The Paradox of Writing and Life Sandwiches

In my last post, I mentioned how you should write as much as possible. Now, I am going to argue against that point.

Write for yourself as much as you want. You will always be interested in what you have to say. Other people, however, are rarely interested in everything you have to say. And who can blame them? Nobody's interests match up 100%, and matches over 50% are basically soul mates. As a result, if you really want people to listen to you, make your writing count.

Choose Wisely

Writing that you share with others should be a near final draft version. You need time as well as trial and error to organize your thoughts in a coherent fashion that will be easy for other to understand. If your writing is just your first try or even just listed thoughts, no one will be able to derive meaning from your work, and the whole purpose of your endeavor goes down the drain. Likewise, people don't have the time of day to baby-sit you, correcting your work. That's what parents are for.

Moderate

Ok, so far, I have been pretty aggressive of showcasing only your best work. That doesn't mean to wait years before texting back your friend's,"Wat up?". When you are fortunate enough to have someone's attention, that person expects a response from you: ASAP. And with modern social media apps like Snapchat, Instagram, and Vine, people have access to lighting quick entertainment and information. Thus, the attention span of the average person has declined rapidly. If you can't give them what they want, someone else on the web will much faster. So, don't postpone. Strive for perfection, but settle for decency.

Life Sandwiches

I like to use the example of "life sandwiches". Think of everything that you share with the world as sandwiches. If you give people too many sandwiches, they will be full and discard any future sandwiches you give them, even if it's the best sandwich you ever made, because the quality-to-quantity ratio is just too small. On the other hand, if you don't feed your audience often enough, you will eventually give them the sandwich of the century, and they will take it in one bite...and then ask for more. You will argue that you just recently gave them the fruit of your endless labor, but they will shake their head and say, "Life goes on, and I need more sandwiches. Either I get my sandwiches from you, or I move on to someone else."