I spent many years agonising over putting my work and my words out there. Why would anyone care? What if I write something stupid? Who am I to give ‘gyan’? I am nowhere close to an expert on most topics, so why would my words carry any weight?
Then I came upon a mindset that put all of these questions to rest.
I don’t write to become an influencer. Not to create my personal brand. Not to change the world. Not to prove my knowledge.
👉 I write for myself.
I write to distil thoughts, to make them stick, to ‘grok’ an idea and make it mine. I write to to reflect. I write to meditate. I choose to do it in the public domain because it might have other positive side effects. Someone might get a new idea because of something I wrote. Something I wrote might nudge their action in a way that makes their work or life better. But all these side effects are not necessary conditions, nor are they goals. Writing in public forces brevity, clarity and substance.
Next time you are confused about an important topic, write about it. Write for yourself, but put it out there. Doesn’t matter if it is amateurish, maybe that’s what someone needs to read today.
p.s. Please read ‘Show your work’ by Austin Kleon.