Write of Passage Weekly

Hey writers,

Welcome back to Write of Passage Weekly. Last week, you learned to notice what repeats. Today, we’re talking about the best way to find something you want to read.

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Find Your Mentor's Mentor

Everyone seems to have a reading list. Everyone seems to be throwing recommendations your way. Countless choices and voices clamor for your attention, yet very few of them are worth your time. What’s the smartest way to find the books worth reading and the films worth watching? Prioritize the recommendations from those you admire, people you want to emulate. Who are your mentor’s mentors?

Think of a mentor, someone whose taste you respect. If you wish to be more like them, look closely at what they read. Your mentor’s favorite books and films are the cultural artifacts that have shaped their taste and their perspective. If you want to follow in their footsteps, read what they have read. Those things can be a light guiding your own journey. Your mentor’s recommendation is worth more than what any “For You” algorithm could feed you. When you ask someone you admire for their recommendations, you’re inviting into your life a ready-made collection of media that can mold your taste and refine your sensibility, in the way that it has shaped your mentor’s.

Consider the Pareto Principle, commonly known as the 80/20 rule, which says that for many outcomes, roughly 80% of effects come from 20% of the causes.

• 80% of sales come from 20% of customers.
• 80% of bugs come from 20% of the code.
• 80% of crop yield comes from 20% of the land area.
• 80% of innovations are made by 20% (or less) of the population.
• 80% of the lessons you learn will come from 20% of the books you read.

Apply the Pareto Principle to your consumption habits, and it becomes clear how important it is to curate that 20%. By focusing on those books, films, or art pieces recommended by your mentors, you can guarantee that your cultural intake is optimized to help you grow into the person you want to become. (Meta doesn’t share that incentive and is happy to keep feeding you the empty 80%.)

Finding your mentor’s mentor is about filtering through an endless list of books to read or blogs to follow. It’s about finding a well-lit path that has been walked by someone whose opinion you value, offering you a richer, more meaningful learning experience. This kind of curation promises a deepening of your own taste and an expansion of your cultural horizons. So, ask your mentors for their mentors.

How I Write Podcast

Writing-First Companies Are Superior (Here’s why) | Brie Wolfson

Writing is thinking, which means it’s like lighter fluid for business growth. 

Brie has played major roles at writing-rich companies like Stripe and Figma, and her expertise on writing-first culture is now used by giants like Amazon and Basecamp. 

As she says: “Reality has a surprising amount of detail.” Writing illuminates all the interesting details worth pursuing. And as a result, companies who prioritize writing operate with impressive speed, intention, and rigor. 

If you want to learn how to do the best writing of your life, and grow your company while you’re at it, this episode is for you.

Listen Now: YouTube | Spotify | Apple

Thank you for reading Write of Passage Weekly. This week, ask someone you admire for a book recommendation.

Happy writing,

The Write of Passage Team

P.S. David published a solo How I Write episode on Paul Graham last week. Check it out (YouTube | Spotify | Apple).