And just like that, it’s December
And just like that, it’s December.
Last night, as I waited for Stripe Support to respond to my query in a chatbox, I noticed that the timestamp read 4:20 pm.
Two things immediately came to mind—and neither of them has anything to do with marijuana.
One: the chat with Stripe Support needed to end soon because it was time to get my daughter from daycare.
Two: exactly four years ago to the time, my then-fiancee and I had just boarded a plane from Winnipeg to Vancouver, with layovers in Calgary and Edmonton. It was a one-way, all-night trip, and we haven’t looked back since.
Now that I think about it, I don’t know why we picked the flight with two layovers. It must’ve been because we booked that trip at the last minute and probably didn’t have many options.
In fact, we were still debating whether to stay at a hotel or Airbnb while we were flying over. We didn’t have temporary or permanent accommodation in Vancouver sorted out yet, but we knew that the next phase of our lives would be spent in the scenic, artsy, Lululemon-obsessed city cradled between the mountains and the Pacific Ocean.
We arrived in Vancouver early in the morning of December 1, 2019.
Forgive the run-on sentence, but since then, the end of Novembers and the beginning of Decembers have ushered in moments of reflection—not so much because the year’s coming to an end but because this period marks the anniversary of one of the most crucial, remarkably-fulfilling, and yet-seemingly-reckless-at-the-time decisions my wife and I ever made.
The details are a story for another day, but I’m convinced that I may not be married or be the person, father, and writer I am today if I didn’t make and act on that decision.
In the eleven months that have passed this year, I have fielded 83 serious requests for my services, jumped on a call with 44 of the enquirers, and ended up ghostwriting, editing, coaching, or collaborating on 7 projects that I love—one of which is being considered for a screenplay by a major streaming service.
When I shared this breakdown with my business coach last month, she remarked that 7 out of 83 is a great conversion rate in my line of work. The reality is I can only work with so many authors in a year due to how lengthy projects tend to be.
But we agreed that it also meant the 76 would-be authors who likely had plans to work on their projects sometime this year stopped short of making that decision.
Of course, for some of them, it wasn’t a good fit. But for others, perhaps half of them, the weight of the decision was too much, leading to inaction and the possibility of creating something significant seeping away.
I’m grateful that inaction didn’t keep my wife and me away from this beautiful city and the relationships and opportunities that have come our way since we decided to call it home.
And I hope that inaction won’t stop you from acting on a crucial decision today, this weekend, and this month.
Enjoy December!
And now…
an unsolicited recap of a book, TV show/movie, podcast episode, and song I’ve enjoyed recently.
Book: Mary Karr’s The Art of Memoir — No one understands the complexities of memoir-writing better than Karr.
TV Show: Netflix’s The Watcher — Given my history with psychological thrillers, checking this show out was a no-brainer. But it’s a 6/10 for me.
Podcast Episode: Ramit Sethi’s I Will Teach You To Be Rich podcast episode with a Toronto couple — I just thought this couple’s situation was hilarious but also very real.
Song: Birdy’s Silhouette — I can always trust Birdy’s Lorde-like sound to create the perfect ambiance while I write.
It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live, remember that.
— J.K. Rowling