Why Write ?

September 30, 2005 9:50am by

Terrific quote from Daniel Boorstin, who wrote 2 tomes that I really enjoyed — The Discoverers, and The Creators — over his years as Chief Librarian at the Library of Congress.

Here’s the quote:

“Daniel Boorstin, the former librarian of Congress, used to rise at 5 each morning and write for two hours before going into the office.

“I write to discover what I think,” he explained. “After all, the bars aren’t open that early.”

Mr. Boorstin’s morning sessions were even more valuable than he
realized. Writing not only clarifies what you already know; it is also an
astonishingly effective way to learn something new.”

Its so very true. When people ask me why I blog, the answer is that it helps me organize my thoughts, memorialize them, work them out.

In short, to discover what I think.

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Source:
Students Discover Economics in Its Natural State
ROBERT H. FRANK
NYT, September 29, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/29/business/29scene.html

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What's been said:

Discussions found on the web:
  1. BusinessPundit commented on Sep 30

    Why Blog?

    I agree with this. Blogging helps me discover what I think….

  2. John Bott commented on Sep 30

    Great post… especially the part about the bars not being open that early.

    Cheers,
    John

  3. I, Hans. commented on Sep 30

    Why Write ?

    The Big Picture: Why Write ?: “Daniel Boorstin, the former librarian of Congress, used to rise at 5 each morning and write for two hours before going into the office. “I write to discover what I think,” he explained.

  4. Aaron commented on Sep 30

    Barry: Another great post – I can definitely relate to Mr. Boorstin’s comment, except to add that reading the intelligent comments of others help me clarify and sharpen my own thinking by discovering what I know and what I don’t know (which is a lot)….

  5. Kevin commented on Oct 1

    So to avoid writing…move to somewhere where the bars never close.

  6. Jon H commented on Oct 1

    Hm. When did he shower and dress?

  7. The Club for Growth Blog commented on Oct 2

    Why Do Bloggers Blog?

    It helps to clarify their thinking. I agree with this blog post 100%….

  8. blog.websolvers commented on Oct 2

    Blogging for Clarity

    This post makes a great point regarding the notion that blogging helps one to clarify his/her thoughts. The exercise of writing itself forces a person to refine a stream of consciousness. I might also extend this to the clarity that…

  10. Josh commented on Jun 2

    good work…

  11. Josh commented on Jun 2

    good work…

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