by Sean Colligan
Today’s tech-laden society, with all its unprecedented speed and convenience, allows us more free time than any previous generation could ever enjoy. But is this free time truly “free”?
We have more time than ever to fill with messaging, scrolling, binge-watching, and streaming, our brains ceaselessly inundated with information, which has made it more challenging than ever for people to step back, take a moment, and truly, critically, deeply, think.
Yet there’s at least one person out there, a lone, wise cowboy resting in his rocker on the porch of his idyllic Texas homestead, who makes the time every day to simply sit and think. Or, as he would call it, “ponder”.
Charles Hamm, author of Ponder on it, Pilgrims: The Bucolic Mark Twain on Critter Councils, Cookie Bandits, and Texas Grit, is one of the remaining few who champions the benefits of slowing down and taking one’s time amid life’s constant fuss. That may sound easy considering he’s currently enjoying retirement after a long career as an entrepreneur and successful business owner, but he’s no slacker. Hamm has kept himself good & busy between writing his first book, creating content for his ever-growing social media audience, speaking at several events and college campuses, coaching up-and-coming entrepreneurs, and even hosting a local radio show. So when it comes to preserving his time to ponder, he carves out a space for it in his regimented morning routine. 
“I get up at 4:30 in the morning, every morning,” Hamm says. “I walk the dog, then put it back to bed. And from then until 7 in the morning, that’s what I call my ‘pondering time.’ I just sit, I study, I read and I think. It’s just my special quiet time before the house comes alive.” After his pondering, Hamm still has time to answer messages from his many fans on LinkedIn, and even make his regular trip to the gym. “At my age, I decided that was probably a good idea. I’m trying to keep everything working so I’ll be able to do what I’m doing as long as I can.”
Hamm doesn’t do it all alone, however, as he’s got the help of a world-class support staff. Husband, father and grandfather, Hamm humbly carries out his work at his bucolic home at Round Mountain, Texas with his wife of 57 years and other family members who still remain close. Not only that, but the wilderness surrounding his home has provided some top-notch local talent as well, in the forms of deer, wild hogs, bobcats, coyotes, wild turkeys and more.
“Round Mountain is a magical place,” says Hamm, “where I live with the critters and commune with them. So I personified all of the animals and started writing stories about them, and I’ve had a lot of fun with it.”
It may sound a little farfetched, but Hamm’s colleagues mean business, and they’re very official about it. “We have a Round Mountain Critter Council meeting every Saturday morning at 10 o’clock. We even have a Round Mountain Critter Research Team that helps me with my research for the writings that I do. Spuds, the leader of the wild hog clan, is the chairman. Round Mountain Critter Code of Conduct enforced by Thelma, a white tailed doe who runs a tight ship. The stories go on and on.” More about the intrigue and goings-on of the “critter councils” are featured throughout Ponder on it, Pilgrims.
Hamm’s respect & affinity for wildlife and the natural world came largely from his late father, an unmistakably major figure in his life. “He was my mentor,” says Hamm. “He taught me about the woods, the critters in the woods and their habits, the names of the trees and the plants and things. He was real big on teaching me manners. He wanted me to be a good person.” His mother also played a significant role in his early years, fostering other interests he would pursue as he grew up. “My mother was more of my intellectual mentor,” Hamm recalls. “She would read to me when I was little, and talk to me.”
His parents were the first to instill a lifelong love of discovery, but countless experiences afterwards would continue to shape Hamm into the man he is today. After high school, he joined the Marine Corps, where he would eventually become a sergeant. At boot camp, Hamm learned an enduring lesson from his drill instructors, “outrageous men who yelled and screamed and could not be pleased,” he recalls with a chuckle. “But one of the things that I realized,” Hamm says, “is that in a platoon of 75 people, everybody was treated exactly the same. There was total consistency, the strictest of discipline, the intolerance of the slightest indiscretion or flaw; everybody was treated the same way. No one was shown favoritism of any kind, from the first day to the last. And you understand at the end of it all, that all the while they were on our side. They were rooting for us in their own way.”
Another important takeaway from Hamm’s military service would prove invaluable for his career as an entrepreneur. “You can’t be an authority if you’re not under authority. Everybody has a boss, someone that’s supervising them, and it goes downhill. A good leader is someone that respects authority, that respects the people above them.”
After his service, Hamm started his own family and several businesses, each with varying levels of success. But even the ventures that didn’t last were teachable moments for Hamm and his career. “I started several businesses that didn’t exactly ‘fail’, but lead me into something else,” as he puts it.
With a near-lifetime of experiences like these, Hamm is using his free time during retirement to share his wisdom with all those who take the time to listen. His recollections, perspective and advice are all what have made Ponder on it, Pilgrims such a success already.
While he prefers spending his time offline, Hamm’s journey of writing his first book started on social media, but true to form, the idea of sharing the lessons he’d learned started during a good “pondering” session not long after he retired.
“I was sitting on the front porch of my cabin one morning in my rocking chair, watching the hummingbirds,” Hamm recalls. “I’d already gotten on LinkedIn as a result of my business. And I started thinking about what was going on. It seemed like there were people on both sides of different social issues. But one of the things I observed, just sitting there in my rocking chair, was that it seemed like everybody was mad. Nobody was happy.”
Hamm decided to share observations & musings like this through regular LinkedIn posts, which eventually gained a steady following. “People started encouraging me to write a book,” Hamm says. “I’d never thought about writing a book before. In fact, for the longest time, I’d just tell them I was pondering on it.” And ponder he did, until his wisdom was condensed and published as Ponder on it, Pilgrims in April 2022, becoming a 3-time # 1 International Bestseller within 36 hours after its release on Amazon to Hamm’s surprise.
“I just couldn’t believe that happened!”
One of the cornerstones of Hamm’s philosophy, and something he encourages everyone to consider, is a simple but indispensable line of inquiry that can be used when facing any of life’s challenges. “As human beings, every last one of us in this world today, or who has ever lived at any time during the past, we all do 4 things all day long, every day,” Hamm observes. “We do things. We say things. We think things. And we feel things.”
From this concept, Hamm came up with what he calls the “4 Golden Questions”:
1. “What would a wise person do? Most things we do are inconsequential, but we have to make decisions sometimes about what we’re gonna do, so what would be the wise thing to do? Sometimes, the answer’s ‘nothing’.”
2. “What would a wise person say? We’re often too quick with our words. Stop and be thoughtful about what you say. And sometimes, the best thing to say is nothing. In fact, a lot of times the best thing to say is nothing.”
3. “What would a wise person think? Your mind is active all day long, bouncing around, and different thoughts capture your mind. Some of the time you find yourself spending all day with negativity and anger and all sorts of different things. I realized, and wrote about it in the book, that you can take control of your thinking. If you catch yourself drifting into some unpleasant thing, as we all do, you can stop yourself and redirect your thinking to things that are more wholesome and make you happy.”
4. “Last is your heart, and it may be the most important thing of all: What would a wise person feel? Is your heart filled with love, joy, peace and happiness, the good things that make life worth living? Or is it filled with anger, rage, covetousness, greed, the chaotic things that make us miserable?”
These “gold nuggets” of advice have resonated with Hamm’s growing audience online and in print, not to mention captivated Publishizer, where Ponder on it, Pilgrims will be the featured book of this year’s summer theme. Hamm says it’s “an incredible honor,” and the feeling is mutual; it’s a privilege to have Charles’ sage perspective as a part of Publishizer’s community for summer 2024 and beyond.
Even after his success as a debut author, Hamm shows no signs of slowing down, as he continues sharing his wisdom in media and in person. He’s especially found great joy in speaking at colleges, sharing his experience with younger generations.
I tell young people to be teachable, but never sacrifice their right to do their own thinking,” he says. “I tell them that I’m someone that has come back from their future. On this pilgrimage we call life, that they’re just embarking on, here comes this old geezer that’s been down this road 60 years or longer. If you listen to me, I can tell you what to expect. You don’t realize it right now, but there’s a big river up ahead that you’re gonna have to cross. If you listen to me, I’ll tell you the best place to cross it, because I dang near drowned when I went across the first time!”
Ponder on it, Pilgrims has already provided priceless insight and guidance for readers around the world (“the only continent the book isn’t sold in is Antarctica,” he jokes). If new readers want to learn how to take control, shake off the nonsense and be “free”, what they need to do is take a moment, gather around and listen.
Summer 2024 Book Club Pick
Ponder on it, Pilgrims has been selected as the Publishizer Summer 2024 Book Club Pick. Charles Hamm will be joining the Publishizer Community live on Zoom on. RSVP here to join us live or catch the replay.
Why Ponder on it, Pilgrims?
When I set out to find the book for our 2024 Summer Book Club, I knew I wanted it to be a book that brings families together around books and reading. Some of my most fond memories growing up are around the reading time that was prioritized in our home. I fully loved the process of escaping (or adventuring) into a new book, which became a passion of mine, and certainly played a big part in my life and career. I always hope to share that same love of books and reading with others and I'm thrilled to host Charles Hamm for a chat with individuals and families in the Publishizer community as we prepare to shift from summer to fall.
A shift in seasons of a year (or a season in life) provides a great opportunity to pause and ask yourself how do you want this next season to go? I believe asking a great question has the potential to change everything in life. And sometimes you want a grandfather figure to ask them to. In my case, both of my grandfathers passed away when I was very young, but I always wished I could spend some time talking with them, hearing stories straight from them about their lives and experiences, and asking questions. I distinctly recall my first meeting Charles and even through zoom, immediately I felt that I could spend all afternoon chatting with him. In fact, we did just that! He happily answered any question that crossed my mind about his journey as an author and we "shot the breeze" longer than planned. Something became more whole in me that day, and I am so glad to see his regular videos and quotes on LinkedIn that remind me of that conversation.
Once I received my copy of the book and started reading, I was charmed by the wit, humor and depth in his writing. Only somebody who has gotten to the bottom of a lot of questions can give a delivery like Charles has in Ponder on it, Pilgrims, and it earned a permanent spot on my bookshelf. When I eventually set the book down, I knew that I had found the perfect author to invite for a conversation. Don't be fooled, it's not a book about Pilgrims at all, but please don't take my word and find out for yourself :)
- Bethany Marshall, Publishizer CEO
RSVP here to join us live or catch the replay.
Purchase Ponder on it, Pilgrims Today
Bookstore Partner
Our bookstore fulfillment partner for the Publishizer Summer 2024 Book Club is Beantown Books. Thank you Beantown Books for your support of new authors!
Beantown Books was founded with one goal in mind: to become the most author- and reader-friendly bookstore in the world.
We believe authors maintain tremendous value in their stories, systems, and ideas and hope to help more of them be able to earn a livable wage based on their writing and related products and services.
If we can help achieve that goal, we believe the world will become a much better place, with the most talented and passionate storytellers being able to dedicate their full-time efforts to sharing their gifts.
We consider our mission an ongoing one and are committed to constant improvement to be able to serve authors and readers better and better over time.
Sponsor Shoutout!
Thank you to the Summer 2024 Publishizer Sponsors: Bookstr, Shawn and Shant!
Bookstr knows the ultimate power of stories is to build empathy and understanding of all people, and consequently, a better, more tolerant, and inclusive world. At the heart of everything we do, lies our ethos, our raison d’être – connecting people through celebrating love for all things bookish.
Bookstr’s mission is to bring together people who love books, community, and connection; and offer a platform that gives voices to the historically voiceless, shining a light on diverse topics and stories that have been underrepresented.
While reading a book can be a solitary experience, Bookstr makes the journey exciting by enabling readers to share their love for books, with an ever-growing vibrant community.
Shawn Cao is a Financial Advisor and Mutual Fund Investment Specialist at Co-operators. Co-operators is a leading Canadian insurance and financial services co-operative, offering multi-line insurance, wealth management products, and institutional asset management services. With a network of over 440 agents across Canada, Co-operators is committed to creating financial security for Canadians and their communities, investing in sustainable development and community-based values.
Shant Hallajian is an expert in risk management and a retirement planning specialist. He excels in assessing clients' needs and providing tailored insurance solutions to mitigate potential risks. With in-depth knowledge of retirement planning, Shant ensures his clients are well-prepared for their financial future, offering them peace of mind and security.
