This is an interesting topic.  I am in the midst of releasing my first novel.  Initially, I had to find a publisher.  It actually wasn’t very difficult.  I won’t spend any time discussing that process because I had some issues with my publisher and had to sue to get the rights of my book back.  So the process of selling my book has come as a self-publisher.  All of the work associated with getting the book promoted, every effort regarding the advertising of the book came as a result of my efforts and the efforts of the team that I amassed.  It was a very trying process.  

My saving grace was my business/sales background established at firms like Aragon Consulting Group and IBM.  I took those tools that I learned and transferred them into the selling aspects that were required to get this book, “Betrayal” off the ground.  We had an amazing book launch tour where over 200 people came and bought tons of books.  We had the presence of mind to videotape it and take numerous photographs.  So it has provided us with a rock solid beginning point for the sale of the book and the building of our brand. So, some steps to consider:

1) Create a business plan – this might not seem like a big deal but it is.  Selling a book can be hard work.  If you don’t have a plan, it makes the effort much harder.  Once you take the time to structure a business plan, you realize the steps required and it becomes easier to execute them.

2) Build a team – No man or woman walks alone.  First, there are too many moving parts to try and tackle it all on your own.  Second, there will be greater joy in the journey when you aren’t walking alone.  Third, there is an old African, “If you want to go fast, go alone.” “If you want to go far, go with others.”

3) Establish objectives with timelines and responsibilities – This will help you to stay on point.  There will be so many things to accomplish.  So, having timelines and responsibilities will help you to stay on track.

4) Use Social Media – In today’s economy, this one goes almost without saying.  If you can’t afford to have someone handle this, take the time to learn it and then implement the basics to get you started.  As soon as you can afford it, give it to an expert.  You’ll be glad you did.

5) Amass a following – That’s one of the great things about social media but it’s not the only way.  You can build a following through mailing and speaking engagements.  It just requires you to get, and stay creative.

6) Utilize a series of marketing campaigns – If you don’t have a marking background as I developed with consulting firms and at IBM, it will be important for you to align yourself with people who can help you with this.  But you have to decide first what you want to achieve from your marketing campaigns.  Do you want to sell stuff, build a following, advertising an upcoming speaking engagement, etc. Whatever it is, will help you pick the right marketing campaign.

7) Evaluate and monitor your progress – Is it working?  That’s the question that has to be asked and answered.  It’s like going on a road trip.  You are continually looking at the map to determine how far you’ve come and how much farther you have to go.  This applies in the book selling process as well.

8) Fine tune your plan – if you haven’t achieved as much as you planned when you reach a certain point, it will be important to make some “mid-course corrections”.  This will help you to not fall too far off course. 

9) Don’t give in, don’t give up – This one doesn’t require an explanation J

10) Keep Writing!

Webster says… An idea is something that you imagine or picture in your mind.  When I think on that definition, I agree with it.  I have had numerous ideas that I’ve imagined or have been pictures in my mind.  There are several ways that ideas arrive at my mental doorstep.  Here are a few of them. 

One way is for me to be in discussion.  I’ve been in meetings or simply having a conversation with another person.  In the midst of the discussion, I’ll have an idea that seems to pop up from out of the air.  But I generally attribute it to the “Lively Art of Conversation”.  It is my opinion that my mind goes into action when prompted by discussion.  If I had been simply sitting gazing off into space, I’m not certain that the same idea would have come to the forefront of my brain.  I find that I am mentally simulated during conversation and ideas arrive. 

Another way is when ideas are revealed to me when I’m asleep.  It has happened enough times that I regard it as a “place where ideas are born”.  Previously, I tried to analyze the process in order to determine the genesis of it all.  I had reasoned that an idea likely came because of something that happened before I fell asleep, watching TV, reading a book, or reviewing work papers.  But I have decided that ideas totally unrelated to my pre-sleep activities came to me during my sleep state.  Actually, I love this process because I am energized by the thoughts and the ideas that I received.  It’s as if they are sitting and waiting for me to open my eyes and begin a new day.  It’s like hearing the sound of birds chirping to herald in the morning and the prospect of tremendous things to come.

One more is when I have gotten a vision of something while I have been attending a totally unrelated event.  This one might seem a bit strange but for me it is very real.  One example…recently, I was at a leadership retreat and all of the attendees were watching and listening to a video.  All of a sudden, I got a vision of an idea.  It turned out that the vision was totally unrelated to the video or the retreat. That idea led to a significant series of life-changing events.

As a result, I’ve concluded that there is no rhyme or reason as to how ideas show up for me.  I attribute them to God and His desire to “Wow” me.  As a result, I try to stay open to what He wants to convey.  I’ve also learned that I can go with an idea or not.  My sense is that God is going to make it reality with or without me.  If I say “Yes”, I get to go along for the ride. 

Keep Writing!!! 

The general was right and his comments were well said.  I wouldn't add or subtract anything from his speech.

There is another model of a man who walked this earth and left us with a real model of servant leadership.  Jesus continues to be referenced by endless numbers of people.  Many have commented about the miracles he performed, his eloquently messages he gave, and so many other things that people are still trying to understand. 

One thing that he demonstrated was being a servant leader.  Almost at the end of his life on earth, he had a dinner with his closest friends, his buddies that would continue to share his words with the rest of the world.  He told them that in order to be a leader it required being a servant.  He could have simply said that and left it.  But he performed a service for these guys that would be done only by the lowest servant.  He got up from the table, wrapped a garment around his waist, and washed the feet of every man there.  That one act had an enormous impact on every man there that night.  The story is still impactful today and helps to illustrate servant leadership.

I agree that Leaders should listen, learn, and put the needs of others ahead of their own.  Somewhere along the way, really great leaders realize that the needs of others are so much more important than the needs of their own.  Somehow it helps ordinary men and women become extraordinary leaders, servant leaders of others. 

Veterans are extraordinary servant leaders because they choose to put the needs and the safety of a nation ahead of their own.