Lean Forward Into Your Life

An ode to living a purposeful, creative life that “touches your heart and your soul” (Deborah Stephens, coauthor of This Is Not the Life I Ordered). This is a commonplace book for leading an uncommon life. An uncommon life need not include fame and fortune. To live an uncommon life is to pay attention, take care of yourself, live large from the heart. The chapters form a to-do list for living this way: live with intention * walk to the edge * listen hard * play with abandon * practice wellness * laugh * risk love * continue to learn * appreciate your friends * choose with no regret * fail with enthusiasm * stand by your family * celebrate the holidays that make sense * lead or follow a leader * do what you love * live as if this is all there is “A book of healing and grace.”—Jane Kirkpatrick, author of A Clearing in the Wild

Founder and owner of the Word Garden, Mary Anne Radmacher makes her art her life and her life an art. And in Lean Forward into Your Life she invites us to do the same. Or as she says, Lean Forward into Your Life is a commonplace book for leading an uncommon life. An uncommon life need not include fame and fortune. An uncommon life means living with intention, paying attention, celebrating, taking care of yourself, risking love. To live an uncommon life is to live large from the heart. Each section of Lean Forward into Your Life opens with a hand-lettered aphorism in the author's signature collage style. The essays, stories, and exercises that follow are designed to bring the reader into her or his own uncommon life. In the tradition of The Invitation, by Oriah Mountain Dreamer and I Will Not Die an Unlived Life by Dawna Markova, poems that evolved into best-selling books, Lean Forward into Your Life is an intimate book that leads readers into the center of their own ability to change the world. * An invitation to the millions of people who want to make the most of their lives and leave the world a slightly better place.

This book provides a fresh creative approach to aid healing from the loss of a precious pet. It demonstrates how the grief process can be transformational. This human-animal bond can be like a magic wand. As a result, the grief from the loss of a pet can be from mild to monstrous. This book gives you dignity when others think your pain is preposterous. First, through the arduous climb out of the valley of grief, many coping muscles can be strengthened. These skills are important in coping creatively with daily-life matters. They include facing reality, letting go, patience, endurance, courage, adapting to change, and others. Gradually, the strangling and entangling emotions can become unraveled. Then one can embark upon a new chapter of life without feeling bedeviled. Being empowered by these coping skills in life as a whole, you can creatively grow from grief to greatness. Your pain will be virtually gone, and your life can gradually transform into a song. As a result, this is both a life and pet-loss book. Healing and inspiration can integrate pet-loss coping skills to aid in important life matters. Your life will become more bountifully bold. The authors unique artistic style of writing can make the creatively expressed concepts take a deeper hold.

In this groundbreaking book Norman Hollyn outlines his 'Lean Forward Moment Method' of storytelling that applies to all aspects of the film-making process and media production. Whether you are an editor, producer, director, cinematographer or visual effects pro, this book will provide the essential techniques you need to create engaging content that emotionally connects with your audience. The core storytelling techniques in this book, apply equally to all levels and types of film and media projects: feature films, television documentaries, fiction, web-based video games, commercials, event films and much more. As an Associate Professor at the School of Cinematic Arts at USC and having worked on movie projects with such Hollywood greats at Alan J Pakula, Sidney Lumet and Francis Ford Coppola, Norman Hollyn is uniquely qualified to provide you with the conceptual and practical tools to tell your story effectively. After the initial formative chapters, Norman examines the filmmaking process in its three main areas - preproduction, production and postproduction. Within each area he describes how the Lean Forward method can help with every step of the creative process (setup, scene description, the script, production design, direction, cinematography, editing, opticals and special effects, music and sound). He then brings together the concepts he discusses by providing real world examples from a drama, an action film, a documentary and a commercial. "Norman Hollyn uses the ancient magic of alchemy to reveal the art of making a great film. Writing an outstanding primer on filmmaking, he provides an historical perspective from several iconic movies, revealing the innermost secrets of successful filmmakers. If you want to construct a film, you need this book!" - MARTIN COHEN, President of Post Production, Paramount Pictures. "Norman Hollyn's The Lean Forward Moment speaks volumes about the art and craft of filmmaking. His elegant explanations of editorial choices and creative decisions tell the full story. It is a serious work and it will be a resource for every emerging filmmaker" - IAN CALDERON, Director of Digital Initiatives, Sundance Institute. "Only a film editor, with a career of experience in the cockpit of the cutting room, could so clearly and completely explain how some storytelling efforts succeed and others fail. Fortunately, Norman Hollyn is such an editor, and he has given us the gift of explanation in the richly illustrated The Lean Forward Moment." - BILL KINDER, Editorial and Post Production Director.

A wise, helpful book that provides practical tools for one of modern life's greatest challenges -- Change. True help for everyone -- no matter what difficult or exciting transition you are in! Provides a model based on the four seasons to help align you with natural forces. Using a simple questionnaire, you can discover where you are in your transition process, how to move forward, and how to not get off track. Includes advice for building a strong support network for times of change.

The #1 international best seller In Lean In, Sheryl Sandberg reignited the conversation around women in the workplace. Sandberg is chief operating officer of Facebook and coauthor of Option B with Adam Grant. In 2010, she gave an electrifying TED talk in which she described how women unintentionally hold themselves back in their careers. Her talk, which has been viewed more than six million times, encouraged women to “sit at the table,” seek challenges, take risks, and pursue their goals with gusto. Lean In continues that conversation, combining personal anecdotes, hard data, and compelling research to change the conversation from what women can’t do to what they can. Sandberg provides practical advice on negotiation techniques, mentorship, and building a satisfying career. She describes specific steps women can take to combine professional achievement with personal fulfillment, and demonstrates how men can benefit by supporting women both in the workplace and at home. Written with humor and wisdom, Lean In is a revelatory, inspiring call to action and a blueprint for individual growth that will empower women around the world to achieve their full potential.

The alarm sounds. Your feet hit the floor and carry you into another day. But what does that day hold for you? Will you be punching your card at work, catching up on TV at home, and crashing into bed before you rinse and repeat the next day? Or will you dare to dig deep and discover the incredible potential lying dormant within us all? In Wide Awake, renowned speaker and church visionary Erwin Raphael McManus challenges us to put an end to all the sleepwalking and settling, for each of us was created by God for a reason. He has called you to live as Jesus did—a heroic life, void of monotony, teeming with danger, adventure, and the unknown. Living wide awake is about realizing that the world desperately needs you to live up to your potential. There is a future that needs to be created, and it is waiting for us all to wake up and get out of bed. The alarm has sounded, and it is time to shake off the slumber. It’s time to live, to create, to imagine, to dream . . . Wide Awake.

Discover how to cultivate an enduring faith, no matter what trials or hardships you are going through. Learn from the examples of the men and women listed in Hebrews 11—those recognized for holding fast to God’s promises despite living in a world of not-yets, what-ifs, and in-betweens. This 40-day devotional has uplifting readings, guided journaling exercises, blessings, and prayers to help you find a safe place during heartache, loss, or loneliness.