Dragon Lake Books

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goals

Goal 31

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I keep returning in my thoughts to Goal 31: To be and do all that God wants of me. Not every minute or every day, yet this phrase follows me around. I used to have a website: www.goal31.co.uk which I used for my contracting/consulting business. I made a poor decision to take it down and attempt to rework it into a new site for advertising my books, and for blogging, and unfortunately was unable to complete the process of developing a new one. Other things, family, people, commitments, all seemed more important and still do. What is it that God wants of me? To have a beautiful shiny new website, or spend time with people? Perhaps there can be both, though I’m having to prioritise my time and the website, even this website, is so far down my list of important tasks that it has been over four years since I last wrote a blog post. But I have been blogging. I’ve been attempting to use a new site and you can read a whole new book there if you’d like: goal31.substack.com

At some point, I do hope to retire this website and replace it with goal31.co.uk. When I do, I’ll likely redirect from dragonlake.co.uk to there.

So, this may be the last post on Dragonlake. I hope to keep posting, if infrequently on Substack. And continue writing new books. For those of you awaiting the sequel to Fallen Warriors, I’m back to writing that. Sign up to my mailing list using the link above and follow me on goal31.substack.com for more updates.

Double Your Salary …Without losing your soul!

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Picture of Hardback book: double your salary and ebook

I’m excited to share that the hardback of my next book: Double Your Salary …Without losing your soul! will be released for sale on 1st August 2019.

I believe that doubling your salary is possible when you understand who you are and what you are capable of. Sharing my story of how I doubled my salary three times, Double Your Salary also gives advice drawing on my experience, beliefs, theories and knowledge to enable you to do the same.

Book Description:
Doubling your salary is possible when you understand who you are and what you are capable of.

Like many people, Mark felt trapped in low paying jobs, struggling to get interviews. When he did, he was unable to prove he was the right person for the job.

Sharing the three goals that changed his life, Mark gives an honest and frank account of a journey to find purpose and meaning, revealing doubts and fears while giving advice and encouragement.

He shares his experience, his beliefs, his theories and knowledge, examining what he did, and why, to enable him to find his ideal career and ultimately double his salary three times. Each section is followed by prompts and suggestions to help you examine your life and plan for the future, in the hope this will help you on your journey and enable you to avoid the dangers that pursuing wealth can bring.

Double Your Salary seeks to motivate and encourage you to believe: You are capable of transforming your life!

The hardback edition will retail at £14.99 and can be ordered from all bookstores.

If you would like more information on the book or would like to interview the author, please use this contact form.

Fostering a growth mindset

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Photobox with words: Growth Mindset

I joined The Alliance of Independent Authors last month. I’ve been considering doing so for a while and finally took the plunge once I felt I was almost ready to print my next book.

Alli has been a fantastic resource for me already with plenty of useful and helpful articles freely available on their selfpublishingadvice.org website.

This article popped up on my Facebook feed today: The Psychology of Success For Authors: Do You Secretly Think Self-Publishing is Second Best? by Orna Ross.

While touching on the question of whether traditional publishing or self-publishing is the best route for authors, the article highlights the importance of having a growth mindset and willingness to learn which I feel are essential in any career.

“A growth mindset is the belief that with sincere creative intention, and enough creative attention, we can develop the abilities, skills, and resources we need to attain our goals.”

All of us are capable of developing a growth mindset. Even if we already have one, we can still learn more, still expand our skills. This is part of the reason I’m publishing my next book: Double Your Salary, to motivate you to believe you can achieve more.

What do you think of Orna’s article?

The B.I.S. Method

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Following the patented B.I.S. method (Trademark pending) I hit my 3,000 word goal on Friday. It took most of the day to do it, but if that’s what it takes then that’s what I need to keep on doing.

B.I.S. or Bum In Seat for the uniniated, is a tried and trusted method for getting the job done. Some fields use similar methods such as T.U.F.W. (Turning Up For Work), K.O.D. (Knocking On Doors), or even the slightly outdated, but still respectable M.A.E. (Making An Effort).

Sometimes methods can be so simple that their power can be overlooked.

Just Do It…

The messy middle

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I’ve struggled this last week to make any real progress on the sequel to Fallen Warriors. At last count I was at 23,892 words.

I have a beginning and the start of an ending, but have found myself bogged down in what writers technically know as “The Messy Middle”.

I had the same problem with the first novel. Too many characters and an uncertainty of how best to bring them together. I had a look at how many characters I’m planning to work with during the sequel. Eighteen! Eighteen characters for whom I want some sort of character journey, some interaction with other characters.

You know that mathematical issue where you increase the number of participants and get an exponential growth in terms of interactions? I think that is part of the problem. There is a reason why writers who are starting out are advised to stick to simple plots.

Anyway, there is a simple solution to the interaction growth issue and the messy middle problem. Technically this is known as “Bum In Seat”.

In theory all I, or any writer facing a similar problem, needs to do is place bum in seat and keep writing. Gradually the problem is resolved, one scene at a time.

It’s a solution that can be adapted to many issues and problems. One’s bum does not have to be in a seat – it can be standing at a workshop bench, or running another mile. Sonetimes the only way to resolve a problem is to keep working towards resolving it, no matter how messy the middle may be.

All that we can achieve

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I was pulled up short this morning. I’ve continued reading past the two books of Samuel and am now half way through the first book of Kings.

The last few chapters have been quite a slog, king after king who did evil in the eyes of the Lord, each one failing to learn from the mistakes of those who went before them. Israel divided in two and for a time it seems like the new nations of Israel and Judah are being led by leaders who are as evil as each other.

Then I read this: “As for the other events of Baasha’s reign, what he did and his achievements…” 1 Kings 16 v 5

I generally consider achievements to be a positive. I have 100 goals and as I make progress towards achieving them I feel good about that. Yet if I gained the whole world and lost my soul…

All we can achieve may be worth recording in a book some day, may be worth people remembering, but if those achievements are side by side with a legacy of disobedience to God, of a life spent following whatever evil our hearts find to do, then what ultimately was the point?