1. When you write something intended to be read by an important person, go through it and cut every unnecessar... — Paul Graham

1. When you write something intended to be read by an important person, go through it and cut every unnecessary word. 2. The reader of anything you publish is an important person.

Author: Paul Graham

Insight: Most of us treat our writing differently depending on who we think is reading it. An email to our boss gets scrutinized; a text to a friend gets whatever falls out of our brain. But here's where this quote flips the script: every person who takes time to read something you've written deserves that same careful treatment. They're all important. They're all spending a piece of their life on your words. This matters because clarity is actually respect. When you trim the fat from your writing—cutting the jargon, the filler, the self-indulgent tangents—you're essentially saying: your time matters. I'm not going to waste it. This applies whether you're writing a social media post, a work memo, or a message to someone you care about. The person on the other end is real, busy, and choosing to pay attention to you. The surprising part is that this discipline helps you think better too. When you have to justify every sentence, you often realize what you actually believe versus what you thought you were supposed to say. You end up communicating more honestly, not just more efficiently. That's the real skill worth practicing.