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About Jeffrey and Tracking Wonder:
Founded and led by Jeffrey Davis – author, in-demand consultant and speaker, story-shaper and “Book Whisperer,” and world-traveling teacher – Tracking Wonder is a boutique creative company that helps quiet creatives and collaborative teams face challenges with acumen, shape captivating books & brands, and improve their patch of the planet.
For over 25 years, Jeffrey and his work have been featured and highlighted at world-class centers, conferences, and universities. He has helped first-time authors become New York Times best-sellers, earn handsome advances, and publish break-through books with the Big 5, independent presses, and their own publishing experiments.
Jeffrey is author of The Journey from the Center to the Page and writes online columns for Psychology Today and The Creativity Post.
He spends his days guiding private clients, speaking to small teams & organizations, developing new learning expedition programs & trainings, writing his next book, homesteading his farmhouse in the Hudson Valley of New York, and dancing with his daughter and wife. Secret weapons: wonder, 88% artisanal chocolate, white tea, creative juice tea, imagination, mindfulness & yoga, Mind Rooms, amazing people.
For more information on Jeffrey and Tracking Wonder, visit http://trackingwonder.com.
Episode Summary:
In my deep and thoughtful conversation with Jeffrey, we discuss:
- What is Wonder and why is it important? “Wonder is not just kid’s stuff. This nuanced emotional experience cracks open our shells of preconceptions so we can see and taste what’s real, true, beautiful, and possible.
- The false narrative that only kids have wonder and lose it as adults. “The most common face of wonder that we see is a child’s naivate, but that’s only one face.”
- The soul of craft and feeling something greater than yourself.
- Why many creatives prioritize projects according to whim and urgency and why that’s problematic.
- “The root of the word ‘admire’ is mira, Latin for wonder. We look at people who inspire us to be a little more of our best self. “
- Can you track moments of wonder? Why? How?
- The myth that structure and restraints will squelch your creativity.
- Another myth: Being creative and spiritual means I can’t plan too much. “I’ll let the universe handle it.”
- What is the #1 perceived challenge that creatives state when they come to work with him?
- Tracking Wonder’s work helping Business Artists weave the unique strands of their life into a cohesive narrative.
- Trying to understand Your Signature Best Self via superior self-knowledge and examining how people are drawn to you.
- The Greek idea of Daimon and the work of James Hillman. “The Greeks believed that if you didn’t really pay attention to your Daimon, you would act out. These times of confusion are when the diamond is trying to be recognized and acknowledged.”
- Brene Brown on vulnerability, stepping into the arena, and getting criticism from the peanut gallery.
- The importance of Identifying your patch of the planet vs. trying to save the world.
- Tracking Wonder’s Seven-Minute Prioritizer, which helps you decide which idea to pursue and when, and the WSTOVE process.
- Jeffrey’s backstory: co-founding the Walden Institute, his studies of world mythology, Jung, Campbell, humanist and existential psychology.
- How this poet and yogi went from “Business equaled greed and marketing equaled manipulation” to seeing business as something sustainable and being of service.
- Jeffrey’s goal in helping others: “It’s one thing to paint a canvass, but to effect the quality of the day is the highest of the arts.”