Thought provoking
People read nonfiction to learn and to feel. My framework for ensuring a blog post accomplishes both is to start with a first draft that focuses on "novel" ideas.
A novel idea is one that's not just new to the reader, but also significant and not easily intuited. Think of it as new and worthwhile . I've identified five categories:
A novel idea is one that's not just new to the reader, but also significant and not easily intuited. Think of it as new and worthwhile . I've identified five categories:
- Counter-intuitive —
What to Write About
“Your actions actually don’t matter that much in the grand scheme of things” and “The vast majority of your life will be boring and not noteworthy, and that’s okay.”
Mark Manson • The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life (Mark Manson Collection Book 1)
what if public libraries were open late every night and we could engage in public life there instead of having to choose between drinking at the bar and domestic isolation
And then you feel it: a quiet, gnawing hollowness that, for all the making, nothing has truly been made. Why does it feel bad to stop posting after weeks of consistency? Because the force of your work instantly drops to zero. It was all motion, no mass—momentum without weight. 99% dopamine, near-zero serotonin, and no trace of oxytocin.
Anu Atluru • Make Something Heavy
The more you see, the more skeptical you become. Optimize for skepticism and curiosity. Having been a VC and invested as an angel in well over 100 companies, my inbox flows with ideas of all kinds from aspiring and repeat entrepreneurs. In the earlier days, I’d get excited by ideas especially the first time I saw them. But over time, I soon realize... See more
Some necessary truths