August, 2021

We all make todo-lists or put it in the calendar. But do you really know clearly what you are going to do, if it is the best way to do it, and if it is the right thing to do?

To answer those questions, I have found that the best way is to write out in detail what you are going to do. Once you start writing you’ll find challenges, other things that affect the project, and better ways of doing it. The goal is to get clarity and to remove unnecessary work.

I came across this concept from Conor, the founder of Roam Research, and I’ve been using it regularly with great effect. Here’s a Twitter thread where he’s talking about writing it out in detail:

I'm a big fan of writing down what I plan to do, and how I plan to do it (in detail) before I get going.

Why?

Because sometimes I realize as I am halfway through writing things out that there is a fundamentally better approach

then I can skip a ton of needless work! — Conor White-Sullivan 𐃏🇺🇸 (@Conaw) February 19, 2021

So when you embark on a new project (or a larger task), write out in detail what you are going to do and how to do it. That way you can see if there is something you should do differently, like perhaps doing another task first that will make 5 other tasks go away.

The great part of writing it out is that it forces you to think clearly about what you are doing. You probably think you have a clear idea about what you are doing, but once you start writing, you’ll likely find it is not so clear after all. Here’s what David Perell analogy about writing:

Your favorite writers don’t walk around with perfect ideas in their head.

Their minds are as messy as yours.

But by writing, they separate good ideas from bad ones and clarify the best ones. pic.twitter.com/xjSM5QEjey — David Perell (@david_perell) July 17, 2021

Writing helps you clarify you work and see better ways of doing it. By writing out in details before you start you’ll spend a little extra time on the front end but you’ll  save time on the back end.