Why the need to write? – Shyamal Bhat

I have often contemplated the need to put down my thoughts, especially in a blog. Isn't it enough to just have it as a journal for personal reflection? Should it be open to the world? The vulnerability that comes with it is the need to be factually correct, or rather, the fear of being ridiculed if the personal biases get found out.

The last two posts have been immensely helpful to me, as a reminder of a thought nugget, a framework borne out of experience, or an avenue for thought experiments. The fact that it is published helps me easily refer to it from anywhere in the world and from any device. It also helps me to remind myself of the thought journey; to use some of the wisdom acquired in the past to be applied to problems in the future, lest I forget.

There is also another aspect to it that is hardly ever mentioned by anyone. The fact that following one's own advice is always the hardest and most ignored.

If photographs are the visual representation of a point in time, I believe writing is a representation of thought at that particular time. Thought could be seen as a process, outcome, or maturity. The story of the thought would be complete only when looking backwards (and in the future).