Conversation

I get now why ā€œservice journalismā€ is called that. As a writer, it’s basically unfulfilling so you genuinely have to bring a sense of service to the task to care enough to write half-decent things. You’re not learning/surprising yourself enough to make it personally fulfilling.
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The last few issues have definitely been in this category. It’s not journalism, but it is service writing. Felt I had to have a decent 101-gigwork-basics series. Regular programming on the newsletter is me figuring stuff out for myself or just having fun. Ideally both.
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Reminds me of the idea of ā€œservice coursesā€ from grad school teaching days. Teaching intro fluid mechanics or linear algebra was mildly useful as a refresher, but basically not fun. It was service work. Designing and teaching my one 600 level course otoh was a huge amount of fun.
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The age/stage-appropriate style and focus change is good. It might be an incubation phase or a period of wait and watch for the next thing a la Steve Jobs when he returned to Apple c. 1997
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A naughty infiltrant into my PFC when I was reading your reply said: temporary shmemporary 😜 Seriously, applying sex-cash in a figurative sense, the gig advice tone is just right. You can have all the fun in other things you do.