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The way to become an expert in anything is to research the thing, do the thing, and reflect on the thing. Blogging is a good way to conduct the first and last p
by tannerc 9y ago
The way to become an expert in anything is to research the thing, do the thing, and reflect on the thing. Blogging is a good way to conduct the first and last part of that process.
If you'll allow me a personal anecdote on the matter:
10 years ago I knew absolutely nothing about "creativity." I worked in an environment where the word was tossed around a lot, but any time I asked what it meant I got conflicting, confusing, and sometimes seemingly backwards responses.
I wanted to better understand the concept I kept hearing about, so I started a blog. I worked hard to read everything I could about creativity, wrote down my thoughts on the subject a few times a week, and connected with people also interested in the subject.
After just a couple of years I started building up a sizable audience. It turned out a lot of people didn't know much about creativity and wanted to follow along my journey. My naivety was theirs, and by sharing the journey of discovery and rumination with the audience, they felt like the journey was just as much their as it was mine.
After six years I had more than 150,000 subscribers to the blog and a book deal with a real publisher. I ended up being invited to write for Adobe's creative publication 99u as well as Inc.com. As of a year or two ago I started being invited to speak on creativity at events around the world. I also ended up building a number of successful products (apps and publications) based on the things I learned over my years blogging.
Everything I learned about creative thinking over the last decade is thanks to that blog and the time I put into it.
The catch is this: it takes time and effort to blog, about anything. At times it can be an arduous task. You can dedicate 10 years to it like I have and still not see anything tangible come as a result. But the biggest benefit to blogging about a specific subject—particularly if you are not yet an expert in that subject—is the same benefit to journaling: it gives you an excuse to think about the thing in ways that you otherwise may not.
- archagon 9y agoQuick question: I really enjoy blogging, but this... > and connected with people also interested in the subject ...is something I never learned to do. How did this come about for you? Personally, whenever I'm learning something new, I always think "why would anybody want to discuss my completely amateur take on this topic?" and just end up doing things on my own.
- tannerc 9y agoPerhaps consider a different perspective? Instead of approaching conversations with the mentality of "I want to share my take" approach them with the mindset of "What can this person teach me?" Always, in all interactions. For me, it was helpful to use Seth Godin's advice[1]. I used email to reach out to people I admire, to pull ideas from their mind, and eventually I found others reaching out to me to do the same. Like all good things: connections take time. http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2009/01/how-to-send-a-p.html http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2009/01/how-to-send-...
- jwdunne 9y agoThis is perhaps the most valuable thread I've come across on HN. I've been thinking about blogging for a while - thank you for the motivation! One other thing I struggle with is topic. Everyone says niche but I'm not niche - I learn and am interested in a huge range of topics. How could I make progress in this way? I can't stick with a single topic in my own life, it'd be difficult to reflect that into my writing.
- tannerc 9y agoPerhaps that is your topic then: how to discover and explore diverse interests. I know I'd subscribe to someone dedicating time to research and write about identifying interesting subjects, diving into them, and the results.
- jwdunne 9y agoThank you - I never thought of that. I guess I've always subconsciously discounted due to being master of none. I suppose a "learn with me" approach is good :) again thank you!
- _jdams 9y agoI was greatly inspired by your post, and I'll be spending the rest of the evening reading your CreativeSomething blog and a little more about your story. I have a strong desire to follow your path, but instead of Creativity as a focus, it is on finding ways to achieve a simple, less stressful life through automation of repetitive tasks, good habits, organization, etc. Think "Wellness" but with possibly a more tech-focused spin. I get much satisfaction from books like Spark Joy (Marie Kondo), Four Hour Work Week (Timothy Ferriss), and I Will Teach You To Be Rich (Ramit Sethi). Your post about researching, doing, and reflecting really speaks to me. And I feel like I should jump in... but I'm hesitant because I'm not sure I can easily come up with 20-25 starting topics to research and write about. In your case, Creativity seems like a core keyword that is (easier) to start with. Do you have any recommendations for me? Again, thanks so much. Your comment may be what changes my life!
- tannerc 9y agoMany years ago I did a webcast for Moz (formerly SEOmoz) on the topic of how to find things to write about. The webcast is behind a member wall (free to sign up I think) but might be helpful to you[1]. Other tricks I use to come up with things to write about: search Twitter/Quora/Reddit for people specifically asking questions related to what it is you want to write about (e.g. "automatic habit"). Then break each question down into its fundamental components to create a more complete set of topics, asking who, what, where, when, why, and how of each specific question you encounter. This way one question ("What types of habits should be automated") can very easily become several ("Who benefits most from automating habits?", "Where does automation take place?", "When should someone consider automating habits vs. not?", etc.). 1 https://moz.com/webinars/from-nothing-to-expert-how-to-blog-like-you-mean-it https://moz.com/webinars/from-nothing-to-expert-how-to-blog-...