Dear Team Rubber Avenue,
Thank you for the support, introductions, interviews, and feedback on this project. I’ve enjoyed our conversations and renewed connections. Whether we spoke last month or last fall, your contribution is very much alive in these pages. Here’s a brief update—and an introduction to some exciting new outreach.
First, I’m thrilled to share the launch of a new website: stories.rubberavenue.com. Please visit the site and feel free to share your stories—as well as the link with others in your network. If you’d rather not type it up yourself, just email your story to me and I’ll post it for you. This will be a communication and connection hub for the people at the heart of this story: you, everyone I’ve interviewed, and beyond. I’ll also use it to post progress updates, so you can see why it’s taking so long to make progress on the chapters.
A few more updates:
Mayor Pete Hess: Thanks to the efforts of Jim “Houdini” McGrath (because he is everywhere), my husband Jack and I spent an amazing 90 minutes with Naugatuck’s mayor, Pete Hess. I drafted a short chapter immediately after and realized it was one of the most meaningful conversations of the project. Thank you, Jim!
Podcast recording in March: I’ve been invited to appear on Thriving Practice, a podcast with an audience-reach across 51 countries. We’ll record in March with a launch around mid-April. I’ll keep you posted.
First agent pitch: While I will likely self-publish again, I believe this project deserves the effort of finding an agent or established publisher. I sent the first pitch last week—a big deal, because developing a book proposal is incredibly time-consuming. Regardless of the publishing path, the feedback is always valuable.
Launch of the “Six-Week Career Reset” app: Based on my 2017 book, Prior Consulting is launching a guided program on your phone that walks someone through a six-week career reset, step by step. It’s in beta-test right now—if you know someone who could benefit from a career tune-up, please email me at lisa@priorconsulting.com and we’ll happily offer them access at no cost, other than providing feedback.
In summary: one new website, a new app, a meaningful interview with Mayor Hess, a podcast appearance, and a completed book proposal and agent pitch.
In the future, I’ll post these updates on stories.rubberavenue.com, where you’ll also find the countdown clock to June 30, 2026—when I aim to complete the first draft of the book. As I write this: less than five months to go… Yikes.
My heartfelt thanks to each of you for stewarding this project so sincerely. Special thanks to spouse Jack for creating all the technology that powers these advances.
Warm regards,
Lisa
Surf stories.rubberavenue.com to stay connected!