The Rules

When I started this website, I made myself some rules. These were based on lessons learned from many other websites (both good and bad), advice from various sources, and one previous failed attempt.

I write nearly all my posts in a word document, which doubles as an idea scratch pad. It’s a jumble of post headings, half-written articles, and notes for future pieces of writing.

I keep the following at the top of the file:

The Rules

1. One post per week, no matter what.

2. No ranting, bitching, or whining.

3. Don't be prescriptive; show what you did, rather than suggesting what others should do.

4. Realities only, no speculation. Only talk about things you did or are doing, not things you're "going to do" or intending to do. Wait until they're actually real.

5. Make sure each post gives something to the reader; useful, interesting, inspiring, funny, or informative. No jerking off about things you like or are doing or are into, unless it fulfils one of the aforementioned.

Essentially the rules boil down to imagining that I’m writing a column for a weekly magazine. It needs to be accessible, worth reading, and regular.

The rules can also be damn hard to follow. I will fully admit that many weeks I’ve been late in posting (something that wouldn’t fly with a magazine column), and haven’t always managed to stick to the other four.

But that’s ok. To paraphrase Bruce Lee, aim for perfection and you’ll hit "very good" much harder than if you’d just aimed there in the first place.

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