Even if your note doesn't sell, it's not necessarily a loss. The concept of 'writing as an investment'

Feeling anxious when you work hard on writing but it doesn't sell

When you are writing notes, you may suddenly feel anxious.

Even though I spend this much time writing, the sales only amount to a few hundred yen.

“Could it be that I am just selling my experiences cheaply?”
“Will it be learned by AI, consumed by someone else, and leave me with nothing?”

Sometimes I feel that way.

Looking at sales per article, it doesn't pay off

Previously, I wrote an article titled “Half a year since starting note. Is the cost-effectiveness not good even after 180 days of continuous posting?”.

In it, I write quite frankly about the conclusion of 180 days of continuous posting.
“It has an effect, but the cost-effectiveness is not good”
This is still a very honest feeling I have even now.

Assuming it takes one hour to write a single article, and calculating at an hourly wage of 1,200 yen, it means I have spent 216,000 yen worth of time over 180 days.

So, can I recover that amount just from note?
At the very least, it was not easy for me.

However, as I wrote in that article, if you think of the time spent on note only as 'compensation for labor,' it inevitably becomes painful, and note looks like a very unrewarding activity. Furthermore, by publishing my experiences and thoughts, I sometimes feel as if they are being consumed somewhere and nothing is left in my own hands.

note has returns other than sales

However, writing notes also has returns other than sales.
Your writing skills are honed.
You can organize your thoughts.
You can leave behind the troubles you encountered at work as wisdom that can be used next time.
You can also utilize it for proposals and outreach in your main business.

Thinking about it that way, note can also be seen as an investment in yourself, rather than just a way to generate sales.

Looking back on the problems and worries you encountered at work,

What happened?
Why did it happen?
How did you respond?
What should you do if the same thing happens next time?

By organizing and verbalizing this into a note article, you can achieve repetitive learning + deepening of knowledge, and the experience becomes ingrained within you. And even if your experiences and thoughts are published and learned by AI, I believe that it is far scarier to have them flow away without leaving anything within yourself.

note serves as a 'public reflection'

Reflecting on work is important. For that reason, I have also introduced methods for reflection using KPT.

That said, during work hours, you are often chased by the next task and find it difficult to reflect. Sometimes you might reflect in a relaxed manner during your off-hours, but that is irregular and lacks consistency.

On the other hand, I post on note regularly, and I can use those reflections as content. If it were just a personal memo, I might write it sloppily, but because I write it for others to read, I think it through to a level where I can explain it. Therefore, my understanding inevitably deepens.

Experience slips away if you don't put it into words

Problems that occur at work are forgotten as time passes. Even if you struggled at the time, the moment it is solved, it becomes 'something that is over.' However, in reality, there are lessons there that can be used in the next job, and by recalling, writing them out, and organizing them, it also becomes a form of repetitive learning.

By writing, it pays off in your main job

I am very happy when an article sells.
Even if it is just 100 yen, I am truly happy.

However, the greater return on investment is that by writing, your ability to communicate improves, which pays off in your main job.

Because I kept writing, I started receiving requests to write.

Also, in my main system development project, it became easier to explain my ideas, the structure of my seminar materials was polished, and as a result, it has led to an increase in my unit price and trust in my main job.

It takes time, but by continuing to write, there are such returns.

Judge not by immediate profit, but by whether it is an investment in yourself

Writing on note does not necessarily mean making money immediately. However, you reflect on your experiences, put them into words, and turn them into wisdom that can be used next.

That accumulation can sometimes help your work more than immediate sales.

note can be a place not to sell your experience cheaply, but to turn your experience into an asset.

Instead of judging only by whether the article sold or not,
what remained within you by writing?
How did it help in your next job?
I think it is fine to consider the value of note including those aspects.

Treating writing notes as an investment in yourself.

When you think of it that way, the next important thing is how to bring out the value that only you can write. In an era where AI can create plausible-sounding text, it's about how you convey your experiences, sense of discomfort, and failures in your own words.

I have an article that compares this to the difference between a local cake shop and convenience store sweets. If you are thinking about how to survive from here on out as a 'handmade note' creator, I think this article will also be helpful.