By the way, Hirschhorn has 2 “h’s” in it.” Ok, well, technically it has 3 “h’s.” But who cares? Right?
I know, it is a publicists nightmare. Actually, it is more of a headache and distraction for me, the author, to have to continually check and correct the media.
So, while I am the throws of letting the world know about my forthcoming book, 8 Ways to Great: Peak Performance on the Job and In Your Life (Putnam 2010) here are three of the lessons I learned so far which I believe can help you avoid some of the pitfalls that slowed me down along the way.
Lesson #1: Pick Your Battles
I have learned (over the past 18 months) that when balancing all the responsibilities involved in sharing your knowledge with the world via a book that you need to focus on what is really important.
Writing a book is so exciting so fun or at least it is supposed to at be. After all, just thinking about all things one has to do to make their dream become a written reality is so, well, energizing?
Things like doing a book proposal, finding an agent, maintaining a positive mental attitude in the face of rejection after rejection from publishers and yet hanging in there long enough to finally find one that believes in it, that believes in you and more importantly your ability to get people to buy the book. So then you sign with a publisher, which means hiring a lawyer to negotiate the wonderfully one-sided contract the publisher gives you.
And then the real fun begins as you get to write the book, edit the book, re-vise the book, do more edits. Then you finally have a book that really expresses yourself and your message. It truly shares with the reader that light that has been shining inside of you for so long. And it is wonderful and cool and awesome. As a man, it is the closest I think I will ever come to giving birth (except that I carried this baby for 18 months). I am so proud so grateful so frightened of the future. And then you realize, no one seems to care just yet about your baby.
Lesson #2: Don’t Take It Personal
Don’t take it personal. It is just the way the industry (and world) sort of works. People are wrapped up in themselves and in their lives. So now you realize your job is just beginning because it is up to you to get the message out there about your wonderful, spectacular baby that you created for the world to read, learn, grow, share and enjoy forever. So you dig into your pockets to hire a PR firm to promote the book (make sure you hire the right one – don’t worry, I’ll do another blog on my experiences from that process alone). Then you put together a marketing plan and in today’s world of social media, forget about setting up book signings or pounding the streets to get some face time; instead you better have a website, blog (like I am doing right now), tweet, bleet, facebook, dig, youtube, (my apologies if I forget to mention a few?) and so on.
Lesson #3: Remember what is truly important
All of this takes a tremendous amount of energy, resources and personal sacrifice. I have lived it – and while I am poking fun at it in this blog, I really love the process. Yes, it is exhausting which is why my final lesson is that you really need to always remember what is truly important in your life. For me, it is simple, I have a wife who gets me, believes in me and understands what I am about and three incredible children who want the one thing I don’t have much of (time). Both of these challenge me to examine the question of how important is 2 vs. 3 “H’s?”
How Important Is It?
You know what? I think instead of spending time and energy correcting media about the number of “H’s,” I think I will track down my kids and tell them how much I love them. Maybe give them a hug and kiss or two or three. Maybe I will just tell my wife, “Thank You. I love You.” Because after all, does it really matter that the media constantly misspells my name which has more “H’s” in it than any other single word in the human language? And if it does matter, then who does it matter to?
The Light Shines IN
Ah, a moment of self-reflection. A moment of pensive thought. A moment of self-awareness and I come to the conclusion that the only person it may matter to is me. And, you know what? So what? Do I actually think that if there is a quote from “Dr Doug Hirschorn” (that’s the 2 ‘H’ version) rather than “Dr Doug Hirschhorn” (that is the 3 ‘H’ version) that the audience I am painstakingly working so hard to connect with to read my baby, my book may actually think there are two people with this crazy last name?
Hey Dr Doug (this is me talking to myself), you may want to reread Principle # 2 in 8 Ways To Great and get to know yourself a bit better so you can get over yourself and realize this is not about you. It is about your message, your coaching process to help others find their way to Great.
Ah, thank you. Much better now. Just keep your cool (that is Principle #6) and know that all is well. The world is not passing me by. People will be able to find me. My book’s success does not hinge on the correct spelling of my name in the media. And most importantly, my wife and children will still love me no matter what happens with 8 Ways to Great which is why the number of “H’s” just does not matter as there are more important things to focus on right now, like helping my four year old son learn to write and spell.
Just wait until he finds out that he has 3 “H’s” in his name too.
Dr Doug
