How to Write Mini Essays (in Obsidian)

Summary

This video focuses on the power of writing mini essays—short, concise pieces that help unlock insights and improve writing skills. The speaker highlights three key benefits: enhancing comprehension and recall, optimizing learning by teaching, and fostering deeper understanding through note-making. The video also shares practical tips for starting mini essays, with frameworks like experience, opinion, and event, and emphasizes the importance of writing in your own words. By engaging in mini essays, creators not only refine their ideas but also create a dynamic, interconnected knowledge base that grows over time, leading to stronger, more insightful work.

Takeaways

• 😀 Mini essays are brief, focused pieces of writing (100-300 words) that allow you to explore one idea at a time.
• 😀 Writing mini essays activates the *generation effect*, improving comprehension and recall by putting ideas into your own words.
• 😀 Mini essays help uncover gaps in understanding, fostering deeper insights and new connections.
• 😀 Writing mini essays is an effective way to teach yourself and accelerate your learning by actively engaging with the material.
• 😀 The process of writing mini essays encourages *note making* (creating meaning from your notes) rather than just *note-taking* (passive recording).
• 😀 Starting with a 'spark' (a personal experience, an opinion, or an event) can help generate ideas for mini essays.
• 😀 Three techniques to kickstart mini essays: (1) Experience—describe an event, (2) Opinion—start with a strong statement, (3) Event—describe something that happened and its significance.
• 😀 Freewriting is a great tool to help you discover what you want to say in a mini essay.
• 😀 Mini essays should be structured with a clear beginning, middle, and end, allowing the writer to articulate their thoughts effectively.
• 😀 Writing mini essays helps build a connected web of ideas (an 'idea verse'), creating a valuable knowledge base over time.
• 😀 Mini essays are fun, simple, and powerful tools for learning and idea generation—ideal for anyone looking to clarify their thinking and express ideas succinctly.

Q & A

What is the main benefit of writing mini essays?

The main benefit of writing mini essays is that they help optimize for the 'generation effect,' which enhances comprehension, recall, and insight generation. Writing in your own words allows you to better understand a topic and uncover gaps in your knowledge, leading to deeper insights.

How does writing mini essays help with learning?

Mini essays help with learning by forcing you to put concepts into your own words, which not only boosts comprehension and recall but also sparks new ideas and connections. This process leads to a better understanding of the material and can result in more creative and innovative thinking.

What are the three key benefits of writing mini essays mentioned in the script?

The three key benefits of writing mini essays are: 1) optimizing for the generation effect (improved comprehension and recall), 2) optimizing for the 'teach to learn' effect (learning faster by teaching even to yourself), and 3) optimizing for note-making (actively creating meaningful insights rather than passively taking notes).

What is the 'generation effect' and why is it important?

The 'generation effect' refers to the phenomenon where writing something in your own words leads to improved understanding, recall, and insight generation. It is important because it not only helps you retain information but also catalyzes deeper thinking and fosters new connections, making it a powerful tool for learning and creativity.

What is meant by 'note-making' as opposed to 'note-taking'?

'Note-making' refers to actively synthesizing and understanding information by putting it into your own words, linking ideas, and generating insights. In contrast, 'note-taking' is more passive, where you simply record information without deeply engaging with or processing it.

How does the mini essay process help overcome writer's block or feeling stuck in the writing process?

Mini essays help overcome writer's block by focusing on writing a simple, one-idea piece with a clear structure. This simplicity allows writers to break free from overwhelming complexities and focus on getting started. The process of writing one idea leads to more ideas and deeper insights.

What are the three techniques mentioned to kickstart the writing of mini essays?

The three techniques to kickstart writing mini essays are: 1) Experience – starting with a personal experience that grabs attention, 2) Opinion – beginning with a strong statement that you will explain, and 3) Event – writing about a specific event and its significance.

Can you give an example of using the 'experience' technique for writing a mini essay?

An example of the 'experience' technique is writing about watching a movie like Dune. You might start with, 'There I was, watching Dune, expecting disappointment, but leaving feeling amazed.' This personal experience serves as a hook that leads to a deeper insight about hype itself being real.

What is the role of 'freewriting' in writing a mini essay?

Freewriting plays a crucial role in discovering what you really want to say. By writing loosely and without a rigid structure, you allow your thoughts to flow freely, which can lead to surprising insights and help you crystallize the main message of your mini essay.

How can linking notes in Obsidian help in writing mini essays?

Linking notes in Obsidian helps create an interconnected web of ideas, allowing you to easily reference and expand on related thoughts. This process fosters deeper insights, sparks new ideas, and strengthens your understanding, which is essential for generating meaningful mini essays.