Deep Life Reflections: Friday Five
Issue 55 - Behind the Scenes
Welcome to Issue 55 of Deep Life Reflections, and something a little different this week.
It’s been over a year since I wrote the first issue of Deep Life Reflections on February 24, 2023. I thought I’d take this opportunity to offer you a glimpse behind the curtain, sharing what goes into writing this newsletter each week. I’d love to hear your thoughts and reflections along the way—feel free to drop me a message directly at james@deeplifejourney.com or share your comments below.
Join me as we take a journey into the inner workings of Deep Life Reflections with a special Friday Five this week.
1. The Path: Why I started a newsletter
I’ve always loved writing. When I was young, I used to write match reports about my football team, Manchester United, and create home-made magazines for my sister to read on our summer holidays (in fairness, I’d better mention she created ones for me, too!). This love of creativity and writing has always been part of me, and it eventually led me into a rewarding career with Dell Technologies, where I wrote hundreds of presentations, speeches, and ‘all staff’ messages on behalf of the company’s executives.
But I’d always wanted to have a collection of writings that were truly my own. In 2021, I pitched a series of articles called ‘The Deep Life’ to one of the Middle East’s leading business magazines, Arabian Business. I thought these articles might be useful for people looking for a better balance between career and life. Arabian Business agreed. As those articles grew—I’ve currently had 20 published—I wanted a place to put them so people could find them easily. This was the genesis behind creating Deep Life Journey in the summer of 2022. Deep Life Journey grew from there, incorporating my photography and philosophies behind trying to live a deeper, more fulfiling life.
With Deep Life Journey established, and a small but growing community, I wanted to create a regular way of sharing my thoughts and reflections to help build a closer connection with readers. This led to the birth of Deep Life Reflections in February, 2023. I suppose you could say it’s been a 35-year odyssey from those childhood match reports and summer magazines to what you’re reading today. It’s a good reminder that our paths often wind and weave, taking unexpected turns before leading us where we want to be.
Incidentally, the name ‘Deep Life Reflections’ didn’t come easily. I had a shortlist of other names but discounted them all. I still have them written down with my original comments next to them:
The Deep Dive - “too corporate / buzzword”
The Deep Five - “confusing”
Five To Thrive - “don’t like ‘thrive’”
The Wisdom Watch - “sounds like something about watches”
When ‘Deep Life Reflections’ popped into my head, it felt like a perfect fit with its promise of introspection and connection. And there was nothing about watches.
2. The Benefits: What I like about newsletters
When I considered how I could build a closer connection with people who enjoyed and supported Deep Life Journey, a newsletter felt like the right medium for me. Newsletters are not intrusive like social media, where content is often delivered to steal attention and interrupt your day—an approach that goes against my philosophy. With newsletters, people have the autonomy to choose whether to receive, read, save for later, or not read at all. I value the freedom for individuals to choose what they consume and how.
I also believe the newsletter, indeed, the written word, offer content of substance. While videos and podcasts have their merits, and I enjoy both mediums, newsletters feel most natural to me. For those who also appreciate the quiet moments to pause and reflect, a thoughtful newsletter can provide a welcome respite.
Lastly, I enjoy the flexibility and creativity of a newsletter, allowing me to share my thoughts on the books, films, and documentaries I read and watch. In another life, perhaps I would have been a film critic; this feels like the next best thing.
3. The Journey: Behind the scenes on the creative process
Fridays are my designated ‘writing day’. Mornings are dedicated to writing Deep Life Reflections and afternoons are reserved for going to the cinema or watching films at home. Every Friday morning begins with a blank page, though I typically have a theme in mind, along with a book and film lined up for discussion—ideas I’ve thought about during the week.
To organise my thoughts and content, I use a fantastic tool called Notion, a digital workspace where I maintain a six-week pipeline of content. Here, I meticulously track every book and film I read or watch, making notes that feed into a comprehensive database I've created. This process may sound complicated, but it essentially mirrors the traditional approach of a journalist—capturing notes and then organising and synthesising them to craft an article.
Additionally, I’ve created a database to track every issue of Deep Life Reflections. This allows me to quickly scan previous editions, making sure I don't duplicate content such as books, films, quotes, or questions.
As an early riser, I typically start writing around 6:30 a.m. on Friday mornings. From writing to editing to publishing, the entire process spans approximately five to six hours. Aside from a few short breaks, I like to write the newsletter in one writing block. This helps me enter a ‘flow’ state—a period of complete absorption in the task at hand. Hard yet enjoyable. While I aim to publish around 1 p.m. Dubai time each Friday, this is a flexible target. I’ll never push an issue out just to meet an arbitrary timeline. If it needs longer, I’ll give it longer. I always prioritise quality and go through each issue extensively before hitting that all-important ‘send’ button from my Squarespace website (for me Squarespace is the best platform for anyone looking to build their own website).
Editing and revision take around half of the total time invested, about three hours. I like to write a fairly rough first draft and then improve it. This is a critical part of the process. I use an online digital editor, which incorporates AI capabilities, to refine my initial draft, focusing on grammar, clarity, and flow. While I find these digital editors useful, I’m careful in their application. I use them in a way a writer would use a human editor—improving the technical aspects while retaining their unique voice and style. The likes of ChatGPT can be useful when it comes to technical improvements and helping me think through thematic ideas, but I’d never let it write my newsletters. It defeats the purpose.
A golden rule I try to follow is: ‘Always treat the reader’s time as more valuable than your own.’ This means I often remove things that I feel don’t add anything to the issue. This can be hard sometimes if I’ve written something I’m particularly pleased with (known in the trade rather violently as “murdering your darlings.”)
I always feel satisfied after writing and publishing each issue of Deep Life Reflections. This is a common feeling when we complete something meaningful. I know how much work has gone into it. I recognise the discipline it took to sit down and write it, and then I hope it resonates with and can be of value to those who read it.
Then I go eat lunch as I’m hungry!
4. The Fulfilment: What I find most enjoyable
Creating something from nothing in the space of a few hours always feels satisfying. However, it’s the feedback and comments from readers that truly makes the experience enjoyable, because it validates what I’m doing. Comments can range from the simple expressions like “great edition!” to readers sharing more of their own life stories. A special appreciation to my Dad, who consistently shares his detailed reflections on every issue.
Below is a selection of comments I’ve received on Deep Life Reflections:
“I always find your words encouraging and inspiring.”
“I have been following your Deep Life Reflections for some time now and they are always so interesting, uplifting and inspiring.”
“Your brilliant writing is as enjoyable as the best chocolate in the world, sharp and strong, emotional and filling, and then leaves a mark in your brain memory forever.”
“Your writing is an inspiration for me and reading your story has a tremendous effect on my spiritual journey.”
“Great messages today, James. One I really needed.”
“Just wanted to reach out to say how much I enjoy these – they’re a superb interlude. Your writing style and insightful commentary is a joy!”
“I find your writing thoughtful and I’m inspired.”
“Another thought-provoking read.”
“Really am enjoying your reflections and writing.”
“Amazingly relevant for so many people.”
I’m incredibly grateful for these comments. Thank you.
5. The Future: What’s next
I’m proud to have built a small and dedicated Deep Life Journey community of 250 people who receive Deep Life Reflections each week. I’d love to build this audience to 1,000 over the next two to three years. However, the primary goal for me is to maintain the quality and integrity of the newsletter, while continuing to improve it. It’s more important for me to have a community of like-minded people than thousands of subscribers.
I’m also excited to officially launch my coaching business this summer, as I complete my Professional accreditation with the International Coaching Federation. As a Business and Life Coach, I’m focused on helping people use their innate strengths to transform their lives. Deep Life Journey and Deep Life Reflections are closely aligned with this. Watch this space.
I hope you found this exploration into the inner workings of Deep Life Reflections interesting. Again, I’d love to hear your feedback.
Perhaps there’s something you’ve been working on or thinking about that’s meaningful to you? If there’s any message to take from today, it’s that it’s never too late.
Have a great weekend.
James
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Don’t forget to check out my website, Deep Life Journey, for full content on my Pillars, Perspectives & Photography. And you can read all previous issues of Deep Life Reflections here.