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
2. The “Ultimate Guide” Trap
3. “I’m going to start blogging!”
5. Either you’ll ship it or abandon it, but either way…
7. …and whether or not it’s successful…
9. How can I consistently create useful, practical content without getting burned out? 🤔
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
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
12. Consistent Small Wins: The Secret to Building Any New Skill
13. Creating Content as a Developer Overwhelming to know what to create Difficult to cross things off the list Never-ending cycle
15. Don’t think of content (or any other skill you’re building) as a dictionary to memorize. 📕
16. Think like an explorer. 🗺
18. Wandering vs Exploring
19. You make less progress wandering aimlessly.
20. One reason for this is that we’re programmed to seek comfort and familiarity.
21. Comfort is the enemy of growth.
23. ⚠ Comfort !== Self Care!
24. Predictable and repeatable growth
25. What causes us to grow?
26. We grow by doing challenging things quickly and getting feedback.
27. We grow by doing challenging things quickly and getting feedback.
28. Doing Challenging Things Quickly Trackable Measurable Production-Focused
29. We grow by doing challenging things quickly and getting feedback.
30. Getting Feedback Learning in Groups Learning in Public Does it work?
31. Getting Feedback Learning in Groups Learning in Public Does it work?
32. Build Your Content System
34. Creating content is hard! 😫
36. Gartner Hype Cycle
37. @samjulien “You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.” James Clear, Atomic Habits
38. @samjulien Systems > Motivation
39. @samjulien
40. @samjulien Build a small but complete system. Create Draft Promote Publish Garden
41. @samjulien Draft Gathering notes Creating an outline First draft
42. @samjulien Build a small but complete system. Create Draft Promote Publish Garden
43. @samjulien Create Writing/Recording Adding images Code samples
44. @samjulien Build a small but complete system. Create Draft Promote Publish Garden
45. @samjulien Publish Publishing on your site Adding social images Cross-posting
46. @samjulien Build a small but complete system. Create Draft Promote Publish Garden
47. @samjulien Promote Twitter threads Forums & Chat Groups Talks
48. @samjulien Build a small but complete system. Create Draft Promote Publish Garden
49. @samjulien Garden Update over time Maintain & Correct Cross-link
50. @samjulien Build a small but complete system. Create Draft Promote Publish Garden
52. Tips for Building an Effective Content System
53. @samjulien Build a small but complete system. Create Draft Promote Publish Garden
54. @samjulien Build a small but complete system. Create Draft Promote Publish Garden Creation Phase
55. Three Tools 🧰 Scratchpad, task manager, knowledge system
56. “Heavy lift” 🏋 vs “slow burn” 🔥
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
58. Knowledge Base 🧠 Slow burn your drafts and link your ideas together. Examples: Evernote, Roam, Notion, Obsidian Look for: cross-linking, collections, multimedia
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
60. Three Tips 🤔
61. Tip 1: In the beginning, move fast to define your process. 👟
62. We grow by doing challenging things quickly and getting feedback.
63. The learning is in the speed of action.
64. Do Tiny Experiments: run small articles through the whole process. 🧪
65. Tip 2: Start with what you know. 🤔
66. Isolate the skill of learning to ship.
67. Stuck? Try the TIL format. 💡
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.
69. Tip 3: Don’t over-engineer too quickly. ⚠
70. It’s not a failure, it’s a test!
71. @samjulien Build a small but complete system. Create Draft Promote Publish Garden
72. @samjulien Build a small but complete system. Create Draft Promote Publish Garden Post-Publication Phase
73. Tip 1: Every piece of content has a price tag. 💵
74. Plan to spend equal time promoting and maintaining. 🔈
75. Tip 2: Provide direct value on each platform. 🔗
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. 🔗
78. Tip 3: Be patient. ⏱
80. Let’s Review
81. Quick Recap: The Need for Consistency Think like an explorer Action + Speed + Feedback = Growth Systems > Motivation
82. Quick Recap: Tools Scratchpad Knowledge base Task manager
83. Quick Recap: Creation Phase Move fast and scope small Don’t over-engineer too fast Start with what you know
84. Quick Recap: Post-Publication Phase All content has a price tag Be patient Provide direct value
85. samj.im/shipping-talk @samjulien
86. samj.im/shipping-talk Thank you! @samjulien