Your brain works differently when you speak aloud. When stuck on a problem, most people retreat into silent thought. They read the same information repeatedly, hoping for a rare breakthrough. But silent thinking uses only part of your brain’s problem-solving machinery. When you verbalise a problem—speaking it aloud to another person—you activate language centres that… Read More »Hold My Duck: A Problem-Solving Hack
Sam Parr, who sold his newsletter The Hustle for $27 million, credited his writing success to the practice of sitting down with pen and paper, copying great writing verbatim. What musicians and artists accept as fundamental training, writers often reject as beneath them. We expect to create masterpieces without first learning to play the scales.… Read More »Copywork: The Forgotten Practice That Will Make You a Better Writer
I keep two thinking systems. The first is my mind map system for note-taking, a precise hierarchical system of organised notes with careful cross-references and indexes. It’s logical, structured and works exactly as intended. The second is a beaten-up cardboard box stuffed with random note cards. I call it my “Chaos Box.” No organization. No… Read More »The Chaos Box
When I need to find a document on my computer, I navigate through folders rather than search for it. Even though search seems more efficient. For years, I assumed this was just habit or stubbornness. I believed newer technologies like desktop search and tagging systems would eventually replace my manual organization methods. According to research… Read More »The Science of Managing Our Digital Stuff (Summary)
Reading more won’t make you remember more. I’ve finished hundreds of nonfiction books over the past decade. But the big ideas fade away as soon as I turn the last page. Sound familiar? There’s a straightforward explanation. Passive reading and rereading give us a false sense of mastery. In reality, it doesn’t push us to… Read More »The blank sheet priming method
At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Sarah Chen found herself compulsively scrolling through social media feeds between hospital shifts. What started as professional diligence soon became an overwhelming digital flood. “I couldn’t stop checking my phone,” she later told her colleagues. “Every notification felt urgent, every update seemed crucial. But the more information… Read More »The Perils of Information Hoarding
Reading scientific papers effectively is a skill that can significantly improve your academic writing and overall understanding of your field. With the right strategies, you can remember key points from every paper you read and confidently use that knowledge in your own work. Here’s how: 1. Read slowly and deliberately Focus on quality over quantity.… Read More »How to read a scientific paper
Writing and editing often go hand in hand, but your environment plays a bigger role in your success than you might think. As creatures of habit, we tend to stick to the same routines and spaces, hoping for consistent results. But when it comes to polishing your work, that consistency can backfire. Your brain craves… Read More »Change your environment for better editing
Close your eyes and picture this: An ancient Egyptian scribe, circa 3000 BCE, meticulously carving hieroglyphs into a stone tablet. Now open them and look around. You might see a student typing away on a laptop in a lecture hall, a business executive dictating notes into her smartphone, or maybe just your own scribbled reminders… Read More »The Evolution of Note-Taking from Ancient Scribes to Digital Minds
If you’ve ever conducted a systematic literature review, you know firsthand what a massive undertaking it can be. On average, it takes a team of 5 researchers more than one year to go from start to publication. That’s countless hours spent combing through hundreds of dense academic papers, struggling to identify key findings and connect… Read More »Elicit AI Review: Literature Reviews with AI