It is usually short-lived when I have an idea about what to write about next.
As an aspiring writer, it is a little discouraging. Writing interesting articles is a competitive field. Why would a reader choose to read your piece over a more accomplished author? More often than not, I will see articles that cover the same topic or the same message. The pieces are more eloquent and contain better examples and quotes.
It is worth exploring where this feeling comes from to stop questioning the value or quality of your piece. There are a few concepts that explain the psychological process that could cause this doubt. The thought process is a battle against yourself. The more time you spend fussing about it, the more likely you will find a reason not to publish or bail on an idea.
This concept has been studied for a long time and has been dubbed the Frequency Illusion by a linguistics professor at the university. There is Frequency Illusion.
The quote above did not tell me much about psychological processes. The components that make up the illusion were dug a little deeper. The Frequency Illusion is a result of two psychological processes, one of which is confirmation bias, which is looking for things that support our hypotheses.
We process information in our environment with attention. It involves ignoring other information and stimuli in order to focus on a specific task. The attention is focused on something.
This explains how we can sometimes miss other things. At the time, it wasn’t relevant. We have to be careful about what we focus on because attention is a limited resource.
There is confirmation bias. The other way around it explains how we see the same type of vehicle everywhere when we take a test drive, or that more women seem to be pregnant now that you are thinking about starting a family. It highlights the events that are uppermost in your mind.
Confirmation bias is an interesting topic to discuss as it plays a role in a variety of highly debated topics such as politics, finance, health, religion, and scientific studies. Confirmation Bias is the second component. The concept influences how we remember and interpret information. We are more likely to gather evidence that supports and emphasizes our beliefs, and less likely to seek conflicting evidence.
Collective consciousness. For the sake of this article, I will not elaborate too much and focus on the scope. As you write about a particular topic, you will be more likely to emphasize aspects that are in line with the point you are trying to make.
Durkheim concluded that unique individuals feel a sense of solidarity with each other in society. Our sense of belonging, identity, and behavior is informed by the collective consciousness. Collective consciousness is another influence on originality. The common set of beliefs, ideas, attitudes, and knowledge within a group or society is referred to as the concept.
What is the point? People are bound to come up with similar thought processes when they are in a group. You will find a lot of agreeable opinions, open doors, and repetition to stay in line with the homogeneity of the group.
You probably shouldn’t. It is a worthwhile exercise even though an idea is more likely to have been thought out. You learn how to apply the learnings to benefit yourself and others. If it has been thought out before and we’re so biased based on our attention span and position in society, why bother with originality?
Values can only be changed through experience. Mark Manson wrote a book called “everything is f*cked” and I find it particularly applicable here.
Sharing your experiences is the added value and will not aid in standing out. Knowledge is meaningless if you don’t know how to apply it.