Finding voice

Improve your thinking to avert bad decisions is a 100th post published on my website, and what better way to celebrate it than to ponder on how my writing has developed over the last five years.

In 2016 I decided to improve my writing, which was mostly a product of my academic and engineering training. I was used to write in two modes: dull, technical and specific, or convoluted, verbose, and pedantic.

Each of these writing modes served their role in their respective context, but weren't ideal choice for broader communication. So I decided to start blogging. It was more difficult than I expected, and first posts took me hours – sometimes even days – as I wrestled with my habits and insecurities.  

Reflecting upon it, I notice that I've been searching for my own voice and was going through the process of liberating myself from self-imposed limitation of speaking through others.

Writing and publishing at three different websites – my own, The Lean Presentation, and Playing Lean – allowed me to play and experiment with different styles and expectations.

For example, at now defunct The Lean Presentation the format was akin to how-to with an instructional video. I would select an interesting video from YouTube or Vimeo, and then write a summary, commentary, and leads for further study.

In total, I've written 22 such posts. After the website went down, I've recreated most of the posts I've written. You can find them listed at https://www.pesec.no/the-lean-presentation.

At Playing Lean the tone was a combination of playful, but not gimmicky, and educational. I used a lot of images, more colourful language, and attempted to be humorous. This was also my first encounter in trying to inspire the reader to take action, and not merely receive my great intellect, hoping they become slightly better.

By June 2020, I've published 15 post at Playing Lean, and my most insignificant and trivial piece persists as the most visited one: https://www.playinglean.com/blogs/playing-lean-blog/132681859-blast-from-the-past-facemash.

Looking back at what I've published on my blog, I realise that's maybe just 10% of what I've written in the last five years. Most of my written word is for client work, personal correspondence (what can I say, except that I like long-form emails), and research (which ought to be shared, but isn't prioritised).

Either way, I'm content with how my written voice is congruent with whom I am, and how it evolves as I do. Looking forward to revisiting this piece in five years.

Upcoming growth opportunities with Bruno:

90-day coaching in Lean Experimentation: I’ll share best practices and help you design, conduct, and learn from your Lean experiments with a weekly call and unrestricted email. This is not a regular offering of mine, it’s intended to help you adjust to rapidly changing customer demands during these times. I have limited slots available, write me at bruno@pesec.no to sign up: €4,200.

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