As we have closed a very busy and productive year, I just wanted to personally thank you for helping us improve what we do at Purpose Publishing as we lean into the New Year 2018.

Whether you've allowed us the opportunity to be part of your book's publication as your printer and/or book distributor; whether you're an established indie publisher or a new author just getting your feet wet; whether we met you at an author event this year; or whether you simply take part in our publisher education via our downloadable guides, social media, videos, or blog; you have helped us learn and grow, and for that we are always grateful.

Our goal, first and foremost, is to help you make your books available to readers around the world, whether they discover your work(s) directly from your social media, a book review, in a library, or a physical bookstore or online store. We're just as overjoyed as you are when we see your books in all of our favorite book-buying places, and know, from your feedback, that this is one of the reasons you most love publishing your books with us.

Looking ahead to 2018, we are working to streamline the royalties’ payout system by adding a PayPal feature allowing us to electronically make your statements & funds easier to get to you. We are intent to provide you with the tools you need to successfully navigate the challenging world of book publishing, so look for improved tools and resources that we intend to help you reach your author goals.

Last year we took giant step forward as Purpose Publishing celebrated a major milestone, 100 Books & 100 Authors! It's incredible how far we've come in seven short years and impossible to imagine Ingram Distribution without all of the amazing lndie authors and the fantastic books they've created and shared. We’ll still be celebrating this year by rolling out many new services that you’ve requested and showcasing more authors and what they’re doing. 2018 promises to be another fantastic year for us all.

I hope you can find the time to read and write during this first quarter. Happy New Year to everyone with a story, past, present, or future, and the courage to share it!
 
To Your Success,
MG

Four small changes that will improve your career in 2018

By Michelle Gines 


This year, make New Years resolutions that mesh with your professional life?

Hey, you never know. Maybe 2018 will finally be the year you read 50 books, exercise every single day, or become a world champ of some activity you’ve never tried before. But just in case it’s not, may we suggest that you consider a more realistic (and perhaps more impactful) target for your New Year’s resolutions?

Try your work/business life, where small changes can make a big difference in your efficacy and stress levels. Here are four specific areas of work life we at Purpose Publishing recommend targeting in 2018:

1. Resist procrastinating

Productive procrastination is a myth. Instead of rationalizing your delay, try one of these research-backed strategies for beating it:


Commit to just five minutes: Procrastination is often caused by fear. Committing to just five minutes, rather than beginning with the intention of completing an entire project or running an entire marathon, can help reduce inhibition and what psychologists call the “costs of an activity.”

Visualize your future self: When you procrastinate, you unload work from your current self to your future self. Psychologists at Northwestern, Stanford and Carleton universities have demonstrated how keeping that future self in mind can help you avoid procrastination.


2. Experiment with your routine

There is no single routine that will work for everyone. Finding your best self might involve some experimentation. Here are three that worked for us in the last year.

Get up earlier: This has been a game-changer for Purpose Publishing writer Chasity Offhill. “After the arrival of my second child last year, I fell into a habit of waking up in the morning to the sound of the baby’s cry,” she says. “Starting my day by reacting to something else made me feel like I was constantly catching up, a sense that often persisted through the morning rush and into the workday. But once the kid got into a more regular routine, and after I spent a week with the Rock Clock app, I started setting my alarm for 5:45am, about an hour before my kids rise. Game-changer. These days I’m showered, breakfasted, and have checked in with colleagues three time-zones ahead before the first little person starts yelling upstairs. I feel in control of my day again. Thanks Mr. Rock!”


Block apps that suck your time: Purpose Publishing contributing editor Michael Keye uses his phone’s parental-control feature to block news apps and help him focus. “I’m a 38-year-old dad, and I’m obsessed with my iPhone’s parental controls,” he wrote in an article for Purpose Publishing . “No, it’s not because my kids use my phone to view questionable YouTube videos. It’s because I can’t stop myself from reading articles about Donald Trump.” Here’s how you can set up the same system. Another way to save screen time? Purpose Publishing reporter Dawn Gabriel recommends using your phone’s voice-control feature to set reminders.

Understand whether you’re on “clock time” or “event time”: As Purpose Publishing author Mark Curio explains, “Clock-time people, as the name implies, run their lives according to an arranged schedule, assigning tasks to interchangeable time blocks of various sizes,” while event-time people “allow events to dictate the rhythm of their days. When invited to dinner, they feel no pressing need to discuss what time that dinner might be held. Their version of setting up a phone chat might be, ‘I’ll call as soon as I’ve finished my lunch.’ And they’ll eat, by the way, when they’re hungry, not when the clock strikes a particular hour.” Understanding the difference between the two time philosophies can help relieve tension with people who don't. 

3. Get organized

You don’t need to hire a productivity guru, get a masters degree in operations, or even make a daily commitment. Here are two simple ways to save time that involve minimal upfront investment.

Install these four apps:  Blogger, Tiago Forte has a simple system for managing email and tasks, and it starts with installing just four apps: a “read it later” app, a task manager, a digital calendar, and a digital cabinet. Charity Lund took his advice. “I am a prolific maker of lists and notes-to-self,” she says. “For years I have composed these little reminders everywhere: the Notes app on my phone, Evernote, unsent draft emails, and the old-fashioned Lois-Lane-reporter’s notebook I carry in my bag. This system works exactly as you would expect it to: fine, most of the time, with a few frantic searches for that really important thing I wrote down…somewhere.” After she tried Tiago’s system, she says, “my notes are now searchable and I feel more organized. I’m sure there’s a better way to catalogue the mounting number of files now piling up in the sidebar, but hey—now I have a productivity goal for 2018.”

Set aside 15 minutes each week to organize yourself: You’ll thank yourself for the daily stress that you’ll save by setting up a weekly review in which you plan for the week ahead and clear out your to-do list.

4. Give better feedback & get better at receiving feedback

Abundant research shows positive feedback is a key tool for creating healthy, productive teams. But managers hesitate to provide positive feedback for all sorts of reasons, ranging from fear of getting close to employees that they might need to fire to appearing weak or judgmental. Here is how to get better at giving feedback this year:

Follow a simple formula: Be specific, discuss the impact of the other person’s behavior, and show your gratitude.

Understand how to receive feedback: “In any exchange of feedback, it’s actually the receiver who is in charge, because they’re the one who decides what to listen to and how to make sense of it,” Sheila Heen, a Harvard University law school lecturer who studies feedback, told Purpose Publishing last year. “If you can get good at it, you can accelerate your own learning and you can learn from anybody; you don’t have to wait for the right mentor to show up, and you don’t have to wait until someone decides that they have time to give you some feedback. You can learn feedback-receiving skills so that you can learn even from givers who are terrible at it.” This is huge! If you really want to grow, doing this one thing will put you light years ahead. 

2018 is your year to shine  Start today!


To your success,

MG