Writing for Yourself, Thriving in Public

Folks often ask me why I write blog posts and share code on GitHub, even if I don't want others to use it in production.

The answer:

It saves future me time.

The same goes for writing articles about important concepts or management thoughts. Though in the moment it's often harder, long term it's easier and saves me time to have distilled these things down into articles that I can share first and use as the springboard for discussion.

When it comes to code, I rarely need to copy entire blocks, but interesting snippets can help me remember how to solve analogous problems and apply them to new situations.

A great thing to remember if you're nervous is that there is so much other content out there that there's a massive chance that you'll shout into the void and no one will hear it, or care.

So go ahead and shout into the void for future you.

Remember, the point of writing all this can just be for you, and happen to be public.

Sharing doesn't have to be for others. It's a way of documenting your own experiences and insights, ensuring that your hard-earned knowledge isn't lost in the sands of time.

It may also surprise you to learn that some of the things you publish actually does help someone else. Maybe even a lot of people. Depending on the community you're apart of it may become an important piece of educating folks.

It may also end up landing you an interesting opportunity.

While some folks make a point of not using public code or writing as part of their hiring process, I know many folks (myself included) do consider it. It's not the sole factor, but it makes it easier to differentiate, and is something I consider valuable.

It can also help you to find your group. If you're writing about things, folks are more likely to contact you about their interest or work on the topic.

So again, save yourself some time, and write in public.