Hail to the dinosaurs!
When I published the first edition of Dinosaur Training back in March 1996, I printed 3,000 copies of the little monster – and as a special bonus for readers, I signed and numbered every single volume. All 3,000 of them.
If you’re lucky enough to have one of those, you own something very special. They sell in book stores and eBay now for bajillions of smackers – which is crazy, because you can get a new edition – signed even – from me – right here and right now – at far less than the book store folks and eBay honchos are charging.
I mean, seriously -- I've seen them selling for $100 -- $150 or even $200.
Since that time, I’ve not been brave enough to offer to autograph 3,000 books – it’s hard on the fingers after the first couple of hundred – but I still autograph any book or course if I am asked to do so. I'll do it for Dinosaur training, and I'll do it for anything else you order. I do it as a courtesy to you, my reader, and there’s no charge for the autograph.
Trudi fills the orders, and she loves to see a request for an autograph – and sets the book aside on the downstairs table and lays a pen next to it, and makes sure I sign the book.
If it’s suppertime, I don’t get to eat until I sign the books. If I’m going out, I don’t get to leave the house until I sign them.
Last night was my workout night, and before I could go out to the garage I had to sign five different books.
So you can see, Trudi takes this book signing business very seriously.
It’s the Holiday shopping season now, and we’re getting many orders from wives and girl friends – and we always try to email back and ask if those orders should be signed, and if so, to who.
So if your sweetie orders something for you from Dinosaur Headquarters, ask her to ask us to have it signed for you – and it will happen.
Over the years, I’ve developed several phrases I use with the different books I sign – which is something that Bob Hoffman did, and which must have been quite a challenge for him, because he wrote something like 100 of them.
For example, I have a signed copy of “How to Be Strong, Healthy and Happy” – and Bob wrote:
“Sincerely wishing you life long strength, health and happiness. Bob Hoffman.”
And that’s a pretty good way to sign a book.
There’s one phrase I like to use for Dinosaur Training – another for Strength, Muscle and Power – a different one for Gray Hair and Black Iron – and others for the Doug Hepburn training course, Horatius, and the Legacy of Iron books.
I won’t tell you what they are, so if you order a book and ask that it be signed, you’ll be surprised.
But in a related vein, I’ll note this. I receive tons of emails, and when I respond to them, I often end my response with:
“Keep me posted on your training and your progress.”
Now, there’s a reason why I say that.
Or more accurately, there are several reasons.
1. I want you to stay in touch and let me know how things are going with your training. One of the things we do here at Dinosaur Headquarters is to serve as a clearinghouse for different approaches to sane, sensible, productive and effective strength training. We’re interested in the stuff they don’t write about in the muscle comics. And we want to hear from YOU – our Dinosaurs – and to learn what works for YOU! And then we can pass that along to other Dinosaurs.
This is one of the things that Peary Rader did with Iron Man magazine for the 50 years in which he owned, operated, published and edited the magazine – and it’s a very important function.
2. I want to know about YOUR training. Not someone else’s training – not something you read about somewhere – but what YOU are actually doing.
Working out is not a spectator sport. To make it meaningful, effective and productive, you have to focus on doing it. YOU. You are the most important person in your training g universe. No one else. Never forget that.
3. I want to know about your TRAINING. If you get your training working right, everything else falls into place. In physical culture, it all starts with your training. That’s what counts – and that’s what I want you to focus on.
4. I want to know about your progress – and please note that I am NOT saying “good luck” in your training. I am absolutely certain – I know for a fact – that if you keep on training, you WILL make progress.
5. I want to end by focusing on the idea of PROGRESS. That’s how you measure the success of your training. Are you making progress? If you are, then you’re doing the right things. If not, you need to rework your program and make the necessary changes and adjustments that will get you back on the progress track.
And remember – as I noted in yesterday’s message – if you make every workout better than the one before it, your training becomes fun, dynamic and exciting.
And that’s why I say: “Keep me posted on your training and your progress.”
As always, thanks for reading, and have a great day. And if you train today, make it a good one!
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. Take a quick look at everything we have at the Dinosaur Training store – and see what would make you smile (especially if it comes with a personal autograph!) – and go ahead and place an order and ask for an autograph (or ask your sweetie to do it). Signing books for you is an honor and a privilege – and we love to do it:
http://www.brookskubik.com/products.html
