I sometimes wonder how you come up with all this content. I find writing one article quite difficult even when am motivated. How then do you manage so many? - @empress-eremmy
This is a question I got today and it was a timely one because it is something I was going to write about anyway. I answered this, but more is required so I will expand a little more:
It is simple. Write. The more you write, the more you will explore and one thought leads to another until you are in a place that is unfamiliar but connected to all you have ever done and that place will lead onto places that will be all you will ever do. People limit themselves by trying to be correct.
Yeah, that is not really going to cut it so I will add some flesh. The reason I was planning to write this post before the comment arrived was because of a class with a client yesterday, actually, many classes with clients over the years. My training method is much like my blog, random. There is no set list of activities, no guidelines, no limit on content range or depth. It goes where it goes.
Many of my students over the years have hated the way I train. They want structure, a topic provided beforehand so they have time to prepare, time allocated for this, content engineered for that and the space to order their thoughts and fashion a response. No.
The reason so many people want these things is they want the best chance possible to be right, not the best chance possible to think new, out of the ordinary and discover what lays as of yet, undiscovered in themselves. They limit their thoughts to a narrow band of average because it is comfortable.
If everyone agrees with your innovative idea, it is not innovative.
In the same class yesterday we were talking about innovation and it became clear that they were less innovative than they had imagined. I explained it through a normal distribution. The thing with normal distributions is that they show how normal something is. People like what is familiar, relatable and comfortable. If one has an idea that all people agree with, it is very close to the mean of the distribution and the further one moves away from the mean, the less people will agree. The most innovative ideas could be the type that absolutely no one else agrees on. The people who back these end up billionaires.... or homeless.
It is good to have everyone agree with an idea but, it doesn't mean that the idea is good and the in general, the development of an idea isn't to improve it, it is to compromise it. When people disagree on elements of an idea they want to change the idea into one that is acceptable for them. The larger the group, the more compromises get made and under the guise of refinement, what could have been outside of normal is now well and truly average. Bland, boring and unlikely to set the world on fire. But, acceptable.
What the hell has this got to do with content?
The acceptable part is what is key here as most people want to be accepted by the group in some way and they will compromise their own content based on this. To push the boundaries of thinking is to go into areas where thoughts aren't often thought and it is uncomfortable. It is uncomfortable to think, it is likely also going to be uncomfortable for others to consider, let alone accept and this means opening the self up to criticism and, being wrong.
No one likes to be wrong and from a social standpoint it is even worse as those that are wrong are seen as incompetent and valueless. However, this all depends where they are wrong which is something that most people are incapable of considering when what is being discussed is outside of their normal. They dismiss it as wrong based on intuition (what is habitually known) without a lot of investigation. Einstein was wrong a lot yet, those that actually know, know that his wrong was a lot of right because it was wrong in areas that furthered the questioning of the unknown on the pathway to right, right?
Producing based on the produced
So, this is where it leads on a personal level for me. It is about exploring what I know until I find the edges and then pushing a little bit further into the unknown. To get to the edge in the first place I have to discover what is along the path of the known which includes a great deal more than I would have suspected to begin with. It doesn't make what I know correct of course which is why it has to be further investigated, not just accepted.
This is why the more I write, the more I can write as with each piece of writing I push on myself a little more and creep the boundaries outward. Combine this with the content I read here including the very thoughtful comments I get and there is a near endless supply of content topics available. The only thing that really slows me down is my typing ability, time constraints and the fact that I already seem like a borderline spammer or someone on speed.
There is no secret other than work.
This isn't an easy path I have chosen as it opens me up to a whole range of pressures including from the community that I am hoping to be a part of. The problem with my process is that it puts my thoughts out onto the blockchain and as we know, once out, it becomes law. Humans aren't very good at keeping an open mind and generally punish changes of mind quite heavily. I am okay with that because of the approach I have chosen.
Putting my thoughts out there will hopefully fall onto the path of others looking to explore their own boundaries too. Perhaps we can push each other to become our best in our own right. What I mean by own right is that your path and my path might be very different, we don't need to be the same. There are many approaches to this life and I tend to take one where I balance my own success with that of others or perhaps it is more, tie my own success to helping others be successful in what they do. This is essentially what my business does.
There is no secret other than work.
Through my life journey so far I have discovered that I am definitely not star material and don't even desire to be such. I am a workhorse that pushes myself as much as I can and pulls on as many threads I can find. I am caring less and less about what those threads are attached to and even though I have my specializations and expertise, I am having an absolute ball dipping my toes, feet and occasionally falling headlong into things I have very little background knowledge of prior.
People spend so much time worrying about being correct that it limits them to being the most average self they can be, not the fullest. I f we could all take the approach of exploring who we are and the willingness to fail regularly, we would also find that we are much more accepting of the failures of others. It is easy to judge if you believe you have never made a mistake and if it is true that you never have, you aren't trying to live life hard enough.
Now, get writing and it will inevitably become a road filled with failure, pain and a quality and contentment of mind you may never have thought possible. Writing is the easy part, facing those dark corners and standing at the precipice is where you will discover what you actually have inside still....
Your best.
Taraz
[ a Steem original ]
I don't see why it's so hard to find something to talk about. I find new ideas on here every day. You could even do a post with links instead of doing resteems.
And yet all of your material was made in a star.
aww... you got to second base ;)
lol
I can relate to this. I started writing poems at age 18 just for the love of it and continued overtime because of the support I got. but looking back at some of those poems I tell myself: 'no way you could have written something as horrible as this.' it only shows that something has happened over time with practice--i changed; I became better. the same thing happened when i started written short stories. I think hard work can make up for lack of talent. it only takes practise and consistence and sometimes, as you mentioned, being innovative by thinking outside the box.
Looking now, we think we are pretty smart, looking back we see the truth. Looking forward we think that what we know now is all we need to know.
Not only makes up for it but improves on it (the small amount one might have)
Good read. Steemit is in a blockchain. Any type of restriction, censorship, and control is close to nonexsitent. Rather than focusing up on how to be right, it'll be better to focus on how to be yourself. Good content, bad content - it is content. Like what they say in the media, There's no such thing as bad publicity.
This is the way to actually get suitable support as they will support the person you are, not just the words you write.
One of my favourites mate. :)
You are welcome :)
One of the best things I ever read from you! Good job with this article I enjoyed it a great deal to read.
Gah that maximising the chances of being right thing. I wish I'd figured that one out earlier but 12 years of bad habits developed at school (where you had to be right at all costs or be ridiculed for the idiot that you clearly were even if no one else knew the answer either) carried over into 2-3 years of uni and while I probably started showing some indication of improvement when I chose to go part time so I could actually enjoy myself it still trickled though for ages, and probably still is! DX
And the rest of it explains other people's reactions to stuff "outside the norm" nicely, though the innovation being blanded down by groups of people insisting on making it acceptable to them through "refinements" reminded me for some reason of a Simpsons episode where Bart gets his ear pierced and Lisa comments something along the lines of "How rebellious! ...in a conforming sort of way." XD
haha, yeah. I am an individual, just like the group I identify myself with.
This is what I enjoy doing but I know that for many, the volume and randomness frustrates them. Perhaps that is a good thing.
Back in the day I had two rules #1 I am always right #2 if you have any doubt refer to rule #1
Only an idiot would not now that the only way to find out if you are right is to be challenged and challenged often .
The rules sound contradictory to that statement but its not . It's no different than opening yourself to failure . Makes no sense to do that either . But if you really think about it there is no such thing as failure only giving up or quiting .
There is a little different being in an authoritative position then here but the approach is the same to achieving the same goal .
It is hard and time consuming to get people out of their comfort zone .
People judge success and failure based on the results which makes it like a computer program. They judge others success and failure based on whether they lived up to expectations.
For the most part, sheer force of will and almost fanatical persistence is what I have relied on most to gain the success I have achieved.
I have definitely been guilty of trying to mold my content towards what I thought would be popular instead of what I was passionate about and recently I have been trying to make a more conscious effort to avoid that type of mentality like the plague. I want to be bathed in the bright reflection of words that come from my place of truth rather than canned articles to garner an upvote.
I think we as a society worry far too much about being right instead of being righteous in our words and deeds. Thanks for an article that is informative and reflective at the same time.
I think that in the longrun, this is what will get support from the right people, the people who want to support the words, but also the person behind them. People who write with authenticity are the ones who I prefer to read.
I think that in the longrun, this is what will get support from the right people, the people who want to support the words, but also the person behind them. People who write with authenticity are the ones who I prefer to read.
I think you are absolutely correct and as an added bonus I don't have to deal with the overwhelming feelings of being a giant douche canoe sellout...lol
Thanks for this article @tarazkp, lately I'd been wondering what to do to improve the quality of my posts about my thoughts(imagine) as most of them seem like I'm trolling when I look at them. lol Now I definitely am going to try being my most average self and see how it plays out in the future. Also how do you know for sure whether a post is just a "shitpost" vs a spam post?
Cheers :)
Well, it depends on the viewer I guess but there is overlap between the two. IMO, Shitposts have no real value or effort involved. Spam posts are based on playing numbers games with minimal effort.
Got it. Thanks for the clarification :)
It's a matter of habit. I can go to bed at 22:00 like one in the morning and always, and without a clock, I wake up at 4:30.
The habit of writing is acquired through practice, as is the habit of reading, eating, bathing; after the habit takes hold of us, what we do is easy and becomes a necessity. That happens to you, dear friend @tarazkp, almost two years in steemit and other social networks, the routine has created that need and you can no longer do without it. If you don't have the time, you will look for the time to do it, and until you do, you will not feel good about yourself.
This thing I'm describing, it happens to me. It's been thirty years in a classroom; if I don't read something or write something, I feel restless.
I have thought that this is part of it too as I am a very social person yet, in Finalnd have become less so due to culture. Of the last 2 years even less again because of lack of time. This might be my way to actually socialise now...
Dude, this is the way to socialize about the future.
This post is great because it's an vision to no shortcut because hard work is important, shortcut will not take us anywhere or it will take somewhere from where you cannot gain anything instead possibly you can lose what you have. And sometime people think what to post, and they post anything which is not written from their heart or they are not writing that post with ownership, they are just writing for the sake and when we are doing as just for sake then no one will going to come to your post because what you are posting it's not giving any value to anyone, so write what you like because firstly you should enjoy your work and then wait for your turn.
And next most important thing is organic comments, and comments and replies are the greatest tools of engagement or upgradation of engagement and particularly on Steemit, if you develop strong engagement then your visibility will be doubled and you can feel the change once you strive hard towards the right direction. And never lose hope because this platform is emotionally driven because we all are human beings and we are emotional beings, so connection is greatest thing, and only hard work can push you further in life.
Thanks for sharing this post with us and wishing you an great day. Stay blessed. 🙂
Words of wisdom @tarazkp. Am going to try and be a little more spontaneous with my content from now and see if it'll help me improve
I think you will find that you are a much, much deeper well than you allow yourself to be. If we only live once, why store potential energy?
What you say is true. I listen and hear what people say or what I read on the platform and start to work out a post. You can find ideas everywhere some are not so good and most likely will be classified as a shit post. This is new to me as I have never been one to write. I would rather phone someone than right an email or a text. This is not my comfort zone at all ,so it shows you what is possible.
The benefit is that it allows you to slow a little and push deeper in the privacy of your own thoughts. You don't necessarily have to write it all but the practice becomes meditative.
I have found I relax more. Forget all the other worries and get lost in a whole new world.
How can one run if he doesn't take a single step? Single steps lead to a walk and run ultimately. Similarly, how can one imagine a sea without single drops combining together? It always opens new venues once you start exploring.
absolutely. There are oceans in the mind if one is willing to push out from harbour.
guideline is as much necessary for a person who want to make his life easy,in order to motivation it is also important especially student did not know what have they need to choose @tarazkp
SOLO SE NECESITA SER CREATIVO Y CONOCER EL TRABAJO DE TODOS...
Thank you for asking this question @empress-eremmy :)
Sadly, I have not been following you for long (still trying to understand why yet we've been talking on chat) but this is a question I would have asked. It's true getting a long post to remain relevant to the end is a skill many of us are still working on.
I love storytelling and as much as one would expect me to have a flow of enticing words to narrate the exciting tale in my head, I lack in that. But mine is more like having many versions of how the story can go then naively getting lost in my own creation.
I usually get to a place of disappointment after hours and hours of nothing to show for. That fuels procrastination, something I am working on. Then comes doubting one's work or worrying about who will read it and give you honest feedback (like if it's here on Steemit... unafraid of being flagged or not looking for an upvote) so that you can grow as a writer.
I want that. I want to grow as a writer.
But how will we? I mean those of us who want to grow yet the trending section is filled with crap? A review of someone who reads worse pieces than mine can never help me grow. So we need to read each other's work also. I hope I haven't strayed from the main point :)
I think that the growing as a writer (or anything) means forgetting about the judgement of others and doing what we do to the best we can do it. The criticism/praise may come but it isn't to tell us right or wrong, it is fuel to feed the next exploration inside.
Quality doesn't matter here for reward, it does matter for self-improvement,
Thank you. I rest my case :)
For some reason that was really fucking hard for me to get through!
I think you're right in that a lot of great ideas aren't popular though, and the fact that you said that if they were they would likely be boring might perhaps have helped me.
I know that your method of writing has helped me a lot already. I feel like I'm on the cusp of getting into the right mode for here. I worked way too hard on posts, and I've done freewrites and bullshit. Now I must combine the two, and post some really good shit, and some nice interesting low effort stuff. Life is a balance.
It is because you identified so strongly with it and your ego felt judged :P
I support this.
Your a teacher, you have to have a natural flow to be able to teach. These things come much easier for you because of that natural ability, if not you'd sucked at teaching. Yes anyone can write but it doesn't necessarily mean they'll ever become as good as you or a number of other people on here who have the natural gift.
I started writing a couple years ago and when i look back... oh my. I actually didn't really start writing like this until about a year ago. My first fiction was October-ish, first poems (on chain) a bit after. It is all about exploring what is inside and I think everyone has it if they are willing to go through the discomfort and potential for embarrassment.
Surprising that level of writing developing over a couple years. I follow you and a couple others just based on the level of writing, they're not reporters, columnist or authors it appears, just a knack for writing.
I really needed to read this today. I finished reading a novel which, in many parts, touches on the material I plan on tackling within my next novel. That which I read is well/kindly regarded whereas I know my approach will be challenging and disturbing the comfortable. For a brief moment I considered abandoning my project, but then reacted in anger and started sorting out notes and material for detailing outline. I also had to face the reality that I enjoy shuffling paper!
Interesting written friend thank you for sharing
You write a lot of great pieces, but this one is one of my favorites. It cuts close to many a bone on many a body. The truth really is the only thing that sets one free so why are people so afraid of it? Is because people have created a world of hide from every little discomfort for themselves, I think so.
The world is over the last five years especially filling up with people who demand without earning and I blame idiotic, inept, selfish and corrupt governments for that. They really are creating a lazy monster that cannot be fed by so few.
How do we get the free generation thinking, understanding and working again?