Why I’m Writing

Why Write Now?

As you can see, I’ve written something. Why? Good question.

It’s 2023, and I’ve been sort of meaning to write for a couple years now, in the same way I sort of meant to meditate prior to 2016. And like meditation, I don’t know exactly what I want to get out of this, but I trust it will have positive effects.

First and foremost, I want to stop having indefinite planning periods, and start making actual progress. I’ve recently realized how much of a perfectionist I am, and no, that’s not helpful. Or rather, it can be, but with huge drawbacks attached to it.

Why Right Now?

The immediate answer to why I’m writing at this exact moment is $500. Specifically, if I don’t get this out by the end of March 2023, I’ve committed to giving $500 to an organization I dislike. I’d planned on publishing something by the end of January. Then I’d planned for the end of February. Neither of those happened, yet I’m writing now, so it turns out $500 is a sufficient motivator.

Beyond that, a lot of my reasons are contained in Ben Kuhn’s article Why and how to write things on the Internet. Probably the biggest reason I’m writing is to improve my own thinking. I’m curious about a lot of things, but I don’t get much opportunity to talk my ideas through with other people. Something about seldom leaving the house hinders that.

It’s easy to think I understand something, until I have to explain it fully (the illusion of explanatory depth). Then I realize how many little holes there are in my thinking, which tells me where I need to go learn something. Rinse, repeat, and bit my bit my worldview gets updated, but I’d like to shorten the time on that cycle.

What to Expect

To again reference Ben Kuhn, see College advice for people who are exactly like me. Advice that fits broadly is often of little value. Either everyone’s already heard it (get more sleep!), or it’s so vague as to not make a difference (don’t dwell on things!). Advice that is weirdly specific, however, can be amazingly useful. I’ve come to realize that I cannot understand other people’s minds very well by taking my own mind as a starting point. If your mind happens to run along similar unusual patterns as mine, though, I might just have something for you.

To close, I’ll share one such piece of advice: If you happen to have a home gym, and you never find the space quite as energizing as you’d like, try taking the normal amount of lights for your gym space and tripling it. Works for me.