The Pain of a Blank Page (and how to fix it)
How Tiago Forte’s “Intermediate Packets” Can Revolutionize Your Content Creation Process
Have you ever found yourself staring at a blank page, with nothing but a cursor flashing impatiently at you and feeling utterly demoralized by the prospect of starting from scratch?
You're not alone.
Many content creators struggle with this problem.
But what if there was a way to make the process of creating content much easier?
Enter the concept of IPs "Intermediate Packets".
"Intermediate Packets", is the topic of chapter 7 from the book “Building a Second Brain (affiliate link)” by Tiago Forte. In the chapter, Tiago suggests that notes and other forms of knowledge can be reused and combined as building blocks for creativity.
This innovative idea can drastically transform your content creation process and alleviate the pain of starting anew each time.
The idea might sound novel, but in practice, it's a life-saver and you’re probably already using a form of reusable, intermediate packets at the moment - perhaps unintentionally though.
Recycling Your Hard Work
By using notes from your previous projects, you can create reusable resources that can serve as input for other creative projects. This requires being intentional with how and where you keep your research notes, thoughts and ideas.
Tiago’s book highlighted to me that I have been treating my content creation process as an isolated project. Where all the research and notes are seen as disposable information, to be forgotten once the article or video is completed.
When instead, I could be viewing that hard work as individual bread-crumbs, that I can sprinkle into other projects to help guide the way.
Reimagining the Creative Process
By following the concepts of C.O.D.E from in Tiago’s book “Building a Second Brain (affiliate link)”, I’ve been able to reimagine my writing process for content creation in the form of a digital commonplace book, that I’ve chosen to setup in Notion (as shared in the previous articles from this month’s series).
My research, ideas, thoughts and notes can start life in my commonplace book, where they can exist as standalone nuggets, ready to inspire creativity in the future. Over time, I can see my commonplace book will evolve and become more effective, which is a really exciting prospect!
Taking Advantage of a “Fill-in-the-Blank” Structure
But the benefits don't stop there. I noticed that I was already using “Intermediate Packets“ in the way I had set up my database templates in Notion as reusable outlines for crafting articles and YouTube videos.
Having these templates removes the pain of starting with a blank page, turning a daunting task into a manageable one with “fill-in-the-blank” writing prompts.
Putting IPs into Practice
Now, you might be wondering how this works in real life. Seeing something in action is, after all, much better than reading about it and leaving it all to theory. And that's why I've been sharing with you how I'm using Tiago’s concepts from “Building a Second Brain” in my own content creation process, so do check out the other articles in this series - I’ll list them below.
Additionally, I’ll show you how I’ve set-up my re-usable blog post writing prompts as a database template in Notion.
By adopting this method, you can look forward to a future where content creation becomes less of a chore and more of a joy. By reusing a writing structure with prompts to guide you, you'll be able to generate new content without the stress of starting from scratch. It's a win-win situation, offering both efficiency and creativity in one neat package.
Next Actions:
First…
Start by collecting your notes and research into a commonplace book, as we’ve covered in the previous articles in this series:
Taking Creativity From Chaos to Order (this is where I share my commonplace book setup)
The key is to make these packets easily accessible and reusable, so you can pull them out whenever you need to create new content. That’s where “Progress Summarization” comes in handy, as covered in this article:
Then…
Create a writing template with prompts that you can copy and paste for each content creation project. Better still grab mine here and use it as is, or as a basis for your template - remember, we want to avoid the pain of starting from scratch 😉
Listen or Read:
Building a Second Brain: A Proven Method to Organize Your Digital Life and Unlock Your Creative Potential (affiliate link) * by Tiago Forte (I’m currently listening along on Audible - paid members can access my book notes using the link below).
Ready to revolutionize your content creation process?
The concept of Intermediate Packets offers a powerful solution to one of the biggest challenges faced by content creators: the daunting blank page.
By making your notes into reusable packets and setting up templates with prompts, you'll be able to create content more easily.
As always, I’m cheering you on. And I hope that by sharing my journey, it can make yours a little easier! Chloe x
Please note: I found the Audible book mentioned in this article through my own research, personally purchased and listened to it for my own use before writing this blog post, but as an Amazon Associate I earn from any qualifying purchases you may make after clicking these links.
Building a Second Brain Book Notes…
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