Books in Bullet Points/Things That Don’t Work/ Phone Camera

In Matuschak’s view, a finely distilled note is the fundamental unit of knowledge work. But we are generally lousy at taking notes, both because the notes we take give us weak feedback (we may go weeks without returning to a note we have taken, and may not return to it at all) and because we have no role models (do you know anything about anyone el... See more

1. The aim of my writing is never to make money. If there are opportunities, I will pay attention, but it is never the direct aim. I obsessively focus on other funding mechanisms such that I don't have to worry much about how to monetize writing.

2. I write for readers like me. I dislike a lot of the current trends in books. I think they dumb down t... See more

One: You have to train yourself to notice things. It's not 100% natural at first – it certainly wasn’t for me – but raising those antennae is a very worthwhile thing to do. And it snowballs: once I got started taking notes, I ended up taking more and more of them.

Two: Be very liberal about what you keep. If you're going through your notes, cross ou... See more

What are bad recommendations you hear in your profession or area of expertise? Great, great question. In the world of writing, everyone wants to succeed immediately and without pain or effort. Really? Or they love to write books about how to write books, rather than actually writing . . . a book that might actually be about something. Bad advice is

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