The Invisible Mentor Interviews Meryl K. Evans Part Two

Meryl K. Evans – Your Invisible Mentor

Here is Part Two of Meryl's interview. It's loaded with some solid information. Think about five life lessons that you have learned so far, what are they? Here are Meryl's five lessons:

1. Appreciate life every day.
2. Take care of myself to ensure I take better care of those in my life.
3. Work with a diversity of people: backgrounds, experiences, generations.
4. Patience!
5. Balance. It's OK to turn down things that don't fit your schedule, goals and enjoyment. It's OK to blog less often.

Avil Beckford:  Tell me a little bit about yourself.

Meryl K. Evans:  From a business perspective, I use the name “content maven” because I do more than writing and editing. I help clients with marketing, press releases, website content, email newsletters. I'm in the business of working with words.

While I don't introduce myself as a person who is deaf up front because that's not the only thing I'm about, I'm mentioning it now because it has affected my business and life. Being deaf compelled me to be competitive; to show I'm just as good as or better than everyone in whatever I do. If it weren't for this and I had hearing, I may have lived a life where I would not have accomplished half as much as I have.

I'm a proud native Texan who has lived in the Dallas-Fort Worth area for all but six years. The non-Texas years were in Washington, D.C. where I graduated from American University, took the first steps of my career landing my first job with the U.S. government and gave birth to the only daughter and non-Texan.

I grew up in Fort Worth and moved to Plano upon my return from D.C. because my husband and I believed Plano was the best place in the DFW area for our kids' education. By choice, much of my life revolves around my husband, a daughter, two sons and a dog with three personalities and two looks.

Avil Beckford:  How do you integrate your personal and professional life?

Meryl K. Evans:  Working in a home office blurs the line. When my kids are at school, I avoid doing anything else except work, exercise and walk the dog. Once in a while, I'll throw in a load of laundry or unload the dishwasher. It's only seven hours between the last kid leaving the house in the morning and the first one coming home. I need to make the most of that time.

I also volunteer, play mah jongg and go to doctor's appointments during the day. The mah jongg game is a weekly one, but I only go once a month or less. I used to play on a daytime tennis team, but dropped that because it took too much time. I look at the week as a whole when I decide what to do that's outside of work, exercise and doggy time.

Avil Beckford:  What’s a major regret that you’ve had in life?

Meryl K. Evans:  In the past, I've regretted a few decisions in my life. Now, I no longer regret them. For example, I was smarting over the two job offers in one day for a long time. Eventually, I realized that if I had taken the second job, my life might not be what it is today. That job may not have taken me down the path that led to starting my own business, giving me ability to work from home.

Avil Beckford:  What are five life lessons that you have learned so far?

Meryl K. Evans:  

1. Appreciate life every day.
2. Take care of myself to ensure I take better care of those in my life.
3. Work with a diversity of people: backgrounds, experiences, generations.
4. Patience!
5. Balance. It's OK to turn down things that don't fit your schedule, goals and enjoyment. It's OK to blog less often.

Avil Beckford:  When you have some down time, how do you spend it?

Meryl K. Evans:  Reading, watching a movie or recorded program, playing board games with family (when they want to and it's not Connect Four), playing Words with Friends (ID: merylke) and computer games, attending a show or taking a class.

Avil Beckford:  What process do you use to generate great ideas?

Meryl K. Evans:  When I'm working on an article, I look for the story. What's the story that will captivate readers while connecting with the main point of the article?

Avil Beckford:  What’s your favourite quotation and why?

Meryl K. Evans:  “You miss 100 percent of the shots you don't take.” —Wayne Gretsky. Something may scare you, but nothing happens if you don't try. Plenty of things scare me, but my life wouldn't happen if I didn't take a shot.

When two big clients went out of business around the same time early in my business, my options were to do something about getting more clients or resign myself to a corporate life. I did the very (I don't use that word often) uncomfortable thing of emailing people asking for work. One of those was the guy from Minnesota!

Sometimes taking a shot means admitting the uncomfortable thing. You'll reach the solution faster as opposed to trying to get the other person to come to the conclusion you want.

Avil Beckford:  How do you define success?

Meryl K. Evans:  The definition is up to you. It's about living your life the way you want to live it. While having a six-figure job is a dream for many, it doesn't make you successful unless you love the job, live where you want to be or have the time to do something you love outside of work as those six-figure jobs can consume your free time.

Avil Beckford:  In your opinion what’s the formula for success?

Meryl K. Evans:  When I lived in Washington, DC, my goal was to move back to Texas and to buy a house. That happened. So is that the end? Not at all. Success is a journey as you reach goals and find new ones. The formula for success involves having an idea in mind that you want to see become a reality and that idea is something you want or love.

I didn't have formal goals or mini-goals for everything. I just kept the desire in mind and took steps to make it happen — I took the shots rather than wait for them to come to me. Always be learning, too. I'm watching for a master's degree program that meets my needs. The program will have to wait until I let go of a few commitments or when the kids are older.

Avil Beckford:   What are the steps you took to succeed in your field?

Meryl K. Evans:  Lotsa, lotsa reading. Lotsa, lotsa writing. Study editors' comments and learn from them.

Avil Beckford:   What advice do you have for someone just starting out in your field?

Meryl K. Evans:  The Internet has many, many great resources for becoming a writer and managing a business. Do your research. Read lots. Take a class in writing or business. Many free or cheap classes are available online and locally. Also, don't become attached to every word or fight the editor over cut words. Sometimes you have to cut a favorite line to make the article or story better.

Avil Beckford:  If trusted friends could introduce you to five people that you’ve always wanted to meet, who would you choose? And what would you say to them?

Meryl K. Evans:  

1. Anne Lamott (author of Bird by Bird): Her writing memoir was funny and educational. While she shares tips, I'd love the one-on-one to learn how to become a better writer. I also wanted to pick an author who did nonfiction since I'm a nonfiction writer.
2. Tina Fey: Based on what I've read about her and her 30 Rock character, I feel we have a lot in common except the funny bone. I can be funny, but not on purpose. For me, it's spontaneous. Who better than the first female writer on Saturday Night Live to learn about writing funny?
3. Mark Cuban: Business and technology genius from the Dallas area. What more can a gal who has a business and loves tech ask for?
4. Steve Jobs: See Mark Cuban plus add creativity and marketing genius.
5. JJ Abrams (creator of LOST): The writing was incredible. I'd ask him about the process and for facts about the characters that didn't air. I've always been interested in script writing.

Avil Beckford:  Which one book had a profound impact on your life? What was it about this book that impacted you so deeply?

Meryl K. Evans:  One Small Step Can Change Your Life: The Kaizen Way by Robert Maurer. Many of us try to do something and fail, whether it's to quit smoking or to start exercising. Maurer shows how starting small works better and how to apply it to everything in life.

Avil Beckford:  If you were stranded on a deserted island, what are five books that you would like to have with you and why? Summarize the book in two sentences.

Meryl K. Evans:  Can I cheat and just say I'll take a Kindle loaded with hundreds of books? J These are books I have never read. I have a long list of books to read and discover, so I wouldn't want a book I've already read.

1. A Jane Austen book. Since I'll have time to read it carefully and study Austen's writing style, it would be a more meaningful read.
2. War and Peace . It's classic, it's big and it will keep me occupied for a while.
3. A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson. Need to have something nonfiction and relearn some of the things I've forgotten.
4. The Art of War. Classic and teaches many great lessons.
5. Another fiction — more recent.

Avil Beckford:  What one music CD and movie would you like to have with you (on the deserted island) and why?

Meryl K. Evans:  For a CD, I'd say Stephen Sondheim‘s Company musical soundtrack because it's funny, varied and uplifting. The songs move me; not many CDs can do that with more than one song. Even my youngest likes some of the songs.

If you cannot view the YouTube video excerpt of  Stephen Sondheim's Company, click here.

Meryl K. Evans:  Like with books, I rarely watch movies more than once when many undiscovered ones are waiting for me.  Musicals are an exception especially since I catch all of the lyrics through captions. I go through stages where I'd listen to one show repeatedly and then move on.

Avil Beckford:  What excites you about life?

Meryl K. Evans:  Possibilities. Life is a journey. Events waiting to happen, things waiting for me to learn, memories to make. I look forward to the next thing that makes me smile, gush or answer a Jeopardy! question. These don't have to be big. My son decided he want to do duty at school. The fact he wanted to get involved with something at school had me kvelling.

Avil Beckford:   How do you nurture your soul?

Meryl K. Evans:  I recognize and relish moments like my son wanting to do the flags, my teen daughter taking my advice, my little guy sharing a new discovery with me and my husband texting me out of the blue just to connect. And I get my seven to eight hours of sleep. It's easy to miss out the little things when you don't get a good night's sleep.

Avil Beckford:  If you had a personal genie and she gave you one wish, what would you wish for? Or, if I gave you a magic wand, what would you use it for?

Meryl K. Evans:  No more wars or terrorism. (Hey, at least, I didn't say “World peace.” Oops, I just did.) Seriously, we have enough problems to deal with and can do much more without the fighting.

Beyond the cliché response: I'd ask for all three kids to attend the college of their dreams without financial worries or if it has to be for me — I'd ask for a long trip that takes me to as many new places at once so I only have to deal with the “come home” thing once J, or at least double my energy so I can do more and live a long healthy life.

Avil Beckford:  Complete the following, I am happy when…..

Meryl K. Evans:  I'm spending meaningful and joyful time with family or friends with lots of laughter.

What do you have to add to the conversation? Let's keep the conversation flowing, please let me know your thoughts in the comments section below.

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