Why This and Why Now?

We are a species of storytellers

Credit: Arek Socha, Pixabay

Does the world need another Substack newsletter? Can you give me a good reason to share my love for storytelling and writing with thousands of people who did not know they wanted this newsletter until they found it or someone sent it to them?

Before taking on anything new or overthinking your own curb appeal, ask this question: Why this and why now? The longer version is, If this is such a great idea how come we don’t have it now? It might take months to get to the bottom of that question, which is where you’ll find the truth. The answer is worth the time of your life.

I came up with two versions of an answer. Let me know, by email or by using the comments section in Substack, which one you think is the best reason.

Reason 1: So really, you’re better served by doing whatever the hell seems the most fun and fascinating and intellectually alluring to you, and taking other people’s advice when it triggers that same delighted, excited reaction within you, and then trying to make that thing work somehow. —Mike Sowden

Reason 2: I’m doing this now because I see evidence all around me that someone needs to step up and provide the frameworks, resources, and introductions for gifted professionals and communicators to address and do something about the real issues or self-talk that slowed them down while striving to serve and love as big as they ever could.

What prepared me for this was experiencing life and work as an exceptionally talented, tenacious, high-achievement person.

What prepared me for this was working with hundreds of professions, national associations, and the Washington, DC mix of purposes, issues, and interests. The job of more than 25,000 associations is to tell the story of their profession and help others understand why they need it and to what extent. The job of the association is to take the complexities of national policies and state regulations and make them understandable, meaningful, and connected to individuals’ daily actions on their jobs.

Because I’ve studied and written about more than 600 professions, in depth, and researched another 1000 professions to the point of being able to explain their purpose and role in society in clear words that a 5th grader or your mother would understand, I believe I can take on questions and comments that thousands of subscribers might have about truths and myths about professionalism, work, relationships and love, individuals vs. society, power and corruption, vision and guides, and clear communication.

Well, maybe. I’ve devoted more than 40 years to researching deep and complex subjects, such as humans and what makes them work.

There’s Nothing To Say Until You Ask a Question

People say I’m a great listener. I’m just intensely curious. I’m quiet until you ask a question. I have nothing to say until there’s a question. Then I offer experience, wisdom, insight, and better questions, back at you. I also provide some clueless but enthusiastic creative tips. Face it, we are all learning something new every day.

The longer I live, the better I get at helping others understand they are not alone, not wrong, and still a work in progress, like me. Neuroscience backs up this great place in life because the brain is a massive vault of experience that just gets smarter and smarter with each experience, each sensation, every pain, and every feeling of awe and love.

Why me? I’m at a point in life where I can. I’m no longer surviving. I’m living each day fully. I have the crystallized intelligence that comes after 40. This is an increasing knack for combining complex ideas, understanding what they mean, recognizing patterns, and teaching others.

Why me? I have spent the past 10 years looking for this community, thinking it is so obviously painful that I’ll find many gifted professionals or organizations or businesses that are way ahead of me and providing everything I need for the rapidly passing years to the rest of my life.

Why me? Because this is how love works. This is what I’m supposed to do.

Who Do I Choose to Serve the Rest of My Life?

The people I choose to serve and want to introduce to each other have an extreme sensitivity to time. They never use the word “busy” as an excuse; instead, they just keep moving to where they are needed most. Before continuing with the story about the transitions for me personally and the new vision and new work created for you, let’s see if you should continue reading.

If you do not relate to one of the points here, you’re free to leave the page:

• You have multiple interests but struggle with the words and actions to make ultra-clear the value this has for the people you like to have in your life and work.

• You already have a lot of accomplishments and few complaints about your business but you’re not confident in the quality and the tone of your newsletter or posts or emails as a whole

• You are an intense reader, book lover, and consumer of information from extremely diverse points of view and it’s overwhelming to have more information than you can turn into your next article, your next presentation, or whatever you know you must get into worlds or a visual story and out to the world.

• For too long you have earned money and connections with your time instead of leveraging your thoughts, analysis, and problem-solving. Your mind knows you are worth more impact and far more money than what you’ve settled for.

I could go on, but by now you should know whether or not learning something new and learning it from others like you who are gifted, professional, and communicators is worth it to you.

By now you can tell that you’ve found that special newsletter where others, as accomplished and brilliant as you, want to learn from you. By now you are seeing an entirely new and safe way to enter into conversations with people who are just as eager and curious about meeting you as you are in becoming known to them.