writing(14/3)
Writing with ai
Inspired by Ethan Mollick’s newsletter today (I Cyborg, Using Co-Intelligence), I attempted a co-intelligence writing test of my own. I’d jotted some thoughts about belonging in my Bullet Journal that I thought could become an article, but I felt some hesitancy to tackle it lest I get stuck on such a broad topic. First, I dictated my scribbles into a digital note. Then I shared the results with an LLM and asked for a short summary, suggested resources on my main topics, and a revised version of my writing.…
The 500th post
This is my 500th post! Let’s celebrate… Writing Diversity Tags show broad categories that I’ve written more about than others. It won’t expose everything, but here are some of my most prolific tags. The first number is the count of unique posts I’ve written and the second is the count of quotes from others. apostolic(3/19) business(33/0) children(15/3) cli(21/0) communication(17/2) culture(22/0) design(13/1) discipleship(4/8) entrepreneurship(48/0) evangelism(13/1) faith(9/8) fear(3/11) formation(17/18) identity(6/9) interpretation(11/1) javascript(21/0) justice(11/3) kingdom(13/8) leadership(42/5) love(4/8) prayer(7/11) scripture(12/4) snippet(20/0) software(14/1) trust(9/8) wisdom(7/6) writing(12/3) (note to self: it’d be really cool to graph these on a timeline to show how my interests have pivoted over time.…
More rituals
I often feel overwhelmed by the scope of work. Sequestering myself, say, in a remote cabin on some months-long writing retreat is a pipe dream — albeit a very, very seductive one. I have commitments that can’t wait: a kid who needs to get to school and a house that needs renovation and clients who need to get their projects printed/published/launched. If I want to tell bigger stories, I have to find a way to finish them, bit by bit, in the daily mix with the rest of my life.…
Writing reminders
Sometimes I just need a few words of encouragement to keep writing online. Here’s my collection. Duplication is welcome; there’s plenty of room 💬 The internet isn't like a crowded room. When you're saying something, it's not like you're talking over someone else. There is actually room for everyone to say however much they want. Sam Borick Don’t repeat yourself, write it down and share it It’s part of unix philosophy to write a function once and share it across the project instead of duplicating it.…
Stick to the basics
To write consistently, you must remove obstacles to putting words down. Most of those barriers will be internal, but don’t let the writing tools get in your way. The best writing tools of the Internet age bring the simplicity of a pencil and paper to the screen. MacWright recommends that you never change the technology. His recommendation stems from a danger many technologist face; spending our time tinkering instead of writing (guilty ✋).…
How to write a thesis
Umberto Eco wrote a seminal book on the subject, How to Writa a Thesis. In it he offers the benefits of writing a doctoral thesis and also the criteria for a doctoral thesis.
Benefits of writing a doctoral thesis
Umberto Eco suggests writing a thesis will benefit a person who has completed a doctorate thesis because they will have: Identified a precise topic Collected documents on that topic Ordered these documents Reexamined the topic in light of the documents collected Organized all this work into an organic form Ensured that his readers have understood him Provided the necessary documentation so that readers may reexamine the topic through his sources.…
Criteria for a doctoral thesis
Umberto Eco defines criteria for a scientific thesis: The research deals with a specific object, defined so that others can identify it. The research says things that have not yet been said about this object, or it revises the things that have already been said from a different perspective. The research is useful to others. The research provides the elements required to verify or disprove the hypotheses it presents, and therefore it provides a foundation for future research.…
Note taking answers three questions
Baldur sees note-taking as answering one of three questions: How do I manage my creativity? Generate ideas in a structured way through research and sketching. Preserve those ideas. Explore the ideas until they have gelled into a cohesive plan or solved a problem. How do I manage my knowledge? Extend your memory to help you keep track of useful information (client data, meeting notes, references). Connect that information to your current tasks or projects so that you can find it when you need it.…
Notes are a means to an end
Notes are a means to an end, or telos. The ‘end’ might be visualized by either a concrete object or a formative experience. Concrete Telos Most note-taking is for the purpose of a deliverable. A thesis perhaps, or some other concrete project. Note-taking that has no end in mind lacks a context and is in danger of what Baldur calls “an intimidating database of opaque words and alien ideas” (The Different Kinds of Notes).…
Note taking process towards an end
Purpose is one perspective you might take when researching note-taking and the tools at your disposal. Another is process. Baldur reduces all note-taking into three steps: Collect, Contextualize, and Map. Collect The first step is simply to get the note into your repository. Whether it’s a cardboard box or a digital Kanban board, the priority is speed and reference. Contextualize This step will have different needs depending on the writer’s purpose.…
Note taking tools and strategies
A broad review of note-taking strategies for long-form writing was conducted by Baldur Bjarnason in a three-part series as part of his Colophon Cards project. Before reading Baldur’s excellent research, you should know that notes are a means to an end. Much of note-taking is a form of idea-hoarding, but Baldur’s research is sourced from writers who use note-taking for something, whether a thesis, a book, or some other project.…
Notes as maps or boxes
In The Different Kinds of Notes, Baldur concludes that there are essentially two organizational strategies, Boxes and Maps. Baldur deduces the two strategies differ only in what must be internalized. Boxes A box is a context-external organizational unit. A cardboard box, a digital folder, a binder and a desk drawer might all qualify. Anything which matches the context label of the box can be found inside. In my system, tags are a type of box.…
Reply to others
I’d really like to write responses to the most interesting articles that I read. Maybe in agreement, maybe in dissent. Until that project takes off, here’s a list I’ll build. Grandpa Has Different Rules. A short business insight related to customer service from this quote: 💬 Jean-Louis Gassée, who used to run Apple France, describes this situation as the choice of the two tokens. When you deal with people who have trouble, you can either choose to taken the token that says “it’s no big deal” or the token that says “it’s the end of the world”.…
How to get started writing online
You’re ready to publish your own content online but not sure how to start? If you contact me, this is what you can expect me to say. Writing Obstacles You might have a few obstacles (I know I did). Here are a few you don’t need to worry about. The final medium is irrelevant. Record audio snippets, write in a bound journal, stencil papyrus sheets; it doesn’t matter. Anything can be moved into digital ink.…
Read webpage as API
One of the Indieweb mindsets is to treat HTML content as its own API. HTML-only content is eminently sharable Content that sits in a database is sharable, but not eminently so. Databases are queried via an API that’s usually not publicly available and documented. While the user may comfortably use the API to render content to their site, my interface is the site itself rather than the underlying API. Lazy-load data via JavaScript and, well, it’s not eminently sharable.…
Why do I write
After nearly three years of writing business insights for my MBA program, I’ve developed the writing habit. I’ve also passed from my twenties to my thirties and feel, perhaps for the first time, that I may have something to contribute to “the world”. Writing to a global audience would paralyze me, so I’ve narrowed my purpose to a select few. If you find my posts helpful but aren’t my target audience, what an encouraging side benefit.…