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Summary Transcript of the Episode:
In this episode of the Dialogue Doctor podcast, host Jeff Elkins discusses healthy planning by reviewing his 2025 and looking forward to 2026. Below is a structured transcript based on the provided sources.
Introduction and Personal Reflection
Jeff opens the podcast by addressing his own long-term struggles with self-doubt. He emphasizes that he is recording this solo episode because he believes he has practical tools to share that can help listeners move forward with their planning. He mentions that the Dialogue Doctor community is available for free at patreon.com/jffelkins or dialogd.com, with a newsletter providing tips twice a week. Jeff notes that the ritual and rules of a community are meant to be tools to help, not rule over us, and he developed a rhythm to ensure these tools remain effective.
The Philosophy of Healthy Planning: Finding Your “Core”
Jeff explains that effective planning must come from a “core,” which he defines as the internal self that drives your art and work. Drawing from the Jim Collins “Good to Great” model, he identifies three intersecting circles that make up this core:
- Unique Voice: What you do that is uniquely you.
- Joy: What motivates and inspires you, even when facing a “blank page”.
- Engine: What fuels your work, whether it be money, self-expression, or community.
For the Dialogue Doctor, Jeff realized his core is centered on empowering and equipping others through coaching rather than judging or following formulas. He identifies his team’s unique strength as providing a strategic look at characterization and dialogue. In his fiction, his core is driven by writing deep emotional moments and character interactions.
The Five-Step Planning System
Jeff outlines a specific process for strategic planning:
- Find Your Core: Center yourself by answering what you love, what you are uniquely good at, and what fuels your engine.
- Review the Past: Look back at previous years to recognize patterns and cycles; Jeff recommends reviewing a year week-by-week via a calendar to record successes and reflections.
- Dream Big: Allow yourself time—even days or months—to journal every image or potential for the future.
- Rank and Filter Dreams: Evaluate these dreams against your core circles and categorize them as “right now” or “future” dreams.
- Create Actionable Steps: Break dreams down into steps that are entirely within your control and place them on a calendar with realistic, achievable, yet difficult markers.
2025 Year in Review
Jeff shares his accomplishments from the past year to illustrate his review process:
- Coaching: He conducted 123 coaching sessions with authors and 55 leadership coaching sessions for a corporate team.
- Meetings: The community held 24 all-dialoguer meetings and 42 support team meetings.
- Events: He spoke at three conferences: Inkerscon, Maryland Writers Association, and the Alliance of Independent Authors.
- Content: He produced 53 podcast episodes and two “dashes” (80-day programs).
- Sales: Despite not publishing a new book in 2025, he sold 576 books.
He also listed the top five most-listened-to podcast episodes of the year:
- Episode 292: Discussion on My Friends by Fredrik Backman.
- Episode 262: “Making the Emotional Journey” with WV Ricar.
- Episode 288: Editing session on characters with Laura Hum and Dan.
- Episode 269: “How Perspective Changes a Scene” with Don Elliot.
- Episode 289: Discussion on Save the Cat with JP.
The 2026 Roadmap
Jeff plans to be more strategic and disciplined in the coming year. His 2026 schedule includes several major releases and events:
- Books: Dialogue Doctor and the Magical Dials of Emotional Intensity (Feb 2nd) and the Dialogue Doctor Character Encyclopedia (planned for August).
- Masterclasses: A session on emotional intensity tools (Feb 7-8) and a five-week mastermind starting in April.
- In-Person Events: A writing craft conference in Baltimore (August) and a writer’s retreat focused on short stories (October).
- Community Goals: 53 planned Zoom calls and reviews of four novels, four craft books, four movies, and four short stories.
Jeff concludes by stating that planning is an expression of hope and a declaration that “tomorrow will not be like today”. He encourages authors to grab their dreams and force them into reality through disciplined action.
To help visualize this, Jeff’s planning process is like navigating a ship: before setting a new course (2026), you must understand the ship’s engine (your Core), check the logs of where you’ve already sailed (Reviewing the Past), and ensure you are steering toward a destination you can actually reach (Actionable Steps).