The Often Ignored Super-Treat of Halloween

by Matt Gartland

Is Halloween an important holiday? Is it special to you? Do you look forward to October 31st every year?

I do, and not for the candy. To me, Halloween represents much more than treats and tricksters. It’s more than fancy pumpkins and warm apple cider. It’s bigger than ghouls and grimm. Those elements add a nice flare (to say nothing of commercial value). But the often ignored super-treat of Halloween is grander and sweeter indeed…

The opportunity to indulge in our childlike spirit.

Make no mistake: Halloween is as much for grown-ups as for children, probably more so. Conditioned to fit in to conventional models, Halloween for many is the one-day allowance to stand out and be a bit crazy. Here’s the real trick though, the silliness is sincere. The conformity is the true costume.

Halloween celebrates the rambunctious and ridiculous, the original and outlandish. While Halloween’s historical origins are what they are, the modern context is one of vivid playfulness. It’s that content that makes this holiday matter.
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Serialized Fiction at It’s Finest: A Private Interview with Author Sean Platt

by Matt Gartland

I’m addicted to fiction. Always have been. Always will be.

Fiction stories are a special part of one’s childhood. Growing up, these stories teach us important lessons of good versus evil, strength of one’s character and the possibilities of pure imagination.

For me in my early youth, comic characters were particularly influential. I favored Marvel (including X-Men), though Batman (a DC character) holds a special part of my big kid heart. I should also acknowledge my love of The Hardy Boys, Sherlock Holmes, Robin Hood and other detective novels and outlaw stories.

Now in my twenties, I am as infatuated with fiction as ever. I believe in growing up without growing old. I keep myself young of mind, body and soul thanks largely to fiction. My favorites these days are Harry Potter, George RR Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire, The Lord of the Rings, the Bourne Trilogy and more.

Do you see a theme here? Not just fiction, but fiction series.

There’s a magic to fiction series that is hard to duplicate in a single novel. The author has more time to develop the characters; subjecting them to a wider variety of trials-by-fire and allowing them more room to explore their own identity. As readers, we are a part of these evolutions. So it’s common (and natural) to evolve along with them. The result is a profound sense of self-identification (in many cases at least).

The subject of serialized fiction leads me to welcoming author Sean Platt to the blog.

Sean Platt (and co-author David Wright) are new-age writers exploring the frontier of serial fiction. Paranormal stories are their speciality; entrancing cliffhangers are their wizardry.

I had an opportunity recently to interview Sean about their latest series, Yesterday’s Gone, as well as his creative process, entrepreneurial acumen and big kid spirit. There’s a lot here that I think we can all benefit from as we seek to creatify (just coined this, LOL) our own lives.

It’s a pleasure to present this interview to you now. Enjoy!
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The Art and Science of Positive Feedback Loops

by Matt Gartland

Do I like feedback? Yes I do.

For me, receiving feedback is more than helpful. Giving feedback is beyond gratifying. And yet, I sense that “feedback” is in danger of becoming a dirty word. That’s more than a bit sad since we, as a species, wouldn’t have evolved to where we are today had it not been for feedback.

We evolved from little monkeys precisely because we were conscious and curious of what our environments were telling us. The land. The seasons. Threats. Pleasures. Social life. We were receptive to it all. Our brains matured because of it; our superior intellects formed because of it.

It feels these days that we’re devolving. Many regard feedback as uncomfortable. Others fear it outright. It’s those sorry souls that flee from feedback because it’s, to use their words, “abusive” or “spiteful” or “overly critical.” Dirty words indeed; and dubious accusations all.

Feedback doesn’t exist in a vacuum like these glass-half-empty folks would have you believe. Feedback (the nudge) is the stimuli of the feedback loop (the process). It’s a circuit that must be completed. These circuits operate in iterations large and small at whatever frequency you choose.

Is all feedback positive? No, of course not. I suppose it’s the negative mutations of feedback (hate speech, belittling remarks, false accusations, etc.) that have poisoned the minds of many towards feedback at large.

But positive feedback is very real; the ripple effects they can trigger not be underestimated.
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The Power of Continuous Improvement

by Matt Gartland

In an age of over-planning and under-doing, more continuous improvement is in desperate need. But is it also the secret to success?

Let’s not be too hasty. After all, many have gone in search for the secret to success like early conquistadors seeking the Fountain of Youth. Those intrepid explorers of old usually found nothing by disappointment. So too have their modern day equivalents. So let’s be smart about this.

Let’s begin by examining what continuous improvement is and is not.
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Constant Change = Constant Opportunity

by Matt Gartland

Ever heard the phrase “change is constant”?

It’s become a popular cliché from boardrooms to breakfast tables. It’s an oversimplification to be sure. But it’s born of truth: that the planet turns in defiance of standing still; that our choices are our responsibility and not our destiny; that tomorrow can be better than today if we commit ourselves to continuous improvement.

Change is constant because it’s opposite – stagnation – doesn’t exist (not naturally at least).

And yet, as we explored recently, much of modern society enslaves us to stagnation. From how we invest our savings to weight management solutions, we’re told to follow the plan (a single plan), keep the course, and never deviate. And above all else, we’re persuaded never to opt-out of them.

Now we know better. We see the opt-in boxes for what they are. And we’re empowered to uncheck them. But is that the end of the game? Do we “win” if we only opt-out?
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