The Counterintuitive Secret to Shipping Better Articles Faster

Transcript

1. The Counterintuitive Secret to
   Shipping Better Articles Faster
   (Spoilers: it’s not “work harder.”)
   Sam Julien
   

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2. The “Ultimate Guide” Trap
   

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3. “I’m going to start blogging!”
   

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5. Either you’ll ship it or abandon it, but either way…
   

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7. …and whether or not it’s successful…
   

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9. How can I consistently create useful, practical
   content without getting burned out? 🤔
   

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10. @samjulien
    Sam Julien
    samjulien.com
    Manager of Developer Relations at Auth0
    Getting Started in Developer Relations & Guide to Tiny Experiments
    Thinkster & egghead
    @samjulien
    Developer Microskills Newsletter
    

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11. Top Take-Aways 🥡
    The value of a systematic approach to content
    The secret to building any new skill
    Practical tips on building your content system
    

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12. Consistent Small Wins: The Secret
    to Building Any New Skill
    

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13. Creating Content as a Developer
    Overwhelming to know what to create
    Difficult to cross things off the list
    Never-ending cycle
    

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15. Don’t think of content (or any other skill you’re
    building) as a dictionary to memorize. 📕
    

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16. Think like an explorer. 🗺
    

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18. Wandering vs Exploring
    

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19. You make less progress wandering aimlessly.
    

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20. One reason for this is that we’re programmed to
    seek comfort and familiarity.
    

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21. Comfort is the enemy of growth.
    

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23. ⚠ Comfort !== Self Care!
    

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24. Predictable and repeatable growth
    

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25. What causes us to grow?
    

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26. We grow by doing challenging things
    quickly and getting feedback.
    

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27. We grow by doing challenging things
    quickly and getting feedback.
    

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28. Doing Challenging Things Quickly
    Trackable
    Measurable
    Production-Focused
    

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29. We grow by doing challenging things
    quickly and getting feedback.
    

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30. Getting Feedback
    Learning in Groups
    Learning in Public
    Does it work?
    

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31. Getting Feedback
    Learning in Groups
    Learning in Public
    Does it work?
    

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32. Build Your Content System
    

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34. Creating content is hard! 😫
    

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36. Gartner Hype Cycle
    

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37. @samjulien
    “You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall
    to the level of your systems.”
    James Clear, Atomic Habits
    

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38. @samjulien
    Systems > Motivation
    

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39. @samjulien
    

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40. @samjulien
    Build a small but complete system.
    Create
    Draft
    Promote
    Publish
    Garden
    

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41. @samjulien
    Draft
    Gathering notes
    Creating an outline
    First draft
    

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42. @samjulien
    Build a small but complete system.
    Create
    Draft
    Promote
    Publish
    Garden
    

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43. @samjulien
    Create
    Writing/Recording
    Adding images
    Code samples
    

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44. @samjulien
    Build a small but complete system.
    Create
    Draft
    Promote
    Publish
    Garden
    

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45. @samjulien
    Publish
    Publishing on your site
    Adding social images
    Cross-posting
    

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46. @samjulien
    Build a small but complete system.
    Create
    Draft
    Promote
    Publish
    Garden
    

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47. @samjulien
    Promote
    Twitter threads
    Forums & Chat Groups
    Talks
    

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48. @samjulien
    Build a small but complete system.
    Create
    Draft
    Promote
    Publish
    Garden
    

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49. @samjulien
    Garden
    Update over time
    Maintain & Correct
    Cross-link
    

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50. @samjulien
    Build a small but complete system.
    Create
    Draft
    Promote
    Publish
    Garden
    

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52. Tips for Building an Effective
    Content System
    

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53. @samjulien
    Build a small but complete system.
    Create
    Draft
    Promote
    Publish
    Garden
    

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54. @samjulien
    Build a small but complete system.
    Create
    Draft
    Promote
    Publish
    Garden
    Creation Phase
    

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55. Three Tools 🧰
    Scratchpad, task manager, knowledge system
    

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56. “Heavy lift” 🏋 vs “slow burn” 🔥
    

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57. Scratch Pad 🗒
    Eliminate the distraction of figuring out where to jot something down.
    Examples: Notepad++, Google Docs, Drafts
    Look for: speed, ease of use, ability to export
    

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58. Knowledge Base 🧠
    Slow burn your drafts and link your ideas together.
    Examples: Evernote, Roam, Notion, Obsidian
    Look for: cross-linking, collections, multimedia
    

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59. Task Manager 📋
    Ship things faster by determining the next action and context for a project.
    Examples: OmniFocus, Things, Google Keep
    Look for: works with your brain, ability to add context/tags
    

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60. Three Tips 🤔
    

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61. Tip 1: In the beginning, move fast to
    define your process. 👟
    

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62. We grow by doing challenging things
    quickly and getting feedback.
    

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63. The learning is in the speed of action.
    

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64. Do Tiny Experiments: run small
    articles through the whole process. 🧪
    

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65. Tip 2: Start with what you know. 🤔
    

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66. Isolate the skill of learning to ship.
    

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67. Stuck? Try the TIL format. 💡
    

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68. The TIL Format 💡
    I. Intro: 2 or 3 sentences describing the problem you had.
    
    II. Body: A few sentences describing the solution and how you got there.
    
    III. Final solution: The finished code someone can copy and paste.
    
    IV. Conclusion: 1 or 2 sentences re-capping the problem and solution with
    a link to your Twitter or a shout-out to your newsletter at the end.
    

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69. Tip 3: Don’t over-engineer too quickly. ⚠
    

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70. It’s not a failure, it’s a test!
    

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71. @samjulien
    Build a small but complete system.
    Create
    Draft
    Promote
    Publish
    Garden
    

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72. @samjulien
    Build a small but complete system.
    Create
    Draft
    Promote
    Publish
    Garden
    Post-Publication
    Phase
    

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73. Tip 1: Every piece of content
    has a price tag. 💵
    

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74. Plan to spend equal time
    promoting and maintaining. 🔈
    

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75. Tip 2: Provide direct value on
    each platform. 🔗
    

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76. What’s their frame of mind?
    What are people looking for?
    How can you provide value on the spot?
    Tip 2: Provide direct value on each platform. 🔗
    

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78. Tip 3: Be patient. ⏱
    

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80. Let’s Review
    

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81. Quick Recap: The Need for Consistency
    Think like an explorer
    Action + Speed + Feedback = Growth
    Systems > Motivation
    

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82. Quick Recap: Tools
    Scratchpad
    Knowledge base
    Task manager
    

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83. Quick Recap: Creation Phase
    Move fast and scope small
    Don’t over-engineer too fast
    Start with what you know
    

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84. Quick Recap: Post-Publication Phase
    All content has a price tag
    Be patient
    Provide direct value
    

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85. samj.im/shipping-talk
    @samjulien
    

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86. samj.im/shipping-talk
    Thank you!
    @samjulien
    

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