Blog Archives

The process of being called

10/30/2015

A lot of folks believe being called goes something like this….
First God calls me to something
Then I start doing it

This may be the case for some people. My experience has often been the exact opposite though. I didn’t realized that I was called to work with young people until after I was forced into being a summer camp intern by my mother. I didn’t realize that I was called to speak until a fellow counselor shoved a microphone in my hand.

For me, discovering my calling has been a process of…
Start doing something
Then discover in hindsight that it’s actually part of God’s call for your life

This obviously doesn't work with everything. Some things we try are just not for us. But I think this is a much better equation for most of us than just standing around waiting for some divine lightning bolt to strike us and say, “Go, my child.” Again, this may be the case for some people, but for most of us, waiting for the lightning bolt actually becomes more of a hinderance than a help. We use, “I just don’t know what God’s calling me to do” as an excuse to not do anything at all. What if you simply started doing something, anything, and then listened and discerned whether you were on the right track or not?

You see, the thing about momentum, is that it’s a lot easier to get going with something that is already in motion. Start now. Do something.

CLICK HERE to subscribe to this blog
CLICK HERE to invite jon as a speaker

1 Comment

Courage

10/29/2015

0 Comments

Courage: the ability to do something that frightens one

This is how our modern dictionary defines courage. But let’s take a step back.

The word actually comes from the latin root “cor” meaning “heart”. In fact, Brene Brown points out that when courage originally found it’s way into the english language, it was defined as “telling the story of who you are with all your heart.”

Do you bring courage to the art you create? Not just, are you facing your fears? But, are you simultaneously telling the story of who you are with everything you have?

Anyone can let the crowd see her face.
It’s the one who let’s the crowd see her heart that is making and sharing her art.

CLICK HERE to subscribe to this blog
CLICK HERE to invite jon as a speaker

0 Comments

A technique for getting through pain and suffering

10/28/2015

3 Comments

A quick note before I start. This first paragraph this post may sound a bit "complainy". I promise you though, I do have a point. Bear with me.

The last few weeks of performing Mamma Mia, I was in agony. Yes, I was sad the show was closing. Yes, I was going to miss my castmates. Yes, I was nervous about being out of a job. None of these were the cause of my distress however. My true torment had to do with a back injury that I suffered at the beginning of the year. During the final two months of the show, the injury grew severe to the point that I probably should not have been performing at all. I am not being dramatic when I say that I could barely walk, much less dance. However, for my own reasons (mainly my stupid pride) I stuck with it.

I remember looking at the calendar and counting how many shows were left. “There’s no way my body can endure this much pain for 48 more shows,” I would say to myself.

“You’re right,” I would respond, (I often talk to myself like this) “but you can do one show, and that’s all you need to worry about tonight. You can always do one show, no matter how much it hurts.” This was the mantra I repeated to myself night after night until my calendar showed zero shows left, and I could get the rest I needed.

Perhaps it’s not your back that’s hurting, perhaps it’s a sickness or other type of ailment. Maybe your pain isn’t even physical. Perhaps your greatest agony comes from a broken relationship, lost job, or an impossible course load at school. And perhaps you find yourself thinking...

“There’s no way I can make it to the end of the semester.”
“I can’t keep running into her. It’s too painful, I can’t handle it.”
“How am I supposed to live with this pain for the rest of my life?”

We’ve all thought this at some point, and my reminder to you today is that you don’t. You don’t have to endure it for the rest of your life. Or, at least you don’t have to think about it that way.

All you have to do is finish this one paper, make it through this one conversation, go on one interview, endure one surgery. There may be many more to come, but you don’t have to focus on those right now. You can choose to focus on doing just one more show. You can do anything once, no matter how painful it is.

A word of caution: this may not work for everyone. I’m not saying this is the right mindset with which to endure painful trials. This is just one mindset. If it’s not for you, put it away for now. However, my guess is that if the pain when the pain gets bad enough, you may get desperate. In that moment, maybe give it another shot. The best technique for overcoming pain and suffering at the keep trying and never give up.

CLICK HERE to subscribe to this blog
CLICK HERE to invite jon as a speaker

3 Comments

Sharing it once probably isn’t enough

10/27/2015

0 Comments

As much as we would like to believe it, not everybody is constantly refreshing their Twitter feed, just waiting for you to share your next project.

Sharing your project once probably isn’t enough.
This is not an excuse to spam people.
But if your work is really good, then you actually have an obligation to make sure your audience finds it.
It’s not selfish. It’s actually a huge part of creating generous work.

CLICK HERE to subscribe to this blog
CLICK HERE to invite jon as a speaker

0 Comments

The right name

10/26/2015

1 Comment

“I’ll start my blog once I figure out what to name it.”

Whether you realize it or not, this is an excuse. It’s an excuse we use to delay the vulnerable act of starting. It often comes side by side with things like…

“I need to take a writing class first”
“I don’t know how to create a website”
“I don’t have time”
All excuses

And since when does having the right name mean you will be successful? Were Guns and Roses, Style Me Pretty, or Facebook successful because they had “the right name”? No! In fact, Facebook changed it’s name after their first few years of existence. Their popularity was growing before, and it continued to grow after. The name was pretty irrelevant.

These projects were successful because they continued to provide value by sharing their art with a group of people.

So call your blog “Sam’s Blog” or “My Blog” or “I don’t know what to call this”. It doesn’t matter! What matters is that you start, and make a commitment to share on a regular basis.

CLICK HERE to subscribe to this blog
CLICK HERE to invite jon as a speaker

1 Comment

“Liar, liar, pants on fire”

10/23/2015

1 Comment

A friend/mentor of mine told me something once that, even at sixteen, I realized was full of wisdom.
He said, “Lust promises what it can’t deliver.”
Now, I know that many of us think of lust in more of a sexual connotation, and I think that was how my friend/mentor was using it. But doesn’t this apply to all forms of temptation?

When the voice of seduction (again, not strictly sexual) begins to call, it tries to sell us on what an incredible future it can provide for us.

“It will feel so good.”
“No one will ever know.”
“You’ll never have to worry about anything, ever again.”

After the fact though, we discover the that the truth looks a lot different…

“It felt good in the moment, but now I just feel terrible.”
“The truth always finds a way of getting out.”
“That didn’t really solve all my problems. In fact, it created a whole lot more.”
If we’re honest though, somewhere in the back of our minds, we knew this would be the outcome.

Lust promises what it can’t deliver.
Lying often seems like a really good option, until you discover that your pants are ablaze.
Next time, before you tell the lie, before you stretch the story to make yourself look better, or before you pursue any temptation, ask yourself one question: Is being a liar really worth burning your legs?

CLICK HERE to subscribe to this blog
CLICK HERE to invite jon as a speaker

1 Comment

Quality over quality

10/22/2015

1 Comment

That’s “quality of story, or message, over quality of video.”

It is not the quality of a video that makes it go viral. Otherwise, every motion picture with a 200 million dollar budget would make all it’s money back, and there would be no such thing as a viral home video. Virality and reach have very little to do with quality of video, they has everything to do with the quality and depth of the message being spread.

Too many of us are spending all of our time “polishing”
Making sure every sentence, every edit, every picture is perfect
Too many artists are spending too much time polishing, and not enough time shipping, and sharing
Too many artists have a beautiful packaging, but not very much substance inside

Polishing is just fine, but not at the expense of the message.
Tell a great story, and people will soon gather to listen

CLICK HERE to subscribe to this blog
CLICK HERE to invite jon as a speaker

1 Comment

MRI

10/21/2015

1 Comment

One thing you learn very quickly in a closed MRI is you can’t focus on the plastic tube three inches above your nose. If you do, you’ll soon feel the tube getting smaller and smaller. Then you’ll begin to squirm, telling yourself that if you can just get more comfortable, then you won’t be so scared. This doesn’t really help though, and now you’ve blurred the picture and the doctor has to start all over.

Sometimes, we have to remain perfectly still in order to get a clear picture of the damage. This can be scary, because what if the results are not what you hoped they’d be? What if you discover something that wasn’t supposed to be there, or something that was that’s now gone?

It’s not always easy to look a problem straight in the eye. We’d rather keep moving, pretending that it’s not really there. We’d rather squirm, convincing ourselves that we can get used to it. But you have to ask yourself a question.

What’s worse, discovering the truth, or being stuck in a plastic tube?

CLICK HERE to subscribe to this blog
CLICK HERE to invite jon as a speaker

1 Comment

My most popular blog post

10/20/2015

0 Comments

A few weeks ago, I published a post entitled “It’s going to be okay.” The post was one of the most popular I’ve ever had in terms of the amount of clicks generated.

It should come as no surprise that such a title attracted so much attention. Somewhere deep down (or not so deep down) we all want to be told that everything is going to be okay, that all our problems are going to be favorably solved, that all the tension is going to go away.

Many of my readers were probably disappointed to find that a post entitled “It’s going to be okay” made no promise that everything was going to be okay. The tricky thing about the real world is that it’s full of tension, it’s full of questions and uncertainty. Reality exists in the space between when the question is asked and the answer is given. In order to exist--better yet, to survive, thrive, and create--in the real world, we must learn to love the tension. We must realize that instead of wishing and praying for it to go away, there is inspiration and beauty to be found and shared right in the middle of it.

Is it going to be okay? Eventually, I believe yes. God makes many promises of paradise in the world to come, and all that sounds pretty awesome. But in the meantime, we’re stuck in the middle. We might as well create something meaningful while we’re here.

CLICK HERE to subscribe to this blog
CLICK HERE to invite jon as a speaker

0 Comments

The biggest surprise of the tour (so far)

10/19/2015

1 Comment

To start, I need to provide a little bit of context. For this tour, there are several types of venues that I have booked.
-There are a few events where I am booked as the speaker at a youth service or gathering that is exclusive to that church or school.
-There are events where I am partnering with the school or church. They advertise to their community, and I advertise to mine. (This is the majority)
-There is a small number of events where I simply rented a space and shouted online, “Hey, I’ll be here at this time. Show up if you want to listen.”

It was my expectation that the majority of the audience at a particular event would have no idea who I am. They’re only there because someone at their church told them they should come. And this has been the case.

However, the biggest surprise for me on this tour so far, has been watching the Fanimas come out of the woodwork every single show. These folks have no connection with the venue, but only heard about the show through Twitter, YouTube, or some other online channel. We have had anywhere between 5-15 Fanimas at every show, some of which drive 2, 3, even up to 6 hours to come and see it.

I do not share this to brag. It’s actually a very humbling experience. I share this as an encouragement. Now, more than ever, anyone has the ability to go online and gather a group of people for an event, whether it be a speaking engagement, a fundraiser, or a business venture. This is not limited to people with (somewhat) viral videos. You can do this too!

With this encouragement though, I have to offer some humbling truth. As I said, we have around 5-15 Fanimas gather for each show. That is really cool, but objectively, that’s not very many people. If it has taken us 2 years, 120 videos, and the luck of one going viral to amass a following of 5-15 people per city, please don’t have any expectation that you can just announce your presence and millions will come running. It is very possible to lead a tribe of people, and to gather them from all over the world, but you HAVE TO PUT IN THE WORK TOO! If you do put in the work though, day in and day out, you might be pleasantly surprised when people are willing to drive 6 hours to be a part of what you're doing.

The tools are there, just waiting to be used.
The people are there, just waiting to be gathered.
The work is there, just waiting to be done.

CLICK HERE to subscribe to this blog
CLICK HERE to invite jon as a speaker

1 Comment

<<Previous

About

Archives﻿

Archives