Over the past few months, I’ve been doing quite a bit of thinking about the steps, process and mindset I use to make games.

Looking back at the 15+ games I’ve made, one thing stands out.

For me to make a great game, I have to “fall in love” with what I’m making.

Simply  said, I need to care deeply about every bit of it, enjoy thinking about it night and day, imagine great things for it’s future and even give it the freedom to be what it needs to be. This feeling brings out my strongest natural talent and creativity.

This understanding also clarifies my rule for avoiding “chi jammers”. For those who don’t know the term, “Chi jammers” are people who get in the way of people’s creative thinking or kill the energy in the room. Or, in my case, get in the way of me doing my best work.

Do you know how you do your best work and what gets in the way of  it?

Day 6 prompt: “Come Alive”

Life wastes itself while we are preparing to live. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

If I had one week to live, I would be with my family and write down all of the good ideas I’ve had rolling around in my head for years, play and record all of the songs I’ve written, and create as many “life lesson” videos I can for my children to watch as they grew up and then say goodbye.

Day 5 prompt: Travel

The one place I want to visit before I die is Antarctica.

To make sure I get there, I post it here and I will book the trip before the end of July.

Day 3 prompt: One Strong Belief

“Life is about who you want to be and how you want to spend your time.”

Everything else flows from that.

Day 2 prompt: “Today”

My one sentence:

Today won’t be here tomorrow. Some things, left unsaid or undone, can never be recreated. Life passes in moments unending stream.

Day 1 prompt: 15 mins to live
Here’s what I wrote in 15 mins, without stopping or thinking:

I feel a momentary sadness for all the paths not taken and the “music still left inside of me”.

Thoughts and moments with each of my family flash through my mind…thinking on the life I’ve had with them, where they are now with their lives and their lives that I’ll miss in the future.

I quickly think through all the info that only I know about our home finances and other similar topics, making sure I don’t leave anything to be figured out after I’m gone.

I call my family and share with them what’s going on, ask them to listen while I share as much as I can in the short time I have left. I need to let them know all the unsaid things I have in my mind, tell them I love them, share my apologies for any and all wrongs, make amends, give them the last bit of advice and love I can to help their lives be better.

What seemed critical 20 mins ago now seems like a useless waste of time. I realize how shallow so many things seem while looking backwards knowing that there is no more “forward”.

I see how I would do things differently, now that I have more clarity on what the end means…not necessarily the big things, but definitely the little things. Like Twain says, I’d probably be more sad about some of the roads not taken than the mistakes I made with the ones I did take.

The paradox of kindness and intolerance comes to mind.

I would be more kind, with this new visceral feel of “it’s over” and also less tolerant of wasting time, negative situations and people, and in general “putting up with things”.

I’d share this and urge my family to be the same in the moments they have left.

Thinking about this time left and knowing that I had closure with saying goodbye to my mother, but not my father, I’d listen to what my family has to share to me. I would be bursting at the seams to share as much as I could but I would give away some of my last bit of time to them, to share with me.

I would cry, with a sense of loss, and knowing that I would miss being with them, growing old with them, and wish for just one more day with them.

After a few seconds of that I’d right myself with the knowing that rather than spending time with sadness, the only option is to make use of the remaining 4 mins the best I can.

I would create a last message to the world and ask all my friends to share it. It would be a combo message of love and peace, sharing this note to them, asking them not to waste time on small things, to share “their music” with the world, go for their dreams and do their best to make the world a better place. My rush would be to share the ideas I’ve wanted to do for so long in hopes they would find a place in people’s hearts to do for me, and the rest of the world.

A 30 second video for my family, left open on my laptop sharing my love and hopes for them

I would call my brothers and sister to let them know that I’m leaving… and to give my best friends my well wishes, thanks and last words of advice or fun.

I would pray, opening up my soul to God and what comes next.

Time’s up. Good bye.

I’m trying this. On day 2 already, very thought provoking. Posts are coming.

Here’s the description of it.

“#Trust30 is an online initiative and 30-day writing challenge that encourages you to look within and trust yourself.

Use this as an opportunity to reflect on your now, and to create direction for your future.

30 prompts from inspiring thought-leaders will guide you on your writing journey. Sign up below to receive the prompts by email.

If you like this pledge, check out reverb10, it’s inspiring.”

Ever start a fire with flint and steel?

Small spark on some fine dry kindling …coax it, nurture it…shield it…feed it…give it room to breathe…

One wrong move and you can put it out before it gets going…even someone getting too close and accidentally breathing on it can put it out…or a pile of leaves can smother it.

That small spark can turn a small flame just for a lesson at Boy Scout camp or even the stone circled campfire for cooking and late night ghost stories…sometime even a powerful raging forest fire.

Sparks of creativity are like the tiny dots of fire that leap from flint and steel.

Everybody has them.

Next time, instead of letting life, work, hierarchy, bullies or lizard brain fear get in the way…take that spark and coax it, nurture it, shield it, feed it, give it room to breathe and keep the wet blankets off of it.

Whether it’s your spark or someone else’s, once it catches…and grows…the powerful ranging creativity “fire” can spread and change the world…or at least the face of gaming.

Trust the idea. I’ve seen it happen..whether it was on Nox, C&C: Generals, C&C: Red Alert 2, FarmVille or Treasure Isle.

Question is, what have you done with your sparks today?

Like all good books, I can’t wait to finish Seth Godin’s “Linchpin”, but I don’t want it to end.

There’s a great quote near the end of the chapter “There Is No Map”:

“Here’s the truth you have to wrestle with: the reason that art (writing, engaging, leading, all of it) is valuable is precisely why I can’t tell you how to do it. If there were a map, there’d be no art, because art is the act of navigating without a map.”

Central to being a linchpin is the ability to “see things as they truly are” or what the Buddhist might call “prajna”.

Prajna and the ability to untangle the objective truth of a situation are key traits of a “linchpin”.

Great quotes from this chapter:

• “The ability to see the world as it is begins with an understanding that perhaps it’s not your job to change what can’t be changed. Particularly if the act of working on that change harms you and your goals in the process.”
• “Successful people are able to see the threads of the past and the threads of the future and untangle them into something manageable.”

You can find information about “Linchpin” and more insights from Seth Godin at his blog here.

You can pre-order at Amazon and other places. “Linchpin” looks to be out by the end of the month.