Rules are worth knowing. Knowing the rules allows you navigate a situation better. In fact, I will argue that knowing the rules is a superpower. It gets rid of uncertainty. Want to get into Flow? You can't do that without knowing the rules.
Rules give us the structure to work within. They give us clarity. From clarity, confidence. From confidence, a sense of control. And yes, for the rebellious among us: knowing the rules allows us to break them.
School is built on rules. Classes start on time. They end on time. Have a question? Raise your hand please. Math taught us that 2 + 2 = 4 . And English taught us to not start a sentence with "And" ;)
But we are missing a crucial rulebook.
We were taught the rules of math and English, but not of ideas.
When you wake up each day, ideas fly around your head. These ideas heavily influence almost everything that happens to you. Do you know how to manage those thoughts? Do you know how to navigate them better? Do you know the rules that govern the ideas you have?
Knowing the core Rules of Ideas can give you the clarity and confidence to do your best thinking, more often.
The Rules of Ideas
We are all different, but one thing is the same: Our relationship with the world around us. "Not me" you say. "I'm special. I'm different." Yes. You are. But I'm willing to wager you still inhale and exhale like the rest of us. Them's the rules. And it started from our first breath...
As babies our world had no edges. There was no you or I. Everything was everywhere, all at once. Then as our world grew, we learned the universal pattern.
We encounter something, which causes us to express ourselves—and what we say changes what we encounter next! This is "Cause and Effect". We live it in every moment. As we grow older, we realize there is a middle step between what we encounter and what we express. It's when we stop to engage with it.
The universal pattern becomes:
We encounter things, we engage with some, and we express ourselves.
Soon, we learn to walk. We learn to run. And something crazy happens.We realize that we forget. Maybe we're having Cheerios and we realize we forgot what we ate for breakfast yesterday. It reminds me what my Uncle Sam said to me once:
"I'm at the age where I've probably forgotten more than I know." - My Uncle Sam
That stuck with me. I didn't know how to feel about it. It was a mixture of fear, sadness, and a better understanding of the human condition. I couldn't help but notice I also felt defiant—even though I knew it was the foolish defiance of the youthful. Forgetting is a natural part of living.
When we are kids, forgetting is fine because we aren't responsible to remember things.
When we are teenagers, forgetting is fine, because "Life moves pretty fast" as Ferris Bueller said—so who cares about the past when the present is so fun and angsty?!
When we are adults, something new happens. We start to feel the pain of forgetting. And it is, it's painful. At some point, the "Pain Meter" hits a threshold. Not everyone gets there. Not everyone knows what to do. But if you're reading this, you felt the pain of disjointed thoughts and lost knowledge; and you decided to search for answers. Now we arrive at the problem:
How can you know what to ask if you don't know the rules of the game?
The Knowledge Cycle
Before we get to the first rule, we need to take the universal pattern of Sensemaking (Encounter, Engage, Express) and apply it to Knowledge Management.
When we do, we get The Knowledge Cycle:
The cycle of Collect, Connect, Create is a universal pattern. It works no matter what you are trying to do. If you can apply the pattern, you can figure out the rules.
Here's how I applied the pattern to make a massive career leap. I joined the Editors Guild in Hollywood and helped edit on one of the best shows on TV.
I was working on a Netflix show as a Post Production Coordinator. There were delays in production, which meant I had a lot of free time. Instead of lounging around, I started to sit in with the editors and assistant editors. I started to deeply appreciate their craft and creative. I couldn't help what happened next:
- I started asking questions. I scribbled notes. (COLLECT)
- I took the new notes back to my desk and connected them to my existing notes. At the time, I was using an app called The Archive, which allowed for very basic linking. But I was able to synthesize what I was learning and figure out what to do next. (CONNECT)
- I started editing. I arrived early and hopped on an assistant editor's machine. I tried doing their work. I tried cutting the same scenes the editor received. (CREATE)
- Then...I asked them for feedback. And they gave it, kindly. (COLLECT)
And the cycle repeated! Every day, for weeks, I was in massive flow. I knew the rules and I improved rapidly as an aspiring editor. No joke, but only months later I was working with one of those editors on Breaking Bad the Movie!
It was luck for sure, but I did everything I could to increase my surface area of luck. I figured out the universal pattern for Knowledge Management and I revved the engine. I Collected. I Connected. I Created. And I repeated the cycle countless times.
Along the way, I deeply felt the Core Rule of Ideas:
It's circular but true, we become what we do.
The Knowledge Cycle takes the universal pattern of sensemaking and applies it. It's the difference between Math and Engineering. The first is the essence. The second is how to apply that essence.
Along with the timeless maxim of Know Thyself is this one: Knowledge is Power. The better we can "do" Knowledge, the more powerful we'll feel in our life.
- Sometimes that means moving faster through the Knowledge Cycle.
- Sometimes it means moving slower but more deeply.
- Sometimes it means moving with more intentionality.
- And sometimes it just means cycling through consistently.
A prolific mind can't help but encourage a prolific life. And the better you can move through the Knowledge Cycle, the more prolific your life will be.
How can you apply the Knowledge Cycle to your life? How can you create the conditions where you are doing your best thinking, more often?
