10 Things I Learned So Far Posting on NotePD.com

At the time of this writing, I'm currently on a 8 day streak of posting idea lists to this website. I figure now is a good time to share what I've learned during the process of uploading daily ideas lists for a little over a week now.

If I reach my short term goal of uploading daily idea lists for the entire month of May, I'll post an update of anything else I've learned.

1. You Never Know Which Posts Become Popular

There were a couple of idea lists I've written which I though were really great. I felt like I really poured my soul into them... only to barely get any attention. I've also written lists which I thought were only okay which really caught on (relatively)!

The main takeaway I got from this is that you're not always the best judge of your own work and need feedback to determine what really resonates with people.

2. Writing for an Audience Is Different From Writing Only for Myself

I've been keeping notebooks full of idea lists since February 2021. When I heard @JamesAltucher created NotePD.com, I thought this was the perfect way to put my backlog of ideas to use! I quickly realized that not every list I wrote was suitable for a general audience.

Many of my lists were either too personal for me to share with the public, or were just streams of consciousness that were only amusing to me. I had to tweak my idea lists to make them less personal and create original idea lists that were written with an audience in mind.

3. It’s Surprisingly Difficult Coming up With Unique and Interesting Ideas

While flipping through my idea notebooks, I noticed that I tended to come up with similar ideas and themes over and over again. When I created idea lists for myself, I often wrote something just so I could tell myself that I created an idea list that day.

Now that I'm also writing lists with an audience in mind, I am more conscious about creating something that isn't just a last week's list worded slightly differently. I want someone who chooses to follow me to think, "I didn't consider this!" when they read a new list.

If becoming an "Idea Machine" is a superpower, then I'm still a civilian trying to dodge falling debris while The Avengers defend Manhattan from Thanos.

4. To My Shock, People Find My Ramblings Interesting

In the short time I've been on NotePD, I already have a small following, a decent amount of engagement, and thousands of views on my posts. I say this with the understand that I'm still a small fish in this pond of course. I am humbled to know that folks not only find my lists interesting, but look forward to my future lists as well.

5. Since I Seem to Have Some Momentum, I Should Get Around to Completing My Profile

I admit it's a little fun to be the faceless man of mystery coming up with a bunch of strange ideas.

I think if I want to ride this train further, I need to establish an identity so I can take the ideas I'm creating and pivot to something else.

6. I’ve Been Having Fun Doing This

At least for the time being, creating lists for NotePD has been my main source of entertainment. The time I would've used towards mindless web browsing or gaming is now used to come up with ideas and create lists for the site.

7. I Need to Engage With Other Users’ Posts More

There are many fantastic creators in this community, and I can now more fully appreciate the effort and creativity that goes into the content they post here.

If liking a post and leaving a comment can encourage them just enough to trudge through creating tomorrow's list, then I should do it. It only takes a minute to do!

8. I Want to Participate in More Challenges on the Site

I think this is a good way for me to engage with the wider community of NotePD as well as challenge myself to think differently about a topic I previously didn't consider.

9. I Also Want to Create Challenges for Other Users to Participate In

I believe that people pooling their ideas and efforts together for a singular purpose is one of the purest examples of why the Internet was created. If I can create a challenge that inspires people to share their insights and wisdom, that would be absolutely exhilarating!

10. I Want to See Where This Journey Takes Me

Maybe I'm being overly optimistic, but I believe NotePD.com is the beginning of something huge in terms of communication. It's truly rare to find a website these days that tries to inspire the best from it's users.

I also believe that NotePd has the potential to bring many opportunities to dedicated users. Maybe some of those opportunities are even there for me. Start of a new career? Freelance business? Book? Who knows?

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