ILLUMINATION Writers
Here’s an Interview with Jill Ebstein.
Featuring creative writers of ILLUMINATION
In this story, I share with you an interview that I conducted with Jill Ebstein a published author and an insightful writer on ILLUMINATION.
I am connected with Jill on LinkedIn and am impressed by her professional and business-oriented approach. I met Jill on Medium before ILLUMINATION and truly enjoyed her insightful content on various topics therefore invited Jill to join us and enrich our publication.
Jill accepted my invitation to join ILLUMINATION and contributed to our publication from the beginning. I am grateful that Jill accepted my offer to participate in this interview.
Q: Tell us a bit about your background
I come from a family of 8, and we ran a small kosher grocery store in Denver, Colorado. My job was behind the register, ringing up customers, which I did from the age of 12 on. Before that I stocked shelves and filled orders. So I learned a little about business at an early age. It also helped reinforce the importance of family. The store only “made it” because we pulled together to do the hard work.
I migrated out east to attend business school (Wharton), and then moved to New York for a consulting stint. I met the man who would become my husband (Steve) and moved to Boston. By this point, having lived in three large eastern cities, and receiving much of my schooling there, I realized that the “east was me” though I do love Midwestern congeniality.
Workwise, I went from huge (Hewlett Packard and Citicorp) to medium (medical device company) to biotech start-up to working for myself. I have been a solo consultant for 22 years and have mostly enjoyed the roller coaster. My areas of specialty are market feedback, strategic planning, and communications. I am typically retained by the “senior suite” to help their senior managers by grabbing the market’s view. The freedom of working solo has allowed me to be around more in raising our kids, walking our dogs, and even developing a tennis game.
I am frequently asked for advice about working for yourself. To me, the essential traits are nerves of steel, a propensity to sell, and a commitment to “overdeliver.” It also helps if you are always a little paranoid because it makes you work harder.
Q: Why do you write for Medium?
I write all the time and was interested in being part of a larger writing community. I have been writing pieces that a for a non-partisan news organization called InsideSources which has been fun and challenging. I also have self-published a series, titled “At My Pace,” where I helped many individuals who don’t usually write, share their story about the choices they made. It fueled me to want to write more.
I didn’t have a ready-made solution for releasing my work and getting quick feedback until I joined Medium. I love both getting and giving feedback to fellow writers. They also stimulate my curiosity on a range of topics that I would otherwise not have considered.
Q: What are your values as a writer?
I care that my work is interesting, honest, and leaves the reader wanting more. I don’t want to be that writer where the reader says, “It was good, but it just dragged on too long.” I write at the intersection of work, life, and family, and it is important that my content feels read and identifiable — like “I’ve been there.” I always hope that it in some way helps readers.
Q: What are top 3 books that affected your life?
I’ll start with Huckleberry Finn because I loved how Twain dealt both with racism and the coming of age story. Their journey down the Mississippi River is in some ways everyone’s journey.
Another important book in my life has been All the Kings Men by Robert Penn Warren. How he treats idealism versus the costs of making something happen, disillusionment and rebirth are all wonderful material for the young soul on a mission.
Finally, I am a huge fan of Elizabeth Strout because she captures the complexity of modern day living, the fractures and healing within and outside our communities. Olive Kittridge is probably my favorite but a reading of all her books makes each one better because they build on each other.
Q: What are your hobbies?
Writing, tennis, dogs and baking, in no particular order. They keep me grounded.
Q: How do you connect with readers?
Short answer is “not enough.” The longer answer is that through a private distribution of people who follow my writing, I send out a monthly piece. When I self-published the three-book series, “At My Pace” awhile back, it upped my visibility.
On Medium I mostly connect by commenting on someone’s writing. I value feedback because that is also what I do in my professional life. Feedback is not only interesting, or vital, but my skills in that arena have allowed me to indulge my passion for writing without the burden of needing it to pay my way.
Q: Why did you join Illumination and how do you find it so far?
I joined because Dr Mehmet Yildiz, put it out there as an open platform where many voices could be heard. Dr. Yildiz’s philosophy was so appealing to me, and then when the writers came on board, I loved the diversity of spirit and topics and life choices. It mirrors us as a society only we’re better in that we generally get along with each other and appreciate our differences. It’s not quite a miracle, but it is special.
Q: Who are some of the top writers you enjoy on Illumination?
In no particular order, and a partial list, I will mention: Holly Jahangiri, Roz Warren, Paul Myers MBA, Kevin Buddaeus, Desiree Driesenaar, René Junge, Aurora Eliam, CMP
Q: What are your top five stories and why?
Here are my top stories:
Reaching for the Center of the Table: I love my Bubbie’s wisdom that whatever I am dealing with is still relatively speaking not as big as it feels.
The Toughest Boss of All: This was my first curated piece on Medium and has a mix of humor, and hopefully perspective about what it takes to be your own boss.
From Great to Good: This is a riff on Jim Collins Good to Great where I try to take us out of the pressure cooker of seeking greatness and argue that good is actually good enough.
Staying Relevant: No thoughtful aging soul doesn’t wonder how they will stay relevant. In this piece I use my dogs as a vehicle to affirm that you are never too old to be relevant.
When the Howl is Gone: This piece had huge pick up in newspapers across the country, and definitely touched my kids. It was timed for Thanksgiving, and I was mourning the aging of my old dog, Nemo, and the timing of our new puppy. I pressed the reset through the wisdom of my husband.
Q: What are the success factors for you as a writer on Medium?
I am going to rephrase that question as to, “What are the factors on Medium that help you to trend positively?” I wouldn’t say that I am successful, but slowly I am building my community. It takes perseverance, not taking rejection personally, finding writers who you enjoy and who enjoy you. Also, I am still venturing out with new topics, and new styles. I just drafted my first satirical piece.
Bottom line: it takes a hardy spirit and staying the course with optimism. Also, if you love to write or as the pros say, “to have written,” not that much else will matter.
Q: What do you recommend to the new writers on ILLUMINATION?
Everyone says to write, write, write. Build a habit. I would say, “write, comment, write, comment.” It is important to read other authors, and to comment thoughtfully on their work. This takes time, but it is time well spent. It will further the writer’s education, create bonds, and help build a community. Community is at the core of Illumination. It is harder to find on the larger Medium platform, but commenting is key for all the reasons I’ve mentioned.
Q: What are your future plans as a writer?
I have two major writing projects going on right now. On the business side, I have just interviewed 18 senior managers to pulse them on the post-covid reset. I have 4 articles in mind (only one drafted) that I hope will shed light on how businesses plan to emerge and be self-sustaining.
I have another project on the use of language and how it varies across generations. It might sound esoteric but I hope to make it very real, and help us to do some inter-generational bridge building. For example, why might a boomer say, “To thine ownself be true” while a millennial will say, “You got a do, what you gotta do?” Compare “Running on empty” to “You can’t pour from an empty cup.” I have many examples to explore, and at its core I believe language informs and shapes us in more ways than we realize.
Thank you for your valuable time Jill. I learn a lot from your valuable content and look forward to reading more stories from your creative pen. You are an inspiration to our writers and readers on ILLUMINATION.
You can connect with Jill on LinkedIn.
You may also check Jill’s writer bio from the attached story.
If you are a writer on ILLUMINATION and would like to be interviewed, please send a request via this link with title of “Interview Request”.
Other Interviews
You may also check other interviews I conducted with inspiring writers of ILLUMINATION recently. These stories can provide a great opportunity to know more about our creative writers and connect with them.
Timothy Key
Desiree Driesenaar
Holly Jahangiri
Ming Qian
P.G. Barnett
Jill Ebstein
Bill Abbate
Terry Mansfield
Ann K Frailey
Woei T
Charles Roast
Kevin Buddaeus
You can find inspiring profiles of ILLUMINATION writers from this story.
You may check more interviews in the attached collection.
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