set new goals that are means to those ends.

      Summary

      The value of goals is not so much in achieving them, but in how the process of setting and striving for goals alters our behavior. When we set goals that motivate us, focus our efforts, and exercise our faith, we work more effectively, accomplish more, and live better lives than we would otherwise. By seeing goals as means instead of ends, we can avoid the frustration and discouragement that come from the many times we fail to meet our goals.

      Points to Ponder

      • What are my current goals, and how do they help me be a better person?
      • What is a goal that I failed to meet in the past? How did it help me grow?
      • What is the difference between a goal and a promise/commitment? Why is it more important to meet a promise or commitment than it is to meet a goal?

      Further Reading

      Jeremy Madsen is a fantasy writer, freelance editor, and biblical scholar. With his three siblings, he runs the website Atrium of Light, a repository for scripture memory songs and other uplifting media. Jeremy is the founder of Universal Cape Day (March 10), a day to wear a cape, look epic, and feel heroic. He currently lives in Columbus, Ohio, with his wife and daughter. He is also the operations manager for LDSPMA.

      I Can’t Even Get a Job at McDonald’s: Overcoming Impossibilities in Life and Writing

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      By Steve Dunn Hanson   

      I’m at the age where some of my closest friends have passed on. While I miss them, what they have taught me by their words and lives continues to affect me deeply.

      Lloyd Rasmussen was a few years older than me and over the years, our relationship moved from him being my church leader and mentor to the kind of close friendship I’ve had with only a handful of people. He was the kind of friend you can talk to about anything. While his stellar life was a great example to me, one of his oft repeated statements continues to give me direction, both as I write and as I plod along on my own mortal journey.

      There are two kinds of choices a successful person makes: the right ones and the ones they make right.

      I can modify whatever choice I make, whatever circumstance I’m in, whatever word, sentence, or chapter I write, to make it better. To make it right. Knowing I can do this has made all the difference in my life.

      Another friend, Kaye Terry Hanson, has been an extraordinary example of that principle. Kaye passed away nearly five years ago and was very close to my wife and me for some 50 years. She was my writing mentor, editor, and a constant encouragement. She would tell me, “Writing is easy, Steve. Just dip your pen in your blood and write.” That metaphor has been powerfully descriptive of my writing challenges at times!

      As vital as her tutoring in my writing has been, it is her life that has been my inspiration. Kaye taught high school English to help put her husband through medical school. They were not able to have children, and they adopted a boy and a girl. Her husband was finishing his medical residency in Southern California some 45 years ago, and that Thanksgiving, my family and others went to their house for dinner.

      The next morning, Kaye showed up on our doorstep with her two little ones. What she told us was shattering. After everyone had gone home that Thanksgiving evening, and without any warning, her husband gathered his clothes, told her he no longer loved her, and left. We were stunned. We wept.

      She had been thrown under a bus and was utterly overwhelmed. “What am I going to do?” she lamented. “I can’t even get a job at McDonald’s!”

      There was nothing in my limited understanding at that time I could draw on to even begin to console her, but the Spirit put words into my mouth. I said, “I don’t know how, but I promise you if you keep your covenants and focus on the Savior, this experience will redound to your blessing.”

      That seemingly impossible promise happened.

      At Kaye’s funeral, her stake center in Provo was filled almost to the stage, Virginia (Ginny) Pearce, daughter of President Hinkley, gave the eulogy. She spoke about Kaye’s chronic bout with rheumatic fever as a child, her mother dying from a freak accident when Kaye was on her mission, and Kaye’s divorce and raising her two children as a single mother. She reminded the congregation of Kaye’s struggle with breast cancer and subsequent double mastectomy, and of her latest health challenges with neuropathy, blood clots, and heart irregularities.

      Then she related a few of the things Kaye had accomplished—all since her divorce. She earned her PhD in Theater History and was a professor at BYU. She taught theater, a religion class, and communications in the Marriott School of Business. She became the associate director of BYU’s world-class MBA program. In addition, for three years she resided in Jerusalem as associate director of the BYU Jerusalem Center and was on the Young Women’s General Board for the Church.

      She traveled all over the world giving seminars on communication to leaders of businesses and organizations and spoke at BYU’s Education Week and at a BYU Devotional. She led tours to Israel and served as a full-time senior missionary in Europe where she worked with young adults throughout the continent and the British Isles. She was an author, a Relief Society president, and a Sunday School teacher. Most  importantly, she was an unexcelled mother, grandmother, and friend.

      After Ginny talked, Kaye’s grandchildren paid tribute to their grandmother, and her two children expressed their love and unqualified respect for their mother. Then, we all had one of the experiences of a lifetime. Nine of the great women of the Church, all who had served with Kaye in one capacity or another, stood in a line across the stand and, one-by-one, each came to the pulpit and spoke of how Kaye had blessed her life. That group included two former General Young Women Presidents, a past General Relief Society President, and temple matrons, and counselors in general auxiliary presidencies. Their presence, and what they said, was electrifying.

      When I spoke, I asked all in the congregation who had been taught or tutored or mentored by Kaye to stand. Nearly all 700+ who were there rose to their feet. It was an overpowering witness of the influence this woman had on the lives of countless.

      A few nights before the funeral, my wife and I went to dinner with Julie Beck and her husband Ramon. The conversation centered around Kaye. With considerable emotion, and in detail, Julie told us how Kaye had taught and trained her. Then she said, “If it hadn’t been for Kaye, I would never have been qualified to serve as General President of the Relief Society.”

      Kaye was the woman who, decades before, felt so low and useless, she didn’t think she could even get a job at McDonald’s. She was the woman whose outstanding experiences and opportunities for service would not have likely occurred but for a crushing Thanksgiving event so many years ago. Her choice to somehow make her hopeless situation right, made all the difference.

      Her life has been an undimmed beacon for me.

      Kaye authored a memoir about growing up in the small Utah town of Beaver and published it in two volumes for her family and friends. I have put these on FamilySearch and invite you to download the (free) PDF copies of Tula I and Tula II to get a glimpse of the life of this remarkable woman. They are found under “Documents” at www.familysearch.org/tree/person/memories/KWHF-N24. You may have to sign in to access them.

      Steve Dunn Hanson lives with Joyce, his wife of 57 years, in northeast Washington and is the author of several books, including The Course of Fate trilogy currently available at Amazon. His website is https://stevedunnhanson.com/

      5 Reasons You Should Read “Done!” by Don Aslett

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      By Jeremy Madsen   

      Do you perpetually have a dozen too many irons in the fire? Do you struggle to keep your head above the flood of work projects, Church duties, family responsibilities, personal commitments, emails, text messages, phone notifications, laundry, dishes, and prayers? Is your life’s greatest problem that of never getting enough done?

      If so, I strongly recommend reading Don Aslett’s masterpiece on productivity: Done! How to Accomplish Twice as Much in Half the Time—at Home and at the Office.

      From when I was first introduced to Don Aslett’s books growing up (via my mother, herself a model of effective productivity), to when I revisited them this last year, I have found each of his publications inspiring and empowering. Done! has shown me how to get more done more quickly and more effectively, with less hassle, less stress, and less wasted energy. Here are five reasons why you should give Done! a try:

      1. Don Aslett knows what he’s talking about

      Rarely do the credentials of an author matter more than for a book touting itself as being about productivity. In this regard, Don Aslett leaves the masses far behind. The founder of a cleaning company now with over 4,000 employees, author of 40 books, and sought-after speaker and presenter, Don Aslett embodies the principles he teaches. (And he’s a Latter-day Saint!)

      2. Done! is packed with actionable and specific advice

      Done! offers no gimmick, secret formula, or calendar system for productivity—instead it is packed with specific strategies, tactics, and principles for cutting out time-wasting habits, approaching common problems in more efficient ways, and maintaining motivation and momentum throughout your day and week.

      For example, chapter 3 is devoted to listing and describing in gory detail all the activities that rob us time, space, and energy, including three I’m especially guilty of as an editor and writer: interruptions (silence that phone when working!), oversleeping (get up when that alarm goes off!), and “rubbish reading” (ignore those tempting click-bait articles!). This book will help you identify your own productivity weak points.

      3. Done! will make you rethink conventional productivity “wisdom”

      Occassionally, Don Aslett offers advice that runs counter to the standard productivity fare. At one point, he warns against following schedules—at least, schedules that we rigidly stick to. “Schedules will bind and stiffen you if you follow them too closely. People who have become such expert schedulers that they run around with a planner in their hand at all times lose creativity and flexibility—the schedule becomes their master.” He then tells a story of how, when two weeks of solid rain threw off the yard work he had planned (“scheduled”) during a trip to their summer home in Hawaii, he immediately pivoted to use the time to draft an entire book, write some TV scripts, and even fly to New York and back for a business trip—all completely “unscheduled.”

      4. Done! is a fun read

      Done! is a delightful book to read. Each subsection is largely self-contained, meaning I can pick the book up for a three-minute motivational pick-me-up while waiting in a doctor’s office or giving a bottle to my baby daughter.

      Don Aslett shares many anecdotes—from his own life or others’—that infuse life into his book, grounding each piece of advice in a concrete, memorable, and often funny story or observation.

      A warning: Don Aslett’s positive, even exuberant attitude towards productivity is highly contagious!

      5. Done! will teach you the greatest secret of productivity: be early!

      In chapter 5 (my favorite chapter), Don Aslett lays out what he believes is the one great “secret” of getting more done: be early! A task performed one week early (or one day or one hour) can be three or five or ten times more effective than the same task performed on-time or late.

      In the last week alone, here are ways I’ve seen earliness or lateness affect my life for good or ill:

      1. Early: My wife was assigned to prep some Father’s Day card assembly kits for a family reunion. She finished the kits more than a week in advance, and she also made extra. When I needed a Father’s Day card on short notice three days later, it was a cinch!
      2. Late: For a teacher council meeting, the Sunday School counselor in charge didn’t finalize or announce the topic until an hour before church, meaning no one had time to study the material beforehand.
      3. Early: When our temple opened to phase 3 during the 2020 pandemic, I jumped online within the hour and reserved our family a session on the best day for our calendar. Later that day, every available reservation for the next two months had been filled.
      4. Late: We invited a couple to join us for the sealing session we had scheduled, but the husband had let his recommend expire during COVID, meaning he’d either have to miss the session or scramble to set up two recommend interviews in a week’s time.
      5. Early: On a vacation up to Idaho, we reserved a hotel in Pocatello several days in advance. When we got to the hotel and checked in, we learned from the desk staff that every hotel in Pocatello had since sold out for that night!
      6. Late: My wife and I were planning a cross-country move and began apartment hunting about a month out. But by then, many of the places we called had no available units until two or three or even four months after our moving date, decreasing our options and multiplying our stress.
      7. Early: I gave myself plenty of time to arrive at an unfamiliar airport. After taking 20 minutes to navigate security, I looked around—and realized I was in the wrong terminal! I had to go back out of security to another corner of the airport and pass through a different security checkpoint—but I had arrived two hours before boarding time, so I never felt stressed or rushed!
      8. Late: On a trip I took this week, three out of my four flights were delayed almost two hours beyond their original departure times. I have seen one long round of stressed passengers, tired booking agents, long help-desk lines, and missed connections. The shockwaves of those late flights disseminated outward like ripples, delaying and postponing everything in their path, from vacation plans to babysitting arrangements to other flights—and the vicious cycle of lateness rolls on.

      Think about your typical workday. How many projects do you stress about because they’re behind schedule? How many emails do you get asking you to solve a problem caused by somebody being late? How many opportunities do you lose because you respond to them three days after hearing about them, instead of three minutes or three hours? How much prime writing or editing or brainstorming time do you lose in the morning because you sleep in? Take a page from Don Aslett’s book—be early!

      Still not convinced? Listen to this endorsement from the Lord Himself: “He that seeketh me early shall find me, and shall not be forsaken” (Doctrine and Covenants 88:83, emphasis added).

      Get more done with Don!

      If you want to reach more of your goals, if you want to win the fight against your endless to-do lists, if you want to make a greater impact on the world—I cannot recommend Don Aslett’s book Done! more highly. A delightful read packed with time-tested tactics and unforgettable anecdotes, Done! will forever change the way you approach your workdays and weekends. You don’t even need to read the whole thing—just mine it for all the five-minute nuggets of wisdom it contains. Then put away the distractions, ignore the diversions, and start doing!

      Jeremy Madsen is a fantasy writer, freelance editor, and biblical scholar. With his three siblings, he runs the website Atrium of Light, a repository for scripture songs used to memorize scripture passages through music. Jeremy is the founder of Universal Cape Day (March 10), a day to wear a cape, look epic, and feel heroic. He currently lives in Columbus, Ohio, with his wife and kids. He is also the operations manager for LDSPMA.

      7 Reasons Why You Should Try New Things

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      By Brittany Passmore

      Have you ever been scared to try something new? It’s an understandable fear and one that I relate to keenly. However, I’ve recently begun to look at trying new things in a different way and realized that new experiences can bring us incredible benefits.

      I’m not asking you to climb Mount Everest or make a drastic change in your career. All I’m saying is that you and I should dabble occasionally in new and different hobbies that peak our interest. For instance, maybe you’ve always wanted to try rock climbing or learn how to paint.

      If you think these activities might distract you from whatever creative profession you’ve chosen, let me suggest that they’ll actually make you a better creator than a worse one. New experiences can be incredibly important for your professional and personal development, even if they have nothing to do with your creative work! Here are seven ways that trying new things can help you flourish.

      1. Gain New Talents and Skills

      When you try something new, you’re likely to learn a new skill because of it. Even if you only try that new thing once, you’ll likely be using skills that you haven’t focused on practicing before. And although these new skills might not be needed for your specific profession, you may find ways to apply them and expand your creativity.

      2. Meet New People and Network

      Whatever new activity you try, you’ll probably be able to make new friends and add valuable people to your network. You never know when you might be grateful to know someone active in another profession or hobby. Plus, one day, others might be grateful to know you and ask for your expertise!

      A girl with brown hair and glasses dips her paintbrush in water. Experimenting with art can be a way to try new things.

      3. Gain Valuable Experience

      You won’t just learn how to do something new if you try it. You’ll also gain valuable experience that can propel your own career. Trying new things can be hard, but learning to adapt to new situations allows you to better adapt to the difficult situations that arise in your own field. Start trying new things, and you’ll find the curveballs in your own creative pursuits are easier to dodge.

      4. Gain Unique Perspective

      Your new experiences as you try new activities can help you look at the world differently. Everyone has their own perspective on life, and that perspective is influenced by the things we love and do. So, when you understand a new activity or hobby, you’ll also come to understand the people who love and do those things. This perspective can help you better connect with people as you create your own work.

      Fantasy author Brandon Sanderson once gave an excellent example of how trying something new helped him gain a unique perspective that helped his writing. He took an art class to learn about drawing. Although he doesn’t consider himself a professional artist by any means, understanding how artists look at the world in order to create helped him write stronger characters that had similar perspectives.

      5. Find Inspiration

      Your new perspective may also help you find inspiration as you create. You might be struck by the emotions you experience as you try something new, which could translate into how you use emotion in your next creation. Or you might connect to an idea, an experience, or a person in a new way that brings new meaning to your life and your work.

      6. Spark Joy in Yourself and Others

      If nothing else, trying new things should bring you and others joy. Have fun while you try new things! Get excited and share your excitement with others. Who knows? Maybe you’ll discover a new hobby. Even if you find you don’t want to try that new thing again, at least you will have created a happy memory for yourself and maybe for others.

      7. Curate the Attribute of Bravery

      Finally, as you try new things, you will develop important attributes like bravery. Trying new things can be scary and overwhelming at times. But when we find the inner strength to finish what we started, whatever the result, we become braver and more confident. That bravery is important to your professional creative work too! Your increased bravery will help you take risks and put yourself out there.

      At first, the advice to try new things might seem like a distraction from your work. But in the long run, taking courage to enjoy new experiences can actually improve you and help you find more joy and success in your creative pursuits. So, what are you waiting for? Make a goal to try something new!

      ——————

      Brittany Passmore graduated from BYU with a major in editing and publishing. She works as a freelance editor specializing in science-fiction and fantasy. When she’s not reading, writing, or editing, Brittany loves to be a stay-at-home mom to her toddler and dabble in her musical hobbies of piano, flute, guitar, singing, and practicing yoga.

      Website: https://brittanympassmore.wixsite.com/passmoreedits

      7 Character Traits of Creative People

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      By Trina Boice

      Have you ever wondered what drives creative people? What makes them different? Hanging out with other LDSPMA members energizes me, inspires me, and encourages me to tap into my own creativity more! You can develop your own innate creativity by incorporating the following seven traits into your daily life.

      1. Creative people are focused

      Highly creative people usually have high levels of energy and stay focused on their project for long periods. Even when they are out of the studio or away from the computer, their minds are still thinking about their creative work. To take advantage of the ideas that tend to constantly flow, keep a notebook nearby or reserve a spot on your cell phone where you can instantly record your flashes of inspiration.

      2. They hold onto a sense of wonder

      Creative people are often brilliant, but they don’t think they know everything. Just the opposite, they retain a sense of wonder and curiosity about the world. They are committed to lifelong learning.

      3. Creative people work hard

      Creative people, whether songwriters or artists, speakers or writers, usually work long hours on a project and get into “the zone.” They let their loved ones know what they need for support, so that when they’re in “the zone,” they won’t be bothered or interrupted. Know how to design an effective workspace with music or silence, food or drink, aroma or light. Creatives are persistent and determined and totally focused on their work. They also know they need to take a break!

      4. Creatives are not loners

      Research suggests that creative people often combine the best of extroversion and introversion. While most people tend to favor one or the other of these personality types, creative people combine elements of both. They find ideas and inspiration in their social interactions and then retreat to the studio to work their creative magic.

      5. They are open and sensitive

      Creatives tend to be very empathic and sensitive. They are open to all the possibilities of the world and find inspiration everywhere. Sensitivity is necessary to be able to create artistically but can be a double-edged sword, leaving the artist vulnerable to criticism and rejection.

      6. Creatives can daydream and be realistic

      The traditional picture of the daydreaming artist isn’t necessarily reflective of the creative mind. Creativity is grounded in imagination and daydreaming, seeing the possibilities and wondering ‘what if?’ But creative people are also very practical, and the next stage is testing the ‘what if’ idea to see if it works. Creative thinking is essential for innovative problem solving that works in the real world.

      7. Creatives seek to be a light in the world

      Creative desire to share their gifts with the world to make it a better place. They want to share their insights and perspective in order to lighten another person’s burden or add joy and depth to understanding.

      So, what are YOU going to create today?

      —————————————————-

      Dr. Trina Boice is a #1 best-selling author of 31 books and an author coach at www.FromBook2Business.com. She teaches online for Brigham Young University (Idaho campus), is a film critic at www.MovieReviewMom.com. Trina is the Marketing Director at LDSPMA and loves rubbing shoulders with all of you amazing creatives!

      The Arts as a Superpower

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      By Shaun Stahle

      “What is the most powerful weapon in the world?” I asked a class of fifth graders in Fielding Elementary School many years ago.

      The Gulf War was raging at the time. Every news cast led with horrific scenes of destruction. “The Apache Helicopter with laser-guided smart bombs,” blurted one boy. “Nah,” said another. “Tomahawk cruise missiles launched from warships.” 

      The boys grew animated with some coming out of their chairs in mock imitation. These sparkly-faced boys knew their weapons of mass destruction.

      After the teacher restored order, I suggested that neither the laser-guided missiles nor the Apache Helicopter—as powerful as they were to level big buildings into little pieces of rubble—were the most power weapons in the world.

      More guesses followed. “How about nuclear bombs?” asked another.

      “No,” I said long and slow, squeezing every second to build tension. “The most powerful weapon in the world…is words.”

      Three illustrated people with speech bubbles. Using words and conversation.
      Words: the Most Powerful Weapon in the World

      The class went thunderously quiet. Faces contorted. The mental torture of trying to figure how words trumped bombs in causing agony. “Words?” someone finally bellowed. “When did words ever win a war?”

      “Think about it,” I suggested, trying to ease their pain before their faces froze in those positions. “When mean words are said, you get angry. When you get angry, you could throw a punch. If nations say enough mean words, people get angry and tempers flare. They sometimes hurl bombs. But do you feel like poking someone’s nose who has complimented you?”

      I’m not sure the students understood my analogy. I’m not sure the teacher did either. But I still think the premise has merit. Words tell stories. Stories evoke emotions of virtue such as beauty and love. Such emotions build into peace and contentment and gracious living. Harmony and unity are the result.

      Words can also fan the flames of hate and animosity. Words of deceit and injustice can enrage to violence. Instead of unity, we see others as a lower species.

      Words Turn Enemies to Friends

      President Dallin H. Oaks in his October general conference address recommended that we heed the counsel of a famous musical and make more effort to get to know each other.

      He should know. As one who has stood in the heat of intense adversarial debate trying many cases—50, I think—before the US Supreme Court, and as a man deeply cultured in the affections of the Spirit, he knows how to turn enemies into friends.

      That’s where we come in. Those who tell stories help society get to know each other. Words and images and sounds are our superpower. The more we use our powers to tell the plight of another, the more we defuse the ugly and demeaning and debase that confronts us.

      Most of us will never be introduced in the Rose Garden. None of us will have a finger on the big red nuclear bomb button. But we still have power. “The kind words we give, shall in memory live.”

      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

      Shaun Stahle was yanked from a comfortable bed early one morning at age five to cart newspapers off his grandfather’s printing press and has been cursed with ink in the blood ever since. He spent 17 years detailing the growth of the Church with the Church News. His retirement plan is to find a shoe box full of unmarked bills along the road someday. He says he has saved his wife of 33 years from a life of fame and prosperity.