“The skill of writing is to create a context in which other people can think”
— Edwin Schlossberg
Thesis
As you peruse, you’ll notice that this isn’t your average blog. Full essays are rare. Instead, connected atomic ideas are the norm. This writing style goes by many names - evergreen, zettelkasten, and second brain are a few. We prefer digital garden.
We chose this format because we believe that the chronological blog is an artifact of the past. Powerful ideas stay relevant over time. Most platforms bury authors work regardless of whether they’re still fertile. This platform is a joyful subversion of that.
Here’s a visual description of a digital garden by the talented Maggie Appleton: digital-garden.webp
How do we write?
We each write slightly differently but are shaped nonetheless by this medium. You’ll notice two types of writing - notes and pieces. Notes are smaller and more atomic. They tend to cover one idea and are the building blocks for our full-fledged writing and thinking. They’re meant to be debuggable and let us put signposts in the ground on what we’re learning. Pieces on the other hand, are whole ecosystems in and of themselves. Each piece likely builds on many notes and aims to fully develop an idea.
Each piece or note can be in three different stages. When we have new thoughts, we plant seeds. They allow us to start writing, and get something in public quickly. As we nurture, revise and update those thoughts, they quickly become saplings, full of connections but not fully finished. Finally, as our writing becomes ever-more polished, it becomes evergreen. These notes are the bedrocks of our thinking and the platform.
Again from Maggie Appleton: growth.webp
Who am I?
My name is Grant.
Onwards and upwards!
Hope you enjoy this writing, if for no other reason than the different approach. This website is very much a work in progress and I’d love to hear from you. Reach out to TODO .
p.s. Before you leave, check out the people who inspired this website. They’ve expanded the way we think about learning & writing. We know that if you enjoy our garden you’ll certainly enjoy theirs.