If I had more time, I’d have written a shorter letter
“Baby shoes for sale: never worn.”
Hemingway wrote this six word story on a bet.
Sometimes we see content on social media we love. Then we envy the effectiveness, brevity, conciseness, or eloquence of the piece.
We fail to consider…
- How many drafts came before it
- How long this person has been pondering this idea
- How many great thinkers this person has studied in their industry
Anybody can word-vomit out a concept on a podcast for an hour.
It takes thoughtfulness and consideration to express something complex and make it simple.
It takes time & work.
Most of all, it takes trust.
We blabber on and repeat a sentence in 3 different ways. We give more details and backstory than we need to because we fear people won’t understand us.
But, the greatest songs, poems, novels and movies never turn to the audience to explain the meaning of their story.
Nobody has to explain to you why, “Baby shoes for sale: never worn,” is devastating.
You get it because it’s simple, concise and clear.
And this is not Hemingway’s first story.
If I had more time, I’d have written a shorter newsletter.
Matt
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