Aishwarya Goel

Obstacles to fluent writing

• Any variation on: “I can't say that!”


• “What if people think I'm stupid?”


• “What if people think this is boring?”


• “What if people think I'm ignorant?”


• “What if people think I'm trying to be superior?”


• “What if this isn't good enough?”


• “What if sharing my ideas results in my being scooped?”


• “Is this part of my job?”


• The vague

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don’t mean you’re crazy in the sense that you have a mental illness, although maybe you do. I mean crazy in the sense that you are far outside the norm in at least one way, and perhaps in many ways.

I’ve learned (sometimes the hard way) that the ability to demand creativity, impact, and control isn’t just about wanting it—it’s about earning it.

We chase the philosophy of ‘love what you do’ without first becoming great at what we do. But true freedom comes from mastery.

The moment you shift from ‘what this job is giving me?’ to ‘what am I... See more

Here are a few ideas that many of our favorite emails have used:

• Ask someone a specific question. The more specific, the better.


• Ask for criticism . Tends to be more effective than asking for advice.


• Share something interesting. An essay. Video. Company. Anything they’d like.


• Say something funny.


• Say something useful. Maybe you noticed a typo on

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Whatever you say should also be at least somewhat novel to you, however old you are. It's not an essay otherwise, because an essay is something you write to figure something out. But whatever you figure out will presumably be more of a surprise to younger readers than it is to you.

What if the problem isn't other people's inconsiderateness, but our own inability to tolerate the fundamental messiness of being human around other humans?

The decentralization of physical infrastructure networks offers an opportunity to leapfrog atrophying incumbent monopolies and create networks that are more robust, easier to invest in, and more transparent.

So, in shameless imitation of a master and tastemaker, here are my notes on “taste.”

1. To start very generally, taste is a mode. It’s a manner of interpretation, expression, or action. Things don’t feel tasteful, they demonstrate taste. Someone’s home can be decorated tastefully. Someone can dress tastefully. The vibe cannot be tasteful. The

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