Many years ago a man that I highly respect encouraged me to be the buyer of empty books. When I questioned the logic of paying for blank pages his reply was simple and it profoundly changed my life: “So you can fill them with great things.”
“Write down the thoughts of the moment. Those that come unsought for are commonly the most valuable.” Francis Bacon -1561-1626
I suspect almost anyone who has heard me present over the past 18 years has likely heard me talk about the incredible value of keeping a leadership journal and learning the discipline of capturing insights as they come.
I freely promise to anyone who will put a pen to the top of an empty page, that inspiration will come. It doesn’t matter if you are sitting in a meeting or sitting quietly by yourself. I also know that the very act of being more prepared to capture these insights will invite inspiration to come more frequently.
I have been doing this now for many years and my dozen “leadership journals” are easily among the most valuable books in my leadership library. I am so grateful that I’ve learned to be the buyer of empty books. I don’t know how valuable my leadership journals would be to you, but to me they are priceless.
Make it a great day and weekend. If you don’t already have an empty book, buy one. I challenge you to open it up a few times with a pen in hand and see what happens. If you already keep a journal, please comment below on the blog and tell us why you do, how you do it, and how it has blessed your life. Shoutout to Angelica King – a Process and Organizational Change Leader & Manager in Minnesota who keeps the most incredible leadership journals I have ever seen.
Be the buyer of empty books…and be the writer of your own inspirational library.
Kirk Out
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