There was a time when I was caught in the trap of forever tinkering. A tweak here here, a tweak there, smooth the edges and polish the words. But a work was never refined enough to please my perfectionist sensibilities.

My own desire to deliver the best was the very thing that prevented me from delivering it. You know why? Yesterday’s best is today’s ordinary. We are improving all the time, and even if you hit perfection today, you’d be surprised how the perspective of time mars a work.

There are numerous books I have written and shipped that I thought were the bee’s knees that now make me cringe.

But I’m so glad I shipped them. So pleased I made them public.

I’m a journeyman. My aim is not to brag about my arrival, it’s to share the road with friends on my way there (and if I’m honest I cannot even tell you where or what “there” really is). I grow more and more convinced that the journey itself is the destination. Be here now, and share what you know.

Is this not what a teacher does? Is not the whole realm of education and edification one where we take one hand ahead of us and allow ourselves to be taught, and then reach back the other hand to pull someone else upward?

I believe that the best ways to do that are books, online courses and platforms like blogs and websites.

You could also add some social channels, but be careful to build your business and platform on your own ground and terms, and not be caught in the predicament of building on someone else’s platform and having the rug pulled out from under you because of some rogue algorithm or terms of service change.

It’s a satisfying feeling to create, ship, and show.

Bringing a project to market makes it real. No longer hiding behind an idea, you discover if it has legs. That intel is priceless, because it gives you leverage to pivot and move and shape and shift in whatever way you need to, and to further refine your message.

You also begin to build a portfolio of work and creative assets that can be used at later dates. Even if something does not hit the target today you’ll be surprised how it could come into it’s own off the back of a later product, book or publication of some kind.

No creative work is wasted.

I cannot guarantee what you put out to the world will succeed. I cannot even guarantee that even for my own products. But I do hope I can act as an an example and an inspiration. Someone who practices what he preaches, and continues to take risks, push the boundaries, and seeks to stretch beyond his own bounds.

I believe 100% that God wants to prosper His people. I also believe that the pathway there is paved with opportunities to learn, some of which look like failures and disappointments. Dude, I have got a whole wardrobe of T-shirts that prove that point!

Been there, seen it, done it….

The difference between success and failure however is whether you are willing to get up, dust down, and do it again.

I got the T-shirt. Many failed products if I judge them by sales.

I got the boots. Many spectacular un-best-selling books.

I have the pants. Numerous blogs that bragged almost zero traffic.

Yep, the waistcoat too. E-commerce stores of several varieties that are now closed!

Even got the socks. A thriving foray into forex that by God’s grace mercifully broke even.

Suffice to say, I’m suited and booted for success, clothed in the many lessons I have learned.

The greatest lesson all?

No risk. No return.

And I’m not even talking money.

I write these words not because I think they’ll translate into dollars and pounds. I write them because I think they might just resonate with enough people to help them take the next step.

And I truly believe that Jesus, you know Him, the guy who never lies, was right when He said:

“But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.”

2 Corinthians 9:6 KJV

Solomon too spoke wisely when he counselled:

“Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days.”

Ecclesiastes 11:1 KJV

In the past I’ve often heard these verses cited in offering sermonettes, but their scope reaches far beyond dropping some bills in the basket at church.

Don’t be afraid to share it. Don’t wait until its perfectly formed before you put some fire in the barrel and pull the trigger.

Friend, after many days, and sometimes a great deal sooner, it will come floating back bountifully multiplied.

You are a creator by nature, if not you would not be reading this.

I’m cheering you on every step of the way.