Guide Your Gaze
"If you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to.”
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Different Flavors of Writing
Since I started writing consistently at the beginning of 2022, I've written for 131 consecutive weeks. They're certainly not all bangers. But that adds up to ~327,171 words. Give or take. That's like… almost three books. I feel pretty good about that.
Over all that time there have been weeks where my writing was shorter. Sometimes that's because I was taking a breath, like on my 8th wedding anniversary. Some days its because I'm out traveling, trying to touch some grass (that's happened more than once). Sometimes I'm traveling AND super sick. Sometimes it's just because my kid was super excited to see me, and woke up early.
There are times when, in the midst of my panic writing, I feel almost a sense of dread. I don't know what to write about. The last time this happened in February 2024, I described the experience as feeling like "an inadequacy in my ability to write is an inadequacy in my ability to think."
Those times happen somewhat seldomly, I'm happy to report. But those are the moments I'm most embarrassed by. I feel drained creatively, which feels disrespectful to the countless moments of inspiration I've had in my life.
But there are other times I consider far more special. These are times where, rather than not knowing what to say, I feel like I have too much to say and not enough time to say it well. Times when I've bit off more than I can chew. This happened when I was trying to write The Value Chain of Capital, and again when I was writing Surviving The Death of Venture Capital. Most recently it happened when I was trying to write The Hardening of The Great Softening.
All three of those are pieces I'm proud of. That moment when the realization sinks in... when I'm collecting my notes and writing my outline and its suddenly clear that I know what to say but I won't have the time to say it well, so I need to wait. To put it off until I have more time next week. Those are moments that I'm much more proud of.
A Hiking Metaphor
When we hike up a hill, we often find ourselves watching our feet. We need to make sure we don't trip. What we can miss is the beauty of the views around us. When I was 15 years old, I went on a 40-mile hike in the Pecos Wilderness where we crested a massive hill and caught sight of beautiful views to a lake down below.
I was shocked by the lake because I had been to focused on putting one foot in front of the other, I didn't even realize we had been in view of the lake for the better part of an hour.
As important as it is to stop, and appreciate the views, there's another important takeaway from the process of hiking. When you're looking down at the path, you're actually not staring at the spot where you're feet currently are. You're looking to where your feet need to go in order to make sure they get to where they’re going without slipping.
There are a bunch of catchy ways to frame that idea. Skate to where the puck will be. Aim for the moon and, even if you miss, you hit the stars. Sometimes appreciating that your gaze is high, rather than low, is enough to appreciate the journey. You're not there, but you're proud of where you're going. Of what you've chosen as your north star.
Until Next Week
So... here I am again. With less than 1K words for a post. Because I tried to write "Every Company Needs a Chief Evangelist." And I found myself, once again, with too much to say. Unpacking my thoughts around storytelling. But not just that. I was also going deep into things I've studied before like creating cults and building worlds and sparking movements.
And I felt that familiar excitement. I knew what I wanted to say. But alas. I once again don't have the time to write it. So, for now, I'll just bask in the glory of having something to say, and the anticipation of getting to read what I think. Until next week.
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