How long should it take to write an article?

How much time should it take before your writing can provide value? I’ve been meditating on this idea. Here are three truths to keep in tension:

• I want to write articles that are valuable
• I don’t want to waste my reader’s time
• I don’t want to waste my time

A goal then could be to write articles that contain valuable information as quickly as possible without sacrificing quality.

When I have a five minute break at work or in the morning/evening, I want to be able to use that productively. Is it reasonable to write a valuable article in five minutes?

I don’t know the answer. But I think that it is a question worth exploring. Set a timer, and start writing. If it is valuable when the timer chimes, then publish. If not not, then hold off for the next five-minute interval.

If an article is hanging around for a long time, consider scrapping the idea. There might be gold there, but maybe it isn’t worth your time to try and find it. Leave that for the next person to discover.