Karen Brown Tyson

Tag: #inspiration

  • Will You Mow a Lawn For Your Dream?

    Will You Mow a Lawn For Your Dream?

    Will you mow the lawn for your dreamAs I begin a new series focused on making new plans, I am pleased to present Alexandra Franzen’s inspiring guest post, which asks, Will you mow the lawn to follow your dream? Alexandra is the author of  You’re Going to Survive and The Checklist Book.  You can connect with Alexandra on her website or you can leave her a comment below.  I hope you enjoy today’s post. 

     

    Disclosure: This page contains affiliate links, which means I receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you, if you make a purchase using the links.

     

     

    Jack’s Dream

     

    Here’s a true story about a kid named Jack.

     

    He’s seventeen years old. He loves musical theater. He sings. He dances. He acts. He’s a triple threat. He dreams about being on Broadway when he’s older.

     

    Jack discovered a company called the Broadway Collective. They run a summer program in NYC—five days of master classes led by Broadway legends, plus tickets to Tony Award-winning shows, dinner with cast members, and lots more. An absolute dream for any young performing artist.

     

    Jack really wanted to attend this summer program.

     

    His parents told him, “We love you, and we support you, but if you’re serious about this… then you need to earn money for the tuition, airfare, and hotel by yourself.”

    Oh, Jack was serious.

     

    He started mowing lawns, babysitting, doing all kinds of jobs after school. He saved up—one dollar at a time. Little by little, his dream-fund grew and grew.

     

    It took about a year, but he did it. He earned the cash. He enrolled. He got himself to NYC. When he arrived, he walked into the dance studio with fire in his eyes, looking like a tiger. He’d fought to be there. He made his dream happen.

     

    Start Mowing

     

    What about you?

     

    What will you do for your dream?

     

    Will you mow a lawn for your dream?

     

    Will you sell a couch for your dream?

     

    Will you wake up at dawn for your dream?

     

    Will you sweat for your dream? Make an effort for your dream? Show up for your dream? Take a risk for your dream? Endure a tiny bit of temporary discomfort for your dream? Make mistakes, pick yourself back up, and keep fighting for your dream?

     

    We can make excuses. Or we can make progress.

     

    Just like Jack, we all have a “lawn” (literal or metaphorical) that we need to mow–some type of step that needs to be completed to move closer to The Big Dream.

     

    Whatever your dream may be (a new career, better health, a thriving relationship, less debt, more peace of mind, less stress, more free time, anything you desire), and whatever your lawn may be. Start mowing.

     

    You can do it. Really, you can. There’s nothing more powerful than a mind that has been made up. And like my friend Nicole often says, you can do hard things.

    Will you mow the lawn for your dream

    You’re Going to Survive – Free Audiobook

    Listen here:

    https://soundcloud.com/alexandra-franzen/youre-going-to-survive-mini-audiobook

     

    Selected stories from the book You’re Going to Survive: True stories from people who’ve endured soul-crushing moments in their careers—failure, rejection, disappointment, public humiliation—and how they got through it, and how you will too.

     

    Read by the author, Alexandra Franzen.

     

    Website – alexandrafranzen.com

     

    You’re Going to Survive – Kindle: https://amzn.to/2YSgfW1.

     

    You’re Going to Survive – Paperback: https://amzn.to/2WoOfaP.

     

    You’re Going to Survive – Spotify Music Playlist: bit.ly/survive-playlist

     

    Will you mow a lawn for your dream?

  • The Inspiration of Save the Cat! on Creatives

    The Inspiration of Save the Cat! on Creatives

    The Language of StorytellersAs a followup to my post, How to write a book with Save the Cat!, I am so pleased to present Jason Kolinsky’s guest post about storytelling and the inspiration of Save the Cat! on creatives.  Jason is a partner and the first Chief Marketing Officer for Save the Cat!  I hope you enjoy.  Please share your thoughts in the comments.

     

     

    “Story is a puzzle. And getting all the pieces to fit just right… is the point of the job.”

     

    The quote is from the late and great Blake Snyder, screenwriter and best-selling author of Save the Cat!, who also coined the phrase “Save the Cat!”, which is the moment where we meet the hero and the hero does something—like saving a cat—that defines who he/she is and makes us, the audience, like them and want to go on their journey.

     

    Save the Cat! has inspired countless writers to cut through the noise and clearly focus on the sound of what makes a story tick. We can all relate to the fact that just one change in our story can have a ripple effect across the entirety of a novel or screenplay. It takes time and concentration, along with constant arranging and rearranging of all the details, to get the puzzle just right.

     

    Disclosure: This page contains affiliate links, which means I receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you, if you make a purchase using the links.

     

     

    The Language of Storytellers

    Now with the recent arrival of another Amazon best-seller, Save the Cat! Writes a Novel, penned by the proficient author Jessica Brody, the impact of Save the Cat! on storytelling has been cemented for all writers interested in developing work for the stage, page, or screen.

     

    The approach and methodology of Save the Cat! has been so impactful, it’s become the shared language within the creative culture from the writer, to the writer’s room to board rooms.

     

    Featured on the cover of the New Yorker, mentioned in guilty pleasures like Netflix’s You, with nods in critically acclaimed favorites like Amazon’s The Romanoffs, Netflix’s Russian Doll, or on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert—even in fanboy culture like the animated series Teen Titans and among game developers who openly share their use of Save the Cat! to create and pull all the pieces of their narratives together, the impact of Save the Cat! is tangible.

    John Slattery and Amanda Peet in The Romanoffs

     

    Save the Cat! Resources

    If you have the innate desire to turn that idea into a story, Save the Cat! is the place to start and to go back to, over and over again. The site, www.savethecat.com, is filled with tips and tactics to help any writer organize and tighten their story. The Save the Cat! Story Structure Software is a virtual writer’s board to keep your story’s pieces together.

     

    Whatever you do, don’t give up. “The worst thing that can happen in screenwriting is not to finish. Half-written screenplays never sell.” – Blake Snyder

     

    About the Author:

    Jason Kolinsky is a partner and the first Chief Marketing Officer for Save the Cat!. Jason is a seasoned marketing leader who has won Cannes Lions and has held senior roles at world-class global communication agencies, McCann Worldgroup and BBDO/Proximity.

    About Save the Cat!

    Save the Cat!®  is the bestselling story methodology introduced by screenwriter Blake Snyder in 2005 with his first book, Save the Cat! The Last Screenwriting Book You’ll Ever Need. Snyder’s acclaimed ideas, methods, and software have provided thousands of writers with the resources they need to develop their screenplays and novels.
    The Inspiration of Save the Cat! on Creatives