On writing

Even as a kid in secondary school, I found that the best way to learn was to write. I would listen to the teacher or lecturer in class, review any additional reading material, and then write down a short essay of what I had just learned. Putting my thoughts into coherent words and sentences forced me to understand a topic in greater detail. Consequently, when exam time arrived I wouldn’t feel the pressure to study because I would know the material well enough—even if I had written my notes one or two semesters earlier¹. Once I had a good understanding of a topic, it was unlikely that I would forget it.

Today, as a software engineer, I see the effectiveness of learning through writing on a regular basis. When an engineer designs and documents the architecture or framework of an internal product or feature, they become the point of reference for that product—regardless of their seniority. They would know the product inside-out: its implementation details and its caveats.

Writing clearly about a complex topic is deceptively hard. Often, it’s only while writing that you realize your understanding has gaps—or that some ideas were never clear to begin with. The reader doesn’t know what’s in your head and converting abstract ideas into concrete ones forces you to re-learn your ideas.

Well-written content rarely happens on the first go. Reading your work is a good first step, but when possible collect feedback from your peers. Any feedback received could help improve your article, your writing skills, or the product/feature you are writing about².

Apart from the documentation I provide to my teams and clients, for the past years, I have been summarizing books, blogs, videos, or articles that I enjoyed. Over the years, this habit turned into a personal archive of 192 notes, covering topics like web performance, technology, team management, and business.

Originally, I did not intend to share these notes publicly—they were simply part of my learning process. However, I find a lot of value in other people’s writings so I decided to take the plunge and publish my notes. My objective is to combine related notes into several longer articles that I will publish once a month. It’s a slow process but I hope that you will find my work equally interesting or valuable.

Thank you for reading. If something I wrote sparked a thought—or a disagreement—I would love to hear it.

Most articles are inspired by someone else’s work. Therefore, if you enjoyed an article I encourage you to visit the sources linked at the bottom.

¹ Anyone that knows me from my days at University, knows that there were times when I underperformed and didn’t always ace my studies. I don’t want to pretend that I was a perfect student but when I put my mind to it I found this method both fun and effective.
² In my exprience, collecting honest feedback from your peers isn’t easy and requires a healthy company culture that encourages open discussion.

Inspired by:

• Words by Paul Graham
• On the benefits of learning in public by Giles Thomas
• Atomic Habits (book) by James Clear