Questions to Articles, Embracing the Analog, and Your Unfair Advantage
Sunday Ideas — Edition #2
Welcome to a new edition of Sunday Ideas.
Every Sunday, I’ll share three ideas related to the core topics we discuss in this newsletter so you can start your week aiming to become an even smarter engineer.
Here are the ones for this week:
Discovering and tapping into your unfair advantage.
How to turn common work questions into valuable articles.
Three examples of where you should step away from your screens.
Let’s dive in!
1) The Unfair Advantage of Specific Knowledge
Your unfair advantage is not something you can learn in school.
It is a unique blend of skills, interests, and experiences that make you unique, and irreplaceable.
Think about this:
It’s what you are naturally great at.
It’s what you have mastered through curiosity, not obligation.
It’s something so niche that it’s almost impossible to automate or outsource.
It should feel natural to find your specific knowledge.
It is, as Naval Ravikant would say, something that feels like play to you but looks like work for others.
More on how I apply this principle in my daily life and how you can do the same in yours in this previous post 👇
2) Turning Common Work Questions into Valuable Articles
Coming up with ideas to write about is not hard.
Yet, people struggle with it.
They think they have to write about something new when in reality they should be writing about the everyday issues of people around them.
This is what I do every week to never run out of ideas and hit my publishing schedule:
Listen to what people ask me.
Identify the core problems behind every question.
Decide on the right format to write about those core problems.
Write a first draft based on my own experience.
Publish and get feedback as fast as possible.
You can read the entire breakdown of these five steps on this previous post 👇
3) 3 Moments When You Should Step Away From Your Screens
Notifications, endless content, and digital overload make it harder to focus, rest, and think clearly.
Poor sleep, mental fatigue, and a constant feeling of being “on” are your worst nightmares.
But here’s the good news—small analog habits can help you reclaim your mind.
By making simple shifts you can break free from digital overwhelm and reset your brain for better focus, creativity, and clarity.
Here are three examples you might find useful:
To reduce screen time before bed, read a physical book for at least 20 minutes instead of scrolling on your phone.
To take meaningful breaks during work, step away from your screen and use a pocket notebook to sketch, doodle, or jot down random thoughts.
To reset your attention after long digital sessions, take a walk without your phone and mentally process your thoughts instead of consuming more content.
If you want a breakdown of the benefits and some extra pro tips, dive into this article 👇
And that’s it for today!
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Have a great day,
Alberto