Secrets from MIT, Tennis, and the Umpire Above: Ten Lessons from a Poor Jamaican Boy Who Never Gave Up on the Court by Tarick Walton
Today we have book in the "Black & African American Biographies & Memoirs" category.
1- During the winter holiday season, and considering the pandemic, how might someone best prioritize social engagements in your opinion?
My recommendation is genuine engagement with others without the use of a smart phone or recording device. Genuine engagement such as a hand written letter to loved one, a personal gift or helping an elderly neighbor doing a chore. Even though there are supply chain challenges, you can still share something special without needing to purchase it from the store.
2- Would you please, in 160 characters or less, give a #WriteTip ?
No. 1 #writeTip =✏️ from the 🤍
3- What most motivates you to read a new book?
I mainly read non-fictional work and the greatest motivation for reading a new book is to learn something new from the past and to try and connect it in my present life. The latest book I’m reading is “Days of Grace” by Authur Ashe and one of the best new lessons that I’ve learned is the quote “True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost.”
4- Could you share a tip for immigrants struggling in today's American political environment?
Two important tips:
Tip #1: Like JFK stated, think not what this country can do for you; instead think what you can do for this country.
Tip #2: Never look at one side of the political spectrum as the enemy. Instead try to understand their perspective and bridge the gap. For example, republicans are not anti-immigration. They just want the immigration process to be legal so that everyone follows the rules and contribute.
5- Would you share a picture with us of your book with some Jamaican culture?
6- What's the best way someone can start mentoring the younger generation?
The best way for someone to start mentoring the younger generation is to uniquely share stories that can inspire a young person using your individual passions. If your passion is writing, share your favorite book with a mentee, if your passion is sports, share an inspiring video or story of how sports, if.. The key is to help the mentee visualize themselves doing an activity they’re most interested in.
7- What is your favorite book to movie adaptation?
The Godfather
8- When did you first know you wanted to publish a book someday?
I first realized I wanted to publish a book after my wedding day. During the wedding, I sang “I can’t help falling in love” for my wife and my best friend Michael came up to me after the ceremony saying that “every woman in the audience had tears in their eyes. You have something in you that can change the world”. From that moment I thought long and hard “what is the best way to make a difference”. As a STEM graduate, I thought about creating an app or pursuing a scientific breakthrough, but the world is filled with scientific and technological breakthroughs that ultimately complicate the world. From that moment I decided I would go the unconventional path of writing a book to make a difference in the world.
9- Are you a Plotter, Pantser, or Plantser, and how did you adopt that style?
I’m both a little bit of a plotter and pantser. I plot to come up with the big idea or core vision for the book, then I become a pantser to put words on paper to get all my thoughts surrounding that vision.
10- What does your basic writing schedule look like, and how often do you write?
I’m constantly thinking or writing content. In my plotter phase of writing, I start by thinking what’s the title and vision of my book. Once that is locked in, I then use my phone to jot down chapters, content, and important messages for the book.
11- What is your favorite book by someone else, what's the author's Twitter handle, and what do you love most about that book? #FridayReads book recommendation time!
Author name: Oren Harari
Title: The Leadership Secrets of Colin Powell
Love because: Colin Powell was not only the first African American leader to influence the world, but also because he was Jamaican and his lessons are critical for any leader.
12- What emotions do you hope your book will evoke for the reader?
Inspiration, determination, belief, spirituality, love, timeless values
13- What kind of impact do you hope your book will have?
It will help to be a spiritual vaccine to the current pandemic because a medical vaccine is only half the equation.
14- What is your favorite creative non-writing activity to do?
Piano and singing: https://youtu.be/RWL3vmDrfsQ
15- In what ways are the main characters in your book diverse? diversebooks.org #WeNeedDiverseBooks
My book is diverse in terms of people of color, culture, religious diversity and also in terms of education (Science with arts)
16- What method do you feel is the best way to get book reviews?
sharing a hand written personal note with readers and working with a great PR team like PR By the Book.
17- What was the deciding factor in your publication route?
I started with a traditional approach of reaching out to over 200 publishers with no success. Then I decided to not give up and self-publish after watching a TV ad from Page Publishing.
18- What's the biggest writing goal you hope to accomplish in your lifetime?
To inspire multiple readers, influence movie adaptation and cross generations as a timeless piece.
19- Would you please ask our audience a question to answer in the comments?
Do you know of a special young person with great talent and passion who could benefit from this book? Ensure to pass it on to them.
20- Anything else you would care to share about your book and yourself?
Book promo video: https://youtu.be/t8-czNj83rs
600 word Excerpt:
Before putting words on a blank sheet of paper, an author must first ask him or herself the following question, “What message do I want to share with readers?” As I contemplated that question, the answer that I found resonating repeatedly in my mind was mentor¬ship. Throughout my growth and educational development ranging from primary to secondary and tertiary level institutions, I’ve always been actively involved in mentorship with youths of various ages. This genuine passion was naturally inspired by my mother who was my first and most influential teacher. Through her lifelong example as a dedicated primary school teacher for over 50 years, I was organically exposed to the positive social impact of early childhood education and its core fundamental principles. Based on the early influence from my mother’s philanthropic outlook, I can vividly remember specific scenarios in high school where I tutored youths who were both younger and older in age than I was. Since then, I’ve grown and adopted my mother’s vision of using mentorship as an instrument to uplift youths of all backgrounds throughout my community, nation, and global neighborhood.
After achieving my educational dream of graduating from MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) as a Civil Engineer and surpassing that goal as a trained business leader from Georgetown University, my youthful passion has evolved into a lifelong commitment. This commitment is to inspire, mentor and teach youths how education (whether formal or informal) can make a catalytic impact in realizing their greatest dreams. After I made this personal commitment in business school, I then explored various methodologies that would allow me to effectively connect with youths. As I examined my options, it dawned on me: What better way to achieve my mentorship goal than through an autobiography filled with factual and creative short stories that echo life lessons across Sports, STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics) Education and Jamaican culture? This critical decision became the seed that blossomed into “Secrets From MIT, Tennis & The Umpire Above”.
One of the guiding principles that influenced my perspec¬tive as I decided to write this book was the current state of crime, values and morals that dominate society in the millennial age. With the influx of social media, it often seems that impressionable youths are now at risk of prioritizing social engagements that are rooted in narcis¬sistic and self-absorbed values instead of eternal principles that have guided great thinkers, inventors, leaders, artists, activists, and athletes in the past. To help mentor and guide youths in the rediscovery of funda¬mental life ethics and values, I’ve written this book to describe how my personal experiences with each life principle have helped me to achieve my goals while surviving the numerous challenges in Jamaica and at MIT. With my love for sports and Tennis in particular, this book was written to express the synon¬ymous value of each life principle across sports using real life stories and examples. In knitting together these parallel life lessons from Jamaica, MIT, and Tennis, my sincere goal is that youths will have a “North Star”, a moral compass or a simply a guide that they can use to navigate their own individual paths. I hope that youths with different backgrounds from all over the world, whether rich or poor, fatherless, or adopted, family oriented or not, will leverage the true stories expressed in this book as a guide to achieve their greatest dreams. With my personal example of achieving my educational goals, I wish to communicate to every young reader that you can achieve anything in life if you adhere to the following ten life principles while remembering the pivotal motto, “Do not let the world dampen your dreams.”
Website: http://twaltongroup.com
Secrets from MIT, Tennis, and the Umpire Above: Ten Lessons from a Poor Jamaican Boy Who Never Gave Up on the Court by Tarick Walton
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