Meet Phil Basten. He’s Been Paying Attention.
Writer. Minister. Retired professional counsellor. Father. Grandfather. Fellow traveller.
Phil has spent much of his life trying to understand people and the strange journey we are all taking. After nearly 50 years of writing and working with others, he has collected plenty of stories. He has also learned a few things worth passing on.
And, apparently, he still has questions.
— A LITTLE BACKGROUND
There Has Never Been Just One Chapter.
Phil Basten has spent nearly five decades working with words and people.
His career began in communication and persuasive writing. Over time, it expanded into marketing, sales training and product development. He later worked as a professional counsellor and life coach. Faith also became an important part of his journey through his work in ministry.
Since 1998, Phil has worked extensively online. That means he remembers when websites appeared one line at a time and connecting to the internet involved noises that suggested a robot was arguing with a kitchen appliance.
Through every stage, one subject kept returning.
People.
Why do we make the choices we make? Why do some experiences change us? What helps us recover when life goes sideways?
Those questions eventually found their way into his books.
— THE WRITING JOURNEY
Words Have Always Been Part of the Job.
Long before The Timeless Path, Phil was writing marketing campaigns and articles. He also wrote websites and eBooks.
His earlier marketing eBooks include Tell Me a Story, Killer Words and Business Vitamin. He has also written numerous articles and sermons throughout his career.
But The Timeless Path became something different.
Instead of persuading someone to click a button or buy a product, Phil found himself writing about the questions that had followed him through his own life.
What gives life meaning? What happens when the plan falls apart? How do we keep moving when we cannot see what comes next?
This time, the writing became personal.
— MORE THAN THE BOOKS
Family, Faith and the Things That Keep Life in Perspective.
Behind the writing is a husband, father and grandfather whose family has shaped much of the way he sees the world.
Phil’s faith has also remained central to his outlook. His experience in ministry and counselling taught him that people rarely need another lecture when life becomes difficult. More often, they need someone willing to listen.
That same spirit runs through his writing.
There is room for questions. There is room for mistakes. There is even room for the occasional wrong turn.
There should probably be room for laughter too.
— THE NEXT CHAPTER —
Family, Faith and the Things That Keep Life in Perspective.
The Timeless Path marks the beginning of a new chapter in Phil’s writing life.
It brings together years of experience with the questions he has spent a lifetime considering. Three more books are already in development, so his desk is unlikely to become tidy anytime soon.
For Phil, that is part of the fun.
There are still stories to tell. There are still questions worth asking.
And there is always another step on the path.
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