I was standing in the kitchen this morning, making coffee for myself, when I had the idea for this email. I had to stop the coffee making and go write the idea down. Here it is:
A few weeks ago, a science paper went viral on the internet. It was titled, “Consciousness as a memory system.”
The paper gives a new theory of consciousness:
We don’t experience reality directly, the paper claims. We’re not looking out through any kind of window onto the reality outside.
We don’t even experience reality in any kind of real-time but transformed way. We’re not looking at a colorful cartoon that’s generated live, based on what’s going on outside right now.
Instead, we only have conscious experiences of our memories and of our imagined memories.
What you’re really looking at, right now, is a sketchbook, full of shifting drawings and notes of things that happened some time ago, or that never happened at all.
Maybe this new theory turns out to be false or obvious. Maybe it turns out to be profound and true. I personally find it interesting because it speaks to a practical experience I keep having:
If you don’t remember it, it might as well never have happened.
That’s why I had to stop the coffee making and go write down my idea for this email.
I’ve been writing newsletter for four years.
It’s more difficult than it might seem to write a 500-600-word email like this every day.
There are lots of stops, starts, discarded sentences and paragraphs.
To make it more complicated, my best ideas don’t happen while standing at my desk and trying to work. My best ideas often happen in a dim flash, while I’m in the shower, while driving, while trying to make coffee. Sometimes entire phrases, arguments, outlines for things I want to say, names, product concepts, inspired analogies, light up in my head. A moment later, that dim flash fades away.
You’ve probably heard the advice that, if you’re trying to make a habit of writing, then take notes all the time of interesting thoughts or observations you have.
It’s good advice, so let me repeat it:
If you’re trying to make a habit of writing, then take notes all the time of the interesting thoughts or observations you have.
And then, figure out a way to organize and store those notes into something that will be useful tomorrow, a month from now, even a year from now.
Now, get ready, because you’re about to have a conscious experience of a memory of a sales pitch:
I write a daily email newsletter. Many people say it’s interesting and insightful.
Search your memory banks right now. See whether you have a conscious experience of a memory of wanting to read more of my writing. If you find the answer is yes, then click here and fill out the form that appears.