This is not content

Seems like everyone wants to tell you something and sell you something.

Experts I’ve talked to have delicately suggested that I stop sharing new articles here every day.

“You could write just a few that are targeted to the exact problem you solve for your prospective customer,” they say. “And then you can link to those on social media.”

Yes, that is a very tidy way to do business. But that’s not what this blog is for.

The world is inundated with content — media that fills a space where we want people’s eyes, ears, and dollars to be. You want subscribers to your online streaming platform, you better have content. Even better, if you have user-generated content, you don’t have to create or curate anything at all. You just stand back like a farmer watching your livestock graze in your field. Or like a prison warden, maybe, watching the inmates pass the time.

But that is all backward to me. I want to create something that matters to me — something that I feel like sharing. As Seth Godin says in his book The Practice, “Here, I made this.” It’s not content meant to fill an empty space, or to be consumed like junk food or gasoline. It’s simply a gift.

It is no exaggeration to say that it has changed my life to write every day. It has also changed my life to share my writing every day. However, at this point, I can’t figure out which part changed things the most. So I’m going to keep doing them both. It’s not even about the product — the content. For me, it’s about the daily devotion to the process. The practice of writing influences sharpens my ideas, my capacity to express them, and my understanding of the ideas of others, all of which improves my ability to do good work in the world.

It’s okay if you don’t want to read every word I write. It’s my commitment to you that I show up here five times a week, but you don’t owe me the same commitment. You can choose to stop by whenever you like. My ecstatic obligation to myself need not create an obligation for you. You don’t need to consume my content. You can enjoy as much of what I share as you like, whenever you like. It’s not a prix fixe meal. It’s not even a buffet. it’s a gallery.

If you have ever thought about making something — or publicly sharing what you make — I encourage you to do it. And if you’re hesitant because you’re not sure that people will like it or that it will make any money, let me ease your mind: People won’t like it, and it won’t make any money. And it is still worth doing.

I can’t explain all the reasons why — not yet. So I guess you’ll just have to try it and see for yourself.

Maybe you have already. What do you make? What do you want to make? I’d love to hear.