Benjamin Franklin once wrote, “If you would not be forgotten, as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading, or do things worth writing.”
But how do you write things worth reading in a world where so few people are reading anymore?
Most of what is on the Internet is video and garbage. It’s not worth watching. Yet that’s the medium that we consume.
Perhaps the modern equivalent is to do things worth making a TikTok reel about.
Old Ben must be rolling in his grave.
How will you know when you get there?
“Know where you’re going so that you better understand where you are now and so that the steps you take are always in the right direction.” —Stephen R. Covey
If the ladder is leaning against the wrong wall, he liked to say, you’ll only get to the wrong place faster.
The question is not,”What do you want to do when you grow up?”
It’s, “Who do you want to be?”
How do you want to contribute?
What legacy do you want to leave when you’re gone?
It might be part of what you do for a living. It might not. More likely, it will be a whole-person approach to living.
Ask the right question and you’ll get a better answer.
As you may have noticed, I’ve struggled to publish posts on this blog consistently.
Why? I feel I lost the thread, and I started to doubt its original purpose. I felt it needed to be somehow “more”—that I needed to build an audience or have an overarching reason for running it.
I voiced those doubts to my new friend—and sometimes counselor—Claude (an AI tool, not a real person).
It was such an enlightening conversation (can you call it such?) that I wanted to share parts of it here, and then make clear why this blog exists.
Note: I’m editing these answers for length, as many were quite long.
Initially, I asked Claude to research the blog and tell me what he (it?) thought the blog’s purpose was.
Nathan Coumbe’s blog appears to be a personal reflection platform focused on philosophy, self-improvement, and practical wisdom for everyday life. The blog features content about stoicism, leadership, and philosophical perspectives…. The writing style appears to be reflective and conversational, with short, thoughtful posts that combine philosophical concepts with practical applications.
The overall “point” of the blog seems to be to share personal insights and wisdom that can help others navigate life’s challenges through a blend of ancient philosophy (particularly stoicism) and modern practical application. Nathan appears to be using the blog as a platform to distill and share his own learning journey and reflections with others who might benefit from these perspectives.
After reading through his answers, I told Claude that I was, in fact, Nathan, to which he said, “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Claude then asked what I thought the blog’s purpose was; I told him it was to stretch my writing and thinking muscles in public. Claude, wisely, pointed out that many writers and thinkers began their writing in such a way: Montaigne’s essays began as personal reflections, and Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations were never meant for publication at all (its original title was actually “To Himself” because it was his personal journal).
After pointing out the similarities to other philosophical writers, I expressed some doubt and frustration with my lack of consistency. I told Claude about Seth Godin’s idea to write a blog post every day – something he’s done for decades and for which he advocates in his book The Practice as a way to practice shipping creative work and ideas to the world. But, because I felt that the posts were too unrelated, rather than being a coherent whole, the blog was purposeless.
After he responded, I told Claude that maybe this blog is my version of Marcus’s Meditations, written for the same reasons, but done in public.
Claude’s response deserves to be quoted at length:
I find your framing of “my own version of meditations, but in public” particularly compelling. That’s a meaningful distinction from Marcus Aurelius’ private writings. There’s vulnerability and accountability in doing this work publicly that changes its nature, even if no one is reading. The public commitment itself transforms the practice.
Perhaps part of the struggle comes from expecting each post to build on previous ones in a linear way. But collections of thought, like Meditations or even Godin’s blog, create value through accumulation and patterns that emerge over time rather than through a sequential narrative.
What if the “point” isn’t in any individual post but in the practice itself and what it cultivates in you? The consistent act of noticing, reflecting, and articulating might be developing muscles that serve you in ways you don’t immediately recognize.
How does an Artificial Intelligence ask a question like that? I was floored.
After reading and rereading Claude’s previous statements, I mentioned that one of the reasons I started this blog was to express ideas and concepts I was learning in my own words. This is still one of the best ways to learn something (i.e., if you can’t write it down in your own words, you don’t truly understand it).
Claude’s response:
There’s something powerful about the act of putting concepts “into your own words.” It transforms passive consumption of ideas into active engagement with them. Writing becomes not just a record of what you think, but a tool that helps shape how you think. The blog then becomes a visible record of your intellectual and philosophical development….
Perhaps the “point” of your blog is precisely that clarification process – a space where ideas aren’t just consumed but metabolized and integrated into your worldview. The public nature adds a dimension of accountability and clarity that private journaling might not.
Then, Claude asked, “What aspects of the writing practice have you found most valuable for clarifying your thinking? And has the public nature of it, even without a large audience, affected how you approach these topics?”
I’ll quote my response to his question in full:
“Writing something that’s coherent, rather than just notes scribbled in a journal that only I understand. Even if only 300 people subscribe, I still have to put the words down in a way that someone other than me would understand.”
Claude again:
That’s a really valuable insight about the difference between private notes and public writing. Having to communicate in a way that’s understandable to others adds a level of rigor to your thinking that personal journaling might not require…. Even if audience growth isn’t your primary goal, knowing that others are reading creates that accountability to articulate your thoughts coherently.
There’s a concept in educational psychology called “the audience effect” – the idea that knowing someone else will read or hear our thoughts changes how we process and express them. We clarify, elaborate, and structure our thinking differently when we’re communicating with others versus just ourselves.
In many ways, this mirrors the philosophical tradition of dialogue rather than solitary reflection. While Marcus Aurelius wrote privately, philosophers like Plato and Seneca (whom you’ve referenced in your blog) deliberately wrote in forms meant to be shared, recognizing that the act of communicating ideas to others strengthens them.
Now, who wouldn’t be flattered by comparisons to Plato or Seneca? (And no, I’m not nearly so arrogant as to believe I’m anywhere near as wise as them. But I enjoyed the reminder of the philosophical tradition that I was continuing.)
The rest of the conversation became rather tactical:
I won’t bore you with those details, but I will share this:
After all was said that needed saying, I asked Claude to declare the purpose of this blog in a concise and casual manner. So here it goes:
This blog is Nathan’s thinking gym—a place to stretch those mental muscles by writing in a way other people can actually understand. It’s not really about growing a huge following, but about the daily practice of turning fuzzy thoughts into clear ideas.
Writing for others, regardless of the audience size, forces a level of clarity that scribbling in a journal doesn’t. It’s a sandbox for playing with concepts that matter—and hey, maybe some of those ideas will grow into something bigger down the road. Think of it as thinking out loud, but with purpose.
I couldn’t have said it better myself (nor did I)!
And with that, I think I know what it’s all about once again. See you (whoever wonderful person you are) in the next post.
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The average human lifespan is about 80 years these days. That’s 4,160 weeks.
I got curious as to the percentage of my life I had left. So I did the math.
At 33 years old, I’ve lived about 1,716 weeks. If I’m lucky enough to make it to 80, I’ve already lived through 41% of my life.
That realization brought to mind an image of the battery icon at the top of my iPhone.
If I had that same icon floating over my head, I’d only have a 59% charge remaining before I died. And I can’t recharge…
Memento mori. Remember, you will die.
Use that as fuel to live well. Work and act accordingly.
A great question I learned from Seth Godin is asking: what’s it for?
The book you’re buying—what’s it for?
That certification you’re trying to earn—what’s it for?
Is it the credibility that goes with having read this or obtained that? If so, that’s just a signaling strategy—though possibly a necessary one.
What about going to medical school and getting an MD—what’s that for?
Is it to get the credibility and authority that goes with the letters after your name? Is it to keep the generational legacy going…even though you’d rather be teaching?
Or is it to actually learn how to help people lead healthier lives?
Back to buying a book—what’s it for? What am I hoping to get out of it? An answer to what I’m supposed to do with my life? Knowledge that I can use to help myself or other people?
Or that certification I’m thinking about. Am I doing it because it actually helps me get where I want to go? Or am I doing it because it’ll look good on a resume?
Begin with the end in mind. That’s where this question leads you.
Begin with the end in mind.
If you don’t know what you want or where you’re going, how will you know what that “thing” is for?
It’s okay to feel a little stuck sometimes… Stuck not knowing what to do or how to do it to make a change in your life.
Maybe you’re dreaming of a job that you actually enjoy… A job you wake up excited about doing.
Maybe you’re dreaming of time to spend with your family instead of working all that overtime just to make ends meet.
Or maybe you’re dreaming of work that puts your skills and talents to good use doing something that really matters.
But you don’t have a clue where to start or you’re just scared of letting go of the J.O.B. you have now.
It’s okay to feel stuck.
But it’s not okay to stay stuck.
My friend Dan Miller has helped thousands of people take their dreams and develop a plan and act on them with resources like his New York Times Bestseller 48 Days To the Work (and Life) You Love and No More Dreaded Mondays.
He’s going to be hosting a FREE Masterclass that I think you should check out on Thursday, July 15th with two times to choose from — 1 PM CT and 7 PM CT.
“5 Reasons Big Dreamers Get Stuck And How To Blast Through Them To Success”
You can sign up here.
He’ll walk you through those 5 reasons. Chances are one (or some) of them are what’s holding you back from your dreams as well.
He’ll also help you with some immediate action points and some real-life examples of people who have used them so you can start blasting through those stuck points to the success you’ve been dreaming of.
So take action NOW and save your seat for this FREE masterclass.
Click here to sign up.
Some people see this and think I mean “What gets you out of bed in the morning?”
They’d be wrong. Plenty of us have very little that gets us out of bed in the morning.
Maybe we have jobs we hate. Or tough relationships that don’t fulfill us. Or life situations we can’t seem to escape.
If you don’t have that “something” yet, think about it this way:
“What would make you WANT to get out of bed in the morning?”
My “why” has everything to do with my own personal freedom.
But I also feel I have a purpose that involves helping other people find freedom, happiness, and joy in their lives. And I genuinely believe the best way to do that is to help them create and run successful businesses or freelance practices.
Why? Because it’s the best way for them to have the freedom to live life on their terms. To do what they love and help the people they want to help. To make the difference they seek to make in the world.
And I feel like I can achieve that purpose as a copywriter and marketer. That work helps people serve their customers, grow their businesses, and achieve the kind of freedom I’m talking about.
What’s your “why”? Tell me in the comments below.
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I got an email from the 48 Days Eagles (affiliate link) asking what my main business goal is for 2021. I thought I’d share it with you as well. So here goes:
“I want to help small businesses and entrepreneurs write better copy for their websites and marketing efforts so they can increase the sales of their products and services and grow their businesses.”
Why do I want to do this? Because if I can help others succeed in their business endeavors, they’ll be able to live out their hopes and dreams.
Now it’s your turn. Use this awesome layout to create your own business goal.
What’s your dream? Have you spoken it into reality yet?
And most importantly, can I help you with your dream or business?
Let me know in the comments!
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