How long does an idea take to birth?

The mathematical genius Alexander Grothendieck once had a metaphor for solving problems. He suggested that instead of forcing open an impossibly hard kernel with a hammer and chisel, one should simply let it sit in water and wait. Over time, the shell softens and opens with ease. This is also true in writing; time is the only non-substitutable ingr... See more

It reminds me of writing and how I wake up week after week and get stuck on the blank page again and again. How I always despair that I have no more good ideas and, even if I did, not enough eloquence to convey said ideas. But I love it still. I love how writing brings everything to the surface, how it generates and absorbs my attention. How it tap

... See more

Everything that you see in the world—whether it's a tool or a story—first existed as a seed in someone's mind. And I think that people often assume that ideas are something that you get, like a diamond, or something like that. But the truth is that ideas are something that you grow. You plant an idea seed and then you nourish it, and then some part... See more

But the truth is that ideas are something that you grow. You plant an idea seed and then you nourish it, and then some parts kind of wither and die off, but then a tree suddenly starts to grow in this random place.