Make The World More Awesome

Finishing a Book at 30,000 Feet (Well… Almost)

I hit “submit” and “publish” on Make the World More Awesome as the last person boarding a plane in Kansas City—literally seconds before takeoff. That moment kicked off a whirlwind world tour serving in Madagascar, Cambodia, and China.

This book wasn’t just a project—it was a discipline. Inspired by legendary leaders like John Wooden, who never talked to his UCLA basketball teams about wins and losses but relentlessly focused on the process of improvement, I committed in 2024 to write 52 blogs—one every single week. By the end of January, during a trip to serve global partners in the Middle East, I decided to go all in. From late February on, I wrote 5–6 days a week, tracking my word count and sticking to the process.

When the rough draft was finally complete, the real work began—edits, revisions, and more edits. My wife and our hired editor were relentless in sharpening every chapter. While they wrapped up, I dove headfirst into the graphic design and book formatting (which turned out to be a far bigger beast than I imagined). As soon as it was done, I closed my laptop, grabbed my carry-on, and headed to Madagascar.

I’d heard about the strange “post-project blues” that can hit after finishing something so consuming, but ending the project mid-flight—while heading into new cultures and countries—turned out to be the perfect bridge. Before I’d even adjusted to the time zones, texts started rolling in from friends and family holding their fresh copies of the book.

Obviously excited about the content

Over the next weeks, I served at three different camps, took on a variety of roles, and taught one-third of a Leadership Development course to a school staff in Cambodia. Despite the packed schedule, I made a personal commitment: in every place, I would find at least one person who truly embodied the mantra of Making the World More Awesome.

And I found them. Oh, did I find them. I can’t wait to tell their stories.

Just yesterday, a friend asked if I planned to launch video training or subscription coaching to go with the book. My answer came instantly—Nope. I’m far more interested in inspiring people to make the world more awesome than turning this into a business.

So here I am—back to the blog for now, figuring out how to bring these stories to life through social media. It feels good to be writing again.

Let’s start with Bon Bon… and a plan to inspire action toward making the world more awesome.