Every Good Endeavor Newsletter

Hey Makers, What should I be working on? This seems to be a question and struggle for most creative business owners. And I struggle, too. Should I be making something new? Should I be reaching out to new potential clients or exploring money-making opportunities? Should I be getting better at my craft? Or maybe I should be better managing my current work, family, and life that I have? When I talk to fellow creative professionals, it seems that many of us are flying by the seat of our pants. A...

Hey Makers, Once a month, I host a gathering of fellow creatives. Because I live in Nashville, many people who come to the gathering are songwriters, and many of these songwriters tend to write in the “Christian” or “worship” genre. However, a few songwriters in the group primarily write in the pop or folk genre. When they’re among this gathering of artists who share faith in Christ, I’ve noticed that those who aren’t creating “overtly” Christian art feel insecure about their creative work....

Hey Makers, Do you want an unshakeable, purposeful life? Me too. I thought I would do something a little different in today’s newsletter. I want to share a small section from the book Every Good Endeavor by Timothy Keller, along with a few of my own thoughts as I digested these words. Nothing within this world is sufficient basis for a meaningful life here. If we base our lives on work and achievement, on love and pleasure, or on knowledge and learning, our existence becomes anxious and...

Hey Makers, This week I wanted to share you with 7 values and truths that steer my ship as I navigate my creative and entrepreneurial endeavors. These seven thoughts provide a quick insight into who I am and how I see the world. I’m curious to know which of these resonates with you the most. After you read through them, shoot me an email back. I’d love to hear from you! Without further ado… Make Something New “Make something new” is a mindset and a way of living. It’s an artistic,...

Hey Makers, Like you, I’m facing significant challenges at the moment. There are a host of problems that feel overwhelming and are causing a good deal of suffering. The frustrating thing is that most of these situations are completely out of my control. And yet, I often attempt to think my way to a solution - treating my life like a detective mystery where I’m mentally searching for the one clue or insight that will unlock the situation and provide a resolution. While reading the last chapter...

Hey Makers, This is the last newsletter in our series on risk. You might have noticed that the newsletter’s name and design have changed. Since today’s newsletter is already long, I didn’t feel that I had room to explain the reasoning behind the changes. I look forward to sharing that with you in an upcoming edition. Today, to cap off our series on risk, I want to share seven quick thoughts on how to move forward in your creative pursuits. If you’re new here, this series is rooted in Proverbs...

My son hasn’t been able to do a backflip….yet. I’m writing to you from a coffee shop in Texas because my wife and I have some events in the area for the Easter season. During part of our time here, we are staying in a house that has a trampoline in the backyard. Yesterday, I was playing on the trampoline with my kids and decided to wow them with my epic backflip. My oldest son, Judah, exclaimed, “How do you do that?!” For context, this isn’t our first time on a trampoline together, and it...

Hey fam, In previous weeks, I’ve mentioned that some decisions feel risky because they make us uncomfortable.That discomfort can feel like danger, even though there is no real danger. And in last week’s newsletter, we discussed how regret is a real risk in our daily decisions. What makes regret insidious is that we don’t tend to feel this danger on the front end. If you missed it, you can catch the conversation on regret here. Today, we’re going to continue our series on risk and look at: Our...

Hey friend, We are continuing our series on risk (which is a series buried in a series on “Ways to view the world that lead to more opportunities). Thanks for hanging with me. Last week we: Considered how our fear of risk can double our trouble I shared a story about a time I nearly turned down a life-changing job because I was afraid If you missed last week’s newsletter, you can check it out here And if you’re super behind on this mini-series on risk, you can check out the first newsletter...

Hey Reader, Last week, we started talking about risk. How we think about risk will either lead to more opportunities or keep us stuck. You can read last week’s newsletter here if you missed it or want a refresh. Here’s a quick recap of what we covered last week: Every decision involves risk. It’s good to count the cost. Playing it “safe” is not the same as counting the cost. An option or decision before us can feel riskier than it actually is. We want to get in the habit of taking smart...