[McNairMail] Fwd: McNairMail | 8.1

[McNair Wilson]

> McNairMail | 8.1
>
> Update. Many of you already know about my big "change" from  
> receiving an email or reading my blog post: ch-ch-ch-changes. This  
> is an update. I remain Motivated, Optimistic, Enthusiastic, and  
> Terrified.
>
> It is my hope that you will find time  to read it all and be  
> informed. If you have questions, ask. You may receive more than one  
> of these as you may be on more than one of my lists–you need only  
> read it once.
>
> Change. The big change in my life: I am job hunting–in search of a  
> stable career (with dental and free parking.) After more than a  
> dozen years of traveling as a speaker, workshop leader, and  
> corporate creativity coach, I’ve decided to settle in to the Bay  
> area (San Francisco / Oakland) and join a team.
>
> As much as I love(d) what I've been doing, I missed being a part of  
> projects from “blank page to opening day.” I have worked with  
> remarkable, fascinating, (even enjoyable) clients, but I was only  
> there for the starter’s gun and first lap. I miss the day-to-day  
> exchange of ideas and watching projects, and individuals grow.
>
> This desire to be IN a consistent work environment, as a part of a  
> team has been germinating for a few years. The actual eureka moment  
> came on a Friday night in August while filling two pages in my  
> sketchbook with ideas toward re-igniting my business. 2007 was the  
> slowest (least work) I’d had since leaving Disney Imagineering. I  
> am fully responsible for that lag. Sipping a hearty Italian red, I  
> gazed at the crowded pages. A small corner needed to be filled.
>
> A light went on over my head. No, I lie. It was a string of  
> twinkling, multi-colored Christmas lights. In big cartoon lettering  
> I drew, “GET A JOB!” - - with a list of the places I would to  
> apply first: Pixar, Apple, Google, Ideo. I gave some thought to  
> making Pixar my first three choices.
>
> Next morning my good friend, Wes Roberts, called from Denver. He  
> was to have called Friday from the office of our mutual friend and  
> business manager, Steve Music.
> 	
> “I had an epiphany last night.” I said.
>
> “Well..” Wes sounded hesitant if not a bit ominous. “Steve and  
> I have an idea.” Wes said, “We think you should get a job.”
>
> I was stunned. “Me too! I wrote that in my sketchbook last  
> night!”  There are plenty of great rewards to my work, but I  
> longed to be back on a team. The highly creative companies I first  
> thought of are doing work to which I believe I can make a  
> significant contribution.
>
> The following weekend (late August) Wes came for a twenty-four  
> brainstorm. It also began his daily mentoring me for several weeks.  
> Now we do weekly check-ins, and more. We examined every aspect of  
> my life–personal and professional. Wes is a long-time, good  
> friend, so I knew he'd be direct and not hold back. He didn’t. He  
> is a skilled and experienced professional leadership coach. (Steve  
> Musick, too, remains very involved as financial health is a  
> critical goal in this plan.)
>
> Walk. First thing, Wes got me walking. Only 20 minutes the first  
> day, adding one minute each day. My first one-hour (brisk) walk was  
> on the Bay with my close friends, Susan, Wes, and his great wife,  
> Judy. I walk an hour and a bit more, everyday now. (Almost.) Even  
> traveling I have done laps of LAX, Denver, Salt Lake City, and  
> Atlanta airports.
>
> Wes and Judy spent a full week helping me get organized to  
> consistently account for and file my finances and important papers.  
> (Judy is an organizational wizard, and Wes served as grand  
> inquisitor, “CSI Wes.“) They were here 6 to 10 hours every day  
> for a seven days! Wes and I spent two full mornings clearing out  
> the off site storage unit I had kept too long, too full, and paid  
> too much rent to keep way too much junk. Lots was tossed out. The  
> rest became my room mate.  I have gone through every box and tossed  
> out an embarrassment of junkabilia.

> Best of all, my studio (an 18’ x 24’ room attached to the main  
> loft room) is taking shape as the most organized  “creating  
> place” I have ever had. I have thrown out stuff I had once  
> imagined being buried with. (I choose to be cremated,  NOT have a  
> bonfire.)
>
> List. About the same time I started walking, Wes assisted me in  
> using my time more effectively. Virtually everyday I have a list of  
> prioritized projects (A, B, B, B, C) which I attack before any  
> distractions intrude. To get into the grove of “going to work”  
> Wes encouraged me to get up, get dressed (out of sweats) and put in  
> a day’s work. I shoot for six hours, and always get at least  
> four–job hunting (mostly online) and connecting with friends and  
> acquaintances to leverage any network possibilities.
>
> Being diagnosed with ADD (there aren’t enough D’s, though) two  
> years ago, has been a helpful revelation. My daily list is a boon.  
> It forces focus. (And sense of accomplishment at day’s end.) I  
> have, for most of my life, started every day with a list in my head  
> of about twenty-eight To Do's, to start the day. It was paralyzing,  
> overwhelming. I was afraid that no matter which project I went  
> after first, I would be neglecting twenty-seven others. The new  
> ABBBC list is a huge and helpful ch-ch-ch-change. It works when I  
> work it. If something doesn’t get completed, it gets moved  
> forward. It is not a failure.
> 	
> As Itzak Stern (Ben Kingsley), the clerk in Schindler’s List, sat  
> typing names of Jews to be saved by being hired for the factory, he  
> held up the list and said to Oskar Schindler, “The list is life.”
>
> I have gone from the fog of overwhelm into a much brighter day.  
> There is progress to be made on this new leg of my journey. I have  
> excellent guides in Wes, Judy, Steve, and so many of you who have  
> and are supporting and cheering me onward. A.D.D., for me, is not  
> a “problem”,  it is an enormous challenge, that I will continue  
> to explore more methodologies for handling. It has not dampened my  
> energy, enthusiasm, or determination.
>
> Rent. My last income-producing job was the week before  
> Thanksgiving. I made it through December. My favorite Christmas  
> gift was opening all my boxes and discovering many old friends (and  
> old magazines, most gone to be with Jesus, now.) As I write this, I  
> have no income scheduled from now until...ever. Wes put me on a no  
> frills financial diet: no magazines, eating out, old bookshops,  
> online shopping, CD’s and DVDs (new or used.) I have kept to it!  
> Even sold lots of stuff and lots more going out this week.
>
> As I right this, 3 January 2008, I have several of my regular bills  
> currently due, including my January rent. I am optimistic that the  
> future is very bright, but the immediate future needs cash flow to  
> stay current with basic expenses, bills, and stave off evicted. (No  
> violins.)

> Thus, I am hoping to get some speaking or consulting jobs in the  
> very near future to make ends meet while my job hunt continues.
>
> I have applied at all the companies mentioned above. Some for  
> multiple openings. A friend at Pixar alerted a key recruiter to  
> watch out for something for me. (If you are a first cousin to John  
> Lasseter, Pixar creative chief, call him!)
>
> If you have an opportunity for me to speak or coach your team, call  
> me . . yesterday! (Really.) You can book me directly with me. If  
> your church needs a Sunday morning or evening program, my three one- 
> man plays are dynamic experiences for audiences of all ages. (I  
> have also done numerous "pulpit filling" over the years.) My  
> Recapturing Your Creative Spirit presentation has been hailed in  
> corporate, conference, church, and college settings. It can be a  
> powerful one hour presentation that inspires, challenges, and  
> entertains. The three to five hour workshop includes my signature 7  
> Agreements of Brainstorming method to create, solve, develop,  
> invent...anything.
>
> Last time I checked, Lorenzo de' Medici had discontinued his  
> family’s program of being a patron to artists, so I am seeking  
> work, rather than Italian benefactors.
>
> I am not looking for hand outs. I am eager to work, and enjoy it.  
> Presently, there is an urgent need to create cash flow while the  
> job search goes forward. Feel free to call me on my studio number  
> anytime after 8 am, daily.
>
> Studio: (510) 533-IDEA
>
> No matter what position presents itself, I also plan to develop  
> work with area churches and throughout California–without  
> interrupting my “day job.”
>
> My desire is to remain in the Bay area, though all good offers will  
> be considered.
>
> Write. I am working on three new books (two for younger readers.)  
> These are in addition to my brainstorming book (rejected by fifteen  
> big publishers, so far.) A major rewrite is nearly completed to  
> tighten and focus the material, while maintaining my story-driven,  
> playful prose. Assisting me with this effort are my friends Al  
> Lundsford and Jim Hancock. Jim spent four days with me providing  
> insightful suggestions as I re-crafted my words and thoughts. Jim  
> (author, editor, friend) is now completing a final “polish-n- 
> tweak.”
> 	
> Anyone of these books, once accepted by a publisher, will provide  
> excellent operating funds. That will take a while under the best  
> conditions. Publishers, call now!
>
> I have picked up a few magazine writing and cartooning assignments– 
> looking for more.  Any day I write or draw, is a great day. I write  
> five days-a-week for 1 to 3 hours or more.

> Write (or call) if you need words or doodles.
>
> Diet. Wes has also assisted me in getting onto Nutri-Systems. They  
> designed a plan for older (and wider) guys. In my first month, the  
> food is tasty, measured, and easy to prepare. It gets me eating  
> more consistently (3+ times a day.) Friends have been very  
> encouraging. I cheat less every day as I  trust this system. My  
> health is now a front burner issue. Sounds like a lot of change,  
> but every change has been gradual, beginning with small adjustments.
>
> Help. Many of you have already assisted me in so many important,  
> timely, encouraging, and generous ways. I will not live long enough  
> to thank you effectively. If you have work–and soon–I am ready.
>
> If you know people at Pixar, Google, Apple, Yahoo, Adobe, Ideo,  
> Lucasfilm...or if you ARE at one of those people at a dynamic Bay  
> area company (or another I may not know about), please let me know  
> or pass my contact info along.
>
> I am eager to join a team as a Creative Director. I am strong at  
> leading folks in developing innovative solutions, by developing the  
> best in each individual on a team. With my years of teaching  
> (freelancing and at Disney University) I would make a strong  
> addition to any in-house training group. (Have passport, and shots,  
> will travel.) My encouraging, “Oh, Boy!” spirit has been  
> effective for starting, refreshing, and encouraging working teams.
> 	
> I have also been involved in numerous publicity, marketing, and  
> corporate communications efforts–live and on video and TV. I love  
> speaking and coaching corporate leaders to be the best speaker  
> possible. My theatrical experience includes staging (and creating)  
> large marketing and PR events. (I am sorry to report my my  
> ventriloquist dummies are retired.)
>
> Resume. Attached. Just a sample. If I showed you my full resume, it  
> would confuse the process of getting a real position. A friend  
> said, “Now I believe in reincarnation, ‘cause no one could do  
> all this in one lifetime.”
>
> “I’m just getting’ started, pal!”
>
> Thank you for reading this. I will greatly appreciate any ideas or  
> networking contacts you can provide. One of you already knows my  
> new boss, or her right hand consigliere. I’ve always said, “Six  
> degrees of separation is for shut-ins.”
>
> Tomorrow, January 4th, is the birthday of:
> Boxer, Floyd Patterson
> Sir Isaac Newton
> Louis Braille, inventor of the reading system for the blind
> Actress Jane Wyman, the first Mrs. Ronald Reagan
> U.S. Senator Everett Dirksen
> Jakob Grimm, of the fairy tale brothers
> Charles Stratton, aka Gen. Tom Thumb
> and...me.
>
> (When Mozart was my age, he’d been dead twenty-one years.)
> It is also the “Tenth Day of Christmas” (pipers)
>
> All I want for my birthday are your ideas and send our gracious  
> Creator your prays on my behalf. (The Creator hears from me daily,  
> but good references help.)
>
> Thanks again for tuning in to our program. Take the rest of the day  
> off.
>
> Contact. After eleven years at the same mailing address (below.) I  
> don’t live there, so stop by any time.
>
> Onward & upward,
>
> McNair

       

>
> C. McNair Wilson
> Professional Third Grader
> 2601-C Blanding Ave./No.144   < NEW Mailing Address as a week ago  
> Tuesday at 4:17 AM
> Alameda  CA  94501
>
> studio:  (510) 533-IDEA (4332)
> 		(All calls screen by my assistant, T. "Bulldog" Cheney, Esq.)
>
> Blogging the actively creative life:
> www.TeaWithMcNair.typepd.com
>
> Resources (books, videos, squirt rings. etc.)
> Booking info, including speaking schedule:
> www.McNairWilson.com
>
>
> |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |   |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
>
>
>
>

-------------- next part --------------
Skipped content of type multipart/mixed