I Found Something I Wrote About Myself in 2014

 

Today I stumbled across an old blog post I wrote in 2014.

I started reading it expecting to smile at how much things had changed.

Instead, something else happened.

I realized how much has not changed.

Back then, I introduced myself simply:

“Hi. I am Bruce Goldwell.”

I wrote about my dreams, my struggles, becoming an author, and why I wanted to write books in the first place.

And there was one sentence that caught my attention:

“I write books to help others move closer to achieving their own dreams.”

That was me in 2014.

And somehow, all these years later, it is still me.

Before the Books

There was a period of about ten years in my life when simply getting through the day could be an accomplishment.

I had experienced health problems and personal setbacks, and eventually I found myself homeless.

During those years, bookstores became something of a classroom for me.

I would spend time reading books in the self-help section, trying to understand why some people seemed able to overcome incredible obstacles while others remained trapped by circumstances.

More importantly, I wanted to know:

Could I change my own circumstances?

In 1998, I met a 97-year-old gentleman who told me that I should write a book.

At the time, that probably sounded like an unlikely future.

But I never completely forgot what he said.

Eventually, I started writing.

My first published book was The Door to Super Achievement.

Then came The Power of Choice.

Then the Dragon Keepers series, where I tried to weave success principles into stories young readers could enjoy.

More books followed.

And then more.

What I Didn't Know in 2014

Reading that old post today is fascinating because the person writing it couldn't see what was ahead.

He couldn't see the books that hadn't been written yet.

He couldn't see the websites that hadn't been built.

He couldn't see artificial intelligence becoming a tool that would allow an independent author to research, create, experiment, build, and communicate in ways that would have sounded like science fiction in 2014.

He couldn't see all the ideas that were still waiting to arrive.

He couldn't see the failures, either.

There would be ideas that didn't work.

Books that didn't sell.

Projects that went nowhere.

Experiments that seemed brilliant one day and considerably less brilliant the next. 😂

But that's part of the journey.

You keep creating.

You keep learning.

You keep trying.

And every once in a while, you look backward and realize just how far you've traveled.

The Most Important Thing Didn't Change

Near the end of that 2014 post, I wrote:

“Sometimes life teaches us amazing lessons and winning is not always what it seems. Winning is in the eye of the beholder.”

Then I wrote something even more important:

“I feel that helping others is one of my missions in life.”

And finally:

“My goal is to help make the world a better place.”

Twelve years later, I wouldn't change that.

My definition of success has evolved.

Technology has certainly changed.

The subjects I write about have expanded enormously.

But I still believe a book can reach someone at exactly the moment they need it.

Maybe someone is struggling with a relationship.

Maybe someone hates their job and doesn't know whether to stay or leave.

Maybe a senior or veteran is trying to stretch a limited budget.

Maybe someone is thinking about life, death, faith, purpose, or what might come next.

Maybe someone simply needs an idea that helps them see their situation differently.

I may never know their name.

They may never know much about me.

But somehow a few words I wrote can travel across the world and reach that person.

I've always thought there was something remarkable about that.

A Message to the Bruce of 2014

If I could send a message backward to the man who wrote that blog post, I think I'd keep it simple:

Keep going.

Some things aren't going to work.

Keep going.

Some people aren't going to understand what you're trying to do.

Keep going.

You're going to have more ideas than you could possibly finish.

Try anyway.

Technology is going to change beyond anything you can imagine.

Learn how to use it.

And never forget why you started writing in the first place.

You wanted your experiences—even the difficult ones—to become something that might help somebody else.

That's still a pretty good reason to write.

And to Whoever Is Reading This...

Maybe you've had years that didn't turn out the way you expected.

Maybe something you dreamed about has taken much longer than you thought it would.

Maybe you're starting over at an age when people tell you that you should be slowing down.

Don't assume that today's circumstances are the final chapter.

I once spent my days trying to figure out how to survive while reading other people's books in bookstores.

Eventually, I started writing my own.

And I'm still writing them.

So perhaps the best thing I can do with this old post from 2014 is leave its final message essentially where it began:

Sometimes life teaches us amazing lessons.

Success isn't always measured by money, recognition, numbers, or applause.

Sometimes success is discovering that something you created helped another human being.

And after all these years, my goal remains remarkably simple:

Help people when I can.

Keep creating.

And try to leave this world a little better than I found it.

— Bruce Goldwell