Have strong opinions, loosely held

“There’s no such thing as plumber’s block, nor ditch-digger’s block, or Lyft driver’s block.”

In his 4th Akimbo podcast episode, @sethgodin posits that there’s no such thing as “writer’s block.”

Instead, we may be simply feeling… nervous. About sharing ideas that aren’t fully formed or ready for “prime time.”

And the more we write, the harder it gets.

Because writing something down means asserting something. Saying something is THIS, not THAT.

This is one of the biggest traps of writing design strategy. It can be so tempting to bury our ideas in fluff and jargon and language like “bold, but subtle” or “vibrant, but understated.”

But then we’re really not saying anything at all. It’s neutral. It’s safe.

As an old mentor used to tell me, have “strong ideas, loosely held.”

Every time we share our own assertions, we only get better. Better at sharing and better at asserting.

Because being safe may be better than being sorry…

…but it’s also better to ask forgiveness than permission.