👋 Hi! I'm Dan. I help makers, artists, entrepreneurs, and creatives find the clarity and motivation to get their work out into the world. If that sounds good, let's go! 🚀

Hi Reader,

Welcome to the second installment in this build in public series that we're doing with my good friend Raj Lulla about his debut novel, The Caring House.

If you didn't listen/watch/read to the last episode, we talked about his career story and becoming a writer.

Today, we're digging into what happens after you do the hard work of writing a book.

Once that's done, you have to do the even harder work of getting people to care and to read it.

That's where Raj is right now. It's hard work!

We cover a lot of ground:

• publishing versus self publishing.
• marketing.
• courage.
• the emotional labor of making something that matters to you

It's rich material. And I'm excited for you to listen in!

This is relevant to anyone who is making something that matters, whether that's a business, whether that's a idea, whether that's a, um, an art project, a book, whatever it might be.

There's so many takeaways. regardless of your medium of choice.

Listen in here: https://themeaningmovement.com/launching-a-dream-project/​

In Case You Missed it:

A few recent posts and articles you may have missed...

From LinkedIn:

​📰 I never thought I’d have a midlife crisis. And then it snuck up on me from behind.

📰 The 9 Struggles of Entrepreneurship - Every entrepreneur struggles with the same 9 problems. If you help businesses, solve these to succeed.

📰 Wired for Burnout - I was wired for burnout from an early age. Still am. Here's how I'm dealing with it.

From the Newsletter:

✉️ Crafting a Creative Career​

✉️ “If you’re not taking hits, you’re not playing hard enough.”​

✉️ The Hidden Addiction Driving us to Burnout​

Things I'm enjoying: reading edition

I read a lot. I mostly do audio books. But I read 50-70 books a year.

Today I wanted to offer a couple simple tools I use to keep me going, and some of my recent favorites:

​Library Extension Plugin​

This brilliant little plugin searches your library for any books that you come across on the web. I'm often looking at books I'd like to read or look at on Amazon. The plugin will show if the book is available at your home library and allows you to request it with a couple clicks.

More Libraries = More Fun

I recently discovered that other library systems in my area allow you to have a card if you live within a certain distance. I now have 4 systems I can access content from. This is really helpful in finding shorter wait times and accessing more diverse content. It also makes the Library Extension even better!

​The Caring House

I can't talk about books without mentioning this one. This is a story about family, overcoming trauma, and how our failures don't have to define us. It's beautiful. And Raj is donating his pre-sale royalties to help kids who have lost parents work through the trauma. Order it. You won't be disappointed.

​Fair Play​

This book is changing my life and my household. I wrote about it here. It's about:

1️⃣ Using project management frameworks to run a household more efficiently— keeping everyone on the same page and making sure everything important gets done.

2️⃣ Exposing The “hidden” work required to run every household — to create a fair workload.

3️⃣ Most important: the impossible cultural expectations placed on women around the points above.

I'm pretty aware of gender issues and cultural norms. In general, my wife and I do well with these things. AND YET this book has helped us have conversations we otherwise would never be having.

​Die with Zero​

I'm only half way through this one, but I love it. It's been on my list for ages. The premise is that many people save up for a financial future that they never get to enjoy. The author argues that memories have compound interest, just like investments. And that we shouldn't (and can't!) save the best times for the future, but need to use our resources to get the most out of life now.

I'm the king of delayed gratification. You can read some of my thoughts on that here. This book is helping me find balance.

​Transitions​

This is the handbook on the major transitions in life. I've been in a transition for the past year or so in my work. I shut down the venture studio that I was building. I sold the software companies that I had started. And I don't fully know what's next.

This book examines the major life transitions and the patterns they take. It was what I needed to read. And it helped me embrace the in-between space that I'm in as a necessary part of the process.

I'm curious: are you in a transition? If so, I'd love to hear about it. Hit reply!

Question

I love sharing the things I'm enjoying. Are they helpful? Do you like this section of the newsletter?

Your turn now

Anything great you've been enjoying? Hit reply and send it along! I'd love to know. Seriously.

Almost 8,000 people are getting this email, and I can count on one hand how many responses I usually get. You have the chance to change that! Hit reply. Tell me what's good!

Yours in meaning making,

Dan Cumberland

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