Craftsmanship
What David McCullough said at the Library of Congress
Thank you again to all the Liberatus stakeholders for moving the mission to inspire American unity forward over the last nine years! In case you are considering contributing to the goal of raising $2,000 in monthly commitments, please do take care to take time to journal or pray in nature about your vocation, calling, and what you wish to create with the time you're given. What I hope for all of us is that we can move beyond compulsive emotional responses and have total clarity about our sense of purpose, and the invitation to give is an invitation to be deeply rooted in that purpose, as an act of service with our fellow Americans.
Since I wrote the first journal entry in this series, I have been thinking more about what David McCullough said when he spoke at the Library of Congress—it's some of the best advice I've ever heard.
Learn to edit yourself.
One of the statements he made was simple and straightforward: "learn to edit yourself," he advised the crowd gathered after a long day of work in Congress. And while I work to edit myself, I also owe Claire Handscombe another shoutout for her extremely helpful edits over the years. Thanks Claire!
Craftsmanship in politics
If we can learn to edit ourselves to pursue quality craft as writers, what is craftsmanship in politics? Ultimately, I think craftsmanship in politics begins with listening to each other and asking questions, and we get to have whatever conversation we wish to have—regardless of what's on cable news and written on the campaign mailers we get.
I am convinced that the American idea is this: we make our country more just and free when we collaborate, and build trust, and build endurance. To that end, I'd like to double down on inviting your responses to one-question interviews for Volume Two. While my injury has shaped my life and Liberatus in awful ways, I think that we aren't more just and free yet, and it's up to us to build endurance—to define the future we imagine.
When you respond to the question about the future you imagine, I will not only plan to include that in Volume Two, but also create a new vision asset for the organization to guide the stories that we tell, the issues we research, and the organizations we fund.
Craftsmanship in politics is about listening, asking questions and doing deeper research to search for wisdom, and it’s about creating new solutions for the next generation.
We can lead ourselves, too.
We can also take David McCullough's advice a step further, to its broader meaning, which I have often heard Andy Stanley talk about. We can and we should lead ourselves. Separately from Liberatus, speaking for myself as a person, my leadership values are empowerment, ownership, and clarity. To break that down:
1. Empowerment. Does my team have what they need to succeed? The answer is always no--and that's why reaching $2,000 in monthly contributions is so critical. There's more I can do for our stakeholders--and must do for them, as a leader—when you sign up as a Liberatus Advocate with a monthly recurring donation, you truly become a co-creator of Liberatus as a publication and lifestyle brand remaking politics and developing more leaders.
When I worked for a grocery delivery company during the Volume One cycle, my colleagues and I created a twelve-hour training program, coupled with a new performance evaluation system, so that our team would be empowered to shop at a high level of quality and customer service. The team, which was composed of the same caliber of people as the Liberatus writers and other stakeholders, virtually eliminated complaints of damaged items and regularly beat the company's metrics goals. Building a team to inspire American unity is going to take the same level of intensity—I expect that Liberatus leader training will be at least twelve hours and it will empower our stakeholders and future leadership team to reach a higher performing state of flow. Your monthly donations will co-create that. I think that we all want better leadership in American government—I want to empower Americans to renew our culture by participating in a mission that's larger than self, in a very doable, low-cost way. I think that we are all fed up; I think we can all do something about it once we have the vision, values, and direction in place--and with your past participation, now we do.
2. Ownership. Am I owning what's mine to own, up and down the chain of command? As the founder of Liberatus, it's on me to own where we stand. And that's why I'm reaching out to say that any future for the mission to inspire American unity will require us to raise $2,000 in monthly commitments. There is no way around that number, and it's your giving that makes the mission real. I also want to own the culture of the organization. I've lost more than two years because of a brain injury, and I have no idea how people feel right now, what's motivating them, or what they wish to see improved. While I have objectives outlined, your donations as a co-creator mean I will have food and rent covered so my body can heal and to be able to make those connections, and have those conversations, and make those improvements.
3. Clarity. Does my team know where we're going and why it matters? Clarity takes constant attention. For Liberatus, the goal is to become a biannual publication and give 20% of the funds donated for each copy of an illustrated journal claimed on our website to partner organizations doing the work of justice and freedom. We should do this because it will get the best effort out of ourselves, it will shape the soul of the nation in positive ways, and because it will contribute to solving problems and making our country more just and free. How we are moving forward right now is this: it's critical that we move from $210 in monthly commitments to $2,000 and beyond. When we do, that will fuel the creative cycle to get moving again. Apart from funding, you can also participate in the one-question interviews for Volume Two on the theme of Motive.
Thank you, and how to sign up as a Liberatus Advocate
Thank you again for your participation—or if you are new to Liberatus, welcome! You are welcome to reach out to me using the form at the bottom of the page. You can sign up as a Liberatus Advocate here. When you do, you'll be on the list for private monthly video updates, we can print your name in Volume Two, and you'll receive the invite to the annual ultramarathon and trailfest, where you can run, walk, or hang out enjoying nature.
Build endurance,
Caleb
Weekly Action Point
Take a look at the vision overview as we look to produce a biannual publication. Take time to pray in nature about your vocation or calling. Then, you can set up a monthly recurring donation as a Liberatus Advocate at the tab below. You can also write Volume Two with us by responding to a one-question interview. We will compile responses to the question about the future you imagine into a new vision asset to guide the stories that we tell, the research that we include, and the partner organizations that we fund.
Photo in Volume One pictured above by Anastasia Waltschew
Mission: Inspire American Unity
Create a culture of American unity for the next generation by producing content, experiences, and leaders that inspire it today.
Journal Entry #135