These Are My JOTtings...

Success Is Always a Team Effort!

Motivational Monday! Former US President Franklin D. Roosevelt, born on this day in 1882, once said "I'm not the smartest fellow in the world, but I can sure pick smart colleagues." How important to your success (in any part of your life) is it to surround yourself with talented, knowledgeable, and/or fun people?
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Wisdom comes in both experience in life and with relationship to one's friends and associates.

It has been said that Knowledge is the set of sterile, antiseptic plethora of facts we each carry in our minds. Wisdom is the ability to use with great skill and effectiveness the set of facts we possess.

Since no human can possibly possess all the facts in the world nor all the ability to use all of the facts in the world, then we are in great need of WISE associates in order to live WISE and effective human lives during our time on Earth. I have great respect for my friends in this life. Many of these friends are writers on Writing.Com.

As I close out this month of this stretching experience, known as the 30-Day Blogging Challenge, I would like to repost part of my "Dear Me" letter for the Official WDC Contest of the new year.

"See there? I think you have quite a plethora of ideas to begin your novel. If you get stuck, then you can always touch base with Carol Saint Ann to bounce ideas off her most excellent mind with her clearly novel approach to book writing. Let us not forget the importance of an on-going conversation with Winnie Kay , who will have daily answers to the novelist's most pressing question of life. "To comma or not to comma. That is the question. Whether it is more noble to have run-on sentences of every stripe without a hint of grammatical intervention or is it better to separate, every, word, with, commas, to, feel, the, full, effect, of, every, word!" She will know. After all, we can't take in every stray comma we find on the street and bring home with us.

Finally, we would be wise to remember the importance of team-building in our writing career. As the old saying goes, "There is no 'I' in team." However, Michael Jordan did seem to shoot that idea all full of holes during his illustrious career as a professional basketball player. Yet, anyone who knows his backstory will confess, that even Michael Jordan could not have been Michael Jordan without Scottie Pippen and the rest of the Chicago Bulls team.

Again, team building is the key to a successful writing career. You have a host of great support players already on Writing.Com.
Jade Amber Jewel is your "right arm." As you daughter she is your most faithful cheerleader. She's that B-12 shot-in-the-arm, when you start to feel fatigued.
Schnujo's Doing NaNoWriMo? is another of your consistent cheerleaders, who has a good word for today,...any day. As that "little sister figure" in your life, she helps to keep you on-track with the adrenaline flowing.
Choconut has more good words for you. Besides, she has that little "trick-up-her-sleeve" that works for most of the human race. Chocolate can fix anything. I mean with chocolate and coffee next to your writing pad or laptop, how can you NOT be a successful writer?
Chris Breva stays by your side to give advice and encouragement from The WORD because he knows "from whence our strength comes."
paddy1 is there to make sure you always know when and how to post pertinent information in order to give your career the credit it truly needs.
Samberine Everose helps her close friend and teacher to know how to say things in the most effective way possible. Being a "native speaker" loses its importance, when those for whom English is not the first language cannot easily understand your meaning.
Naveed & Hanna ~ Be Kind 💕 remind you the importance of clarifying one's thoughts, choosing expressions that have appeal to all ages.
~ Santa Sisco ~ is a constant reminder that writers with experience recognize other writers with potential. Therefore, you should always show gratitude for any and every level of trust others have placed in you.
Monty is such a joy and encouragement in the love of traditional poetry. Poetry may grow and change over the years, but our roots in classic poetry will keep us grounded.
Dave is Monty's coworker in the field of classic poetry. He will help to keep you grounded in traditional forms as well. It's one thing to have a passion for writing variations in music, but if one doesn't know the original theme, then the variations have no moorings to give them meaning.
Espero , Seuzz , Fivesixer and Lornda are all there to encourage you and to challenge you beyond your "normal" self to a version of yourself that is truly excellent.
Hannah ♫♥♫ has been a consistent helper and encourager in the Rising Stars Program. For this I am most grateful. :D

Finally, in the spot, labelled, "Last but certainly not Least." We focus on GabriellaR45 without whom the possibility of being a Rising Star would NOT be possible. She is one of your most consistent cheerleaders because she would NOT have started the Rising Stars Program, if she did NOT have personal, emotional capital invested in your success as a writer.

These people do NOT have to understand you always, nor even fully,...ever...in order to wish you the greatest success in life and in your writing career. Many people are altruistic enough to wish others, like yourself, the best life has to offer, all the while, knowing that you are no more a perfect human being than they are. There is grace mixed with this knowledge."

Go forth and conquer, Everyone! You all have a great deal to share with the World!

Sincerely,

Jay O'Toole

I'm a member of the Rising Stars Program for 2016-2017