Musings Of Sporring - Issue #42

December 27, 2021

Hi again!

Last newsletter for the year, holiday issue. It's a different content this time as I want to change things up a bit.

The name of my newsletter will change to Taking Notes

And heading into 2022 I will still publish this newsletter but I also plan to add a subscription version of it, but not until March-April. The subscribed readers will get a much more in-depth newsletter while this one will still be free and look quite the same.

As a content creator, I need to monetize my creative output, and I hope you all will join me on that ride too. I will let you know when I plan to go live with that newsletter.

So Happy New Year and all that jazz! :)

Facts about my writing

I started my journey as an online writer on Medium on the 16th of July 2020. That is:

- 519 days

- 74 weeks

- 17 months

During that time I have published 180 articles, that's one article every third day! Plus 42 Newsletters! (This one included)#Consistency #Discipline #DigitalWriting #tweet100 

My Most Read Article & Top 4 Articles All Time

Notetaking in 2021, opened up my connections to the writers' community on Twitter. And it's also my most profitable one. Did I know this one would be the one? No, but I knew in my gut that it was a good article.

One year ago, I published an article entitled “Notetaking In 2020”, and I decided it was time to do a follow-up on that now. Some things have changed, and others haven’t. Although I presented some…

Books I Recommend

By Austin Kleon

Steal like an artist is what I would say, essential reading for whatever your creativity entails. In this book, Kleon lists ten things nobody told you about being creative. The book has given me some thoughts about my own creativity and how I could think and be even more creative. Sure the book can be a bit provocative, and it also has its advisories. But keeping an open mind, you should read this tine book, and maybe you will find a reason to start your own creative journey.

I gave it 5 stars in my review on Goodreads.

By James Clear

If you’re having trouble changing your habits, the problem isn’t you. The problem is your system. Bad habits repeat themselves again and again not because you don’t want to change, but because you have the wrong system for change. You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems. Here, you’ll get a proven system that can take you to new heights.

What I love about Clear’s book is that it leads us to rethink our habits, good and bad, and how they form us as humans. It also teaches us how to:

  • Make time for new habits

  • Overcome lack of motivation

  • Adjust your environment to make success easier to reach

  • Get back on track when you are derailed

A book that should be in every library.

I gave it 5 stars on Goodreads.

Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business

By Charles Duhigg

Another important book about habits.

“Change might not be fast and it isn’t always easy. But with time and effort, almost any habit can be reshaped.”

The power of habit is a great book, and you need to read it. The reason it’s such a good book is that it uses research to explain how habits are formed and changed. Everyone knows someone who was out of shape or was a smoker and then, in what appeared as if almost overnight, changed themselves in a short period of time. How did they do that? When we look into how our habits shape our time, both at work and home, we are sometimes locked into what and how we do things. Habits aren’t destiny. As Charles Duhigg shows, we can transform our businesses, communities, and lives by harnessing this new science.

I gave it 5 stars in my review on Goodreads.

By Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman

My deep interest in philosophy have lead me to read various books on the subject. A particular interest of mine is Stoicism, so this book is leading me deeper into that world. This book is one I will return to over and over. In a way, like a vitamin injection in your life, and as I have started to meditate every day for 10 minutes every morning, this was a great and short meditation to bring with me moving forward.

How does this help me?

  • It helps me have a positive attitude every day, waking up

  • It helps me see a new perspective on every moment.

  • It helps me keep an open mind and open for new wisdom.

  • It helps me see the positive instead of looking for the negative in life.

  • It’s uplifting.

Morden Stoic Philosophy is a mix of practical and Wisdom that attracts many people today. I find Stoicism something that I’ll adapt more and more into my daily schedule. I think many people in our stressed and hard world would benefit from adding to their own library.

I gave it 5 stars in my review on Goodreads.

How to beat the game of capturing and keeping attention.

Nicolas Cole is one of the guys behind Ship30for30 and a well-known digital writer and creator. The art of and business of online writing is one, if not the best, books on online writing, and it's one I recommend reading if you have not yet.

Some take outs (There are too many...)

  • By writing online, you elevate yourself. And when you elevate yourself, you open new doors of opportunity.

  • The truth is, nobody, not even the most talented writers on earth, shows up to a brand-new platform, writes one single article, and experiences overnight success. There is no such thing as, “I wrote my first piece and received 10 million views.” If that’s your expectation, get it out of your head now.

  • Mastering the art of online writing is also incredibly rewarding. By learning how to use your voice, how to create your own category, and how to market yourself, your words, your books, and yourself as a brand, you will have far more leverage than 99% of writers out there.

  • I have a rule I live by, and it goes like this: “The number of hours I spend consuming should never equal or exceed the number of hours I spend creating.”

  • Part of getting started writing online means acknowledging that whatever it is you publish today will not be the single greatest thing you ever write. In fact, if it was, I’d make the argument you have an even worse problem on your hands. Instead of getting better over time, you’re going to get worse.

  • My true “recommended minimum” however is to publish something once every other week. In order to be taken seriously on the internet as an authority in your category and a leader in your industry, niche, or genre, you need to be writing and publishing new material 2x per month.

I hope you enjoyed this list, and that you find something to read here.

My Recent Articles

In a way, I come from a line of storytellers. However, my grandfathers were both journalists and were both different but masters in writing articles. My father was a scholar and priest, and his…

December 30th, 2020, I wrote an article about predictions for 2021. “Did My Predictions Come Through?” is published by Anders (Andy) Sporring in In My Own Words.

No, don’t worry, I’m not done with writing, experimenting, thinking, inventing, processing, or anything else about notes, whether it’s taking them or making them. I’m just following where it brings…

The Things I have In motion. “Looking Ahead Towards 2022” is published by Anders (Andy) Sporring in Taking Notes.

Links I Find Interesting

"Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life" - 10 Lessons Learned from the Book Inspired by my best friend @aaditsh #1 Stay active, never retire He, who abandons the things he loves & knows how to do, loses the meaning of his life.

Joe Skinner is the host and founding producer of American Masters: Creative Spark.

Ship30for30

Ship 30 for 30 is a cohort-based curriculum & daily writing challenge that teaches you how to start writing online by writing 30 Atomic Essays in 30 days.

Not The End, But....

You become a writer by writing—a lot. - Nicolas Cole