You might wonder where I get my ideas, inspiration, and information for my articles. You might also wonder whether I’m creating, collating, organizing, researching, or theorizing. I do all of these things.
I am very careful about what I choose to write about and the sources I use. I only write about topics that I know well, I’m passionate about, or I’m willing to learn thoroughly. If I haven’t mastered a topic through experience, knowledge acquisition, or research I do not write about it. The amount of research I do depend on the complexity of the topic. In addition, I often include my methods, ideas, and opinions.
Articles (aka posts) are the foundation of any blog. They also add support mechanisms and credibility to many websites. The quality of an author’s articles determines a blog’s popularity and ranking in search engines such as Google.
Here are my 12 article sources.
- Conscious mind – New ideas popup into my conscious mind while I’m doing completely different things like sleeping. Hence my reason for always keeping a notepad next to my bed. An article composition begins to flow after I’ve been writing for a few minutes. I get into the zone when I focus solely on purpose and not on grammar, perfection, or time.
- Subconscious mind – To take advantage of this biggest and most powerful part of our mind, I usually write articles over several days. Between writing sessions, my subconscious mind continues working on them. Then the results of this work are fed to my conscious mind at various times. This happens even after I’ve published them.
- Experiences – I have intentionally, I’d imagine, created a rather unconventional life and lifestyle. This provides me with uncommon perspectives. My interest in many of the things I write about started when I was very young, 10-12 years old.
- Events – I rely heavily on the transformative events in my life that shaped me. These include painful, scary, challenging, exciting, joyful, and victorious events.
- Books – I’ve read hundreds of books (page), including many on most of the key article categories on this site. I continually read new books as I discover them.
- Programs – I’ve attended a wide variety of self-improvement programs (article) including seminars, workshops, and classes. Some of them are quite unique.
- Contemplation – I devote a lot of energy to thinking about better ways to do things. It’s a natural and enjoyable passion. This might be considered an eccentricity. I see it as a gift, a benefit, and an advantage.
- Research – Much of my research is done to confirm or verify my ideas, propositions, and theories. I only use creditable, expert, and authority sources. And rarely rely on just one. Getting at least three sources is my usual standard.
- Learning – If I’m unfamiliar or have inadequate information about a topic, I work to understand it to the degree necessary for a credible article. If I have a great interest in a particular area, I study it until I master it.
- Discussions – I have never liked small talk. I enjoy deep discussions on key issues. I especially like one-on-one conversations. I usually present a specific topic, ask lots of questions, and listen with genuine interest. I have frequently presented the same question or group of questions to many different people, couples, groups, and organizations. I did this extensively for my books.
- College – I use the research methods, field study techniques, and rapid learning skills I learned in college.
- Corporate – I use the analytic methods and planning skills I refined while working as a corporate soldier (article).
As you’ve seen, my article sources are expansive and diverse. In practice, various combinations of them are used for nearly every article, including this one.
If you’re interested in starting your own blog or website, there are many articles on this site that can help you.