We always aimed high. I’m a big believer in reaching for the stars. Why not?! We took the same approach to our writing. We heeded the advice. Why not? It was apparently our best shot! We both started blogging, writing short pieces. I also took a yearlong writing certificate program at the University of Washington. We started writing for this beautiful 406 Magazine over five years ago. We didn’t give up.
Lesson Three: Celebrate Along the Way! Enjoy the journey! Too often people look out to the horizon for that finish line. As a result, they miss the many special moments worth celebrating along the way.
Eventually, we collected those short pieces and the book began to form.
For us, we celebrated what Anne Lamont calls, that shitty first draft! We had dinner out at the Red Room in Whitefish.
The next bump came when the next editor told us that, while these were great short pieces, we were missing a bigger picture, a structure or a storyline, something to make the book hang together.
We celebrated when a publisher called and wanted to sign us. Just visit CrisMarie’s Facebook page from April 2017, and you’ll see the joy!
That was the best bump yet because that’s when we realized we had a relationship model. We’d been using it for years with our clients, both teams and couples. We just needed to organize the book along the lines of our relationship model and tell our clients’ stories (of course, changing the names and identifying details). Our defining goal emerged: to write a practical, real, and relatable book for our clients, applicable to anyone in a relationship at work or at home. Had we not been bumped several times, we’d never have found our own unique voice and message. Sure, the book was always rooted in all we’d learned in our professional experience, but all those twists and turns forced us to define our message, making it our own. Yes, the bumps made the book better! Plus, along the way, we developed classes to help other people get unstuck and connect to their heart and spark. One of these classes is called Get Unstuck, a six-week virtual program designed to get you going on whatever dream, goal, or project you’ve been stalling on. We start the next one this January. Why not check it out? Relationship Mojo is a six-week virtual class designed for individuals who want to transform their most important relationship(s). It will help you show up authentically and real in your relationship(s) so you feel alive, passionate, and create the connection you crave. Our next class starts in March 2018. Let us help you transform your relationships. Finally, our Find Your Mojo in Montana Retreat, is a four-day, all-inclusive retreat held at the Firebrand in downtown Whitefish. You’ll increase your mindbody connection and increase your creativity. We also take you out to Stillwater Horse Whisper’s ranch to learn from the magic of the horses. You’ll walk away with more mojo, more confidence, trusting your instincts, and increased magnetic presence. Our next retreat is May 3-6, 2018. It’s so fun and very transformative. These programs were developed as direct the result of riding our bumps and making our way down the river and wanting to help other people do the same!
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The publisher dropped us but our clients and mentors didn’t! Yes! Finally, we celebrated when our book launched! We had a fabulous official book launch party with our local friends at The Flat over Wasabi in Whitefish. We had an amazing cake made by Beth Dix from Delectable Catering & Desserts.
Later, that same publisher dropped us. Ouch! I’m so glad we took time to enjoy our four weeks of imagining and living with publishers’ contract. Yes, that was yet another bump, but it too paid off. Because when they dropped us, we reached out to our clients and discovered an incredible way to create support and a path for the book’s release. We got incredible endorsements:
"I was introduced to CrisMarie and Susan when they came in to work with our leadership team at Microsoft. I really value their perspective on teams, conflict and building trust through vulnerability, curiosity and real-team work on business issues. I have reused their materials over and over to great success with leaders and teams. I'm thrilled that this book is now out for other leaders. Their style is real, personal and practical. It’s a must-read for a leader wanting to build strong relationships and get great business results.” Kim Hardgraves Microsoft Director, Business Operations & Compliance
“Best leadership development program, ever! CrisMarie and Susan created and delivered our leadership development program at Clearwire over a decade ago. I’ve been to several other leadership development programs since and nothing’s compared. I had to bring them in to Twitch when we wanted to develop the EQ of our leaders here. This book is a must-read if you’re a leader who wants to increase your influence.” Margi Lee-Johnson Twitch Even CrisMarie’s mentor Martha Beck supported us:
“Conflict is never my favorite thing, and truth-telling can lead to conflict. But I've found that when we face this fact with integrity, an alchemical change turns coworkers into true creators. CrisMarie and Susan describe this process in Beauty of Conflict, and I'd recommend this book to anyone who wants to improve team performance at work or anywhere else.” Martha Beck Martha Beck Inc. CEO and Author
"I really value their perspective on teams, conflict and building trust through vulnerability, curiosity and real-team work on business issues."
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