A few years ago, I came across a phrase that stuck with me:
“Writing is thinking.”
It was from Shane Parrish of Farnam Street, a blog dedicated to mastering mental models and clear thinking. At first, I was skeptical. As an engineer, I valued action instead of writing, which felt slow, almost indulgent. I was occasionally documenting my investment thesis.
But then I tried it. I began keeping decision journals, writing down why I made certain choices, what I was uncertain about, and what trade-offs I was considering. Over time, something changed.
Writing didn’t slow me down—it sharpened me.
It helped me disentangle complex thoughts, notice my biases, and crystallize what really mattered. Whether it was a technical design, a philosophical dilemma, an investment decision, or a personal goal, writing gave me clarity.
Munger and Buffett: The Champions of Clarity
This idea isn’t new. Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett’s longtime partner, often said:
“I never allow myself to have an opinion on anything that I don’t know the other side’s argument better than they do.”
That level of clarity doesn’t come by accident. It comes from structured thinking, and writing is a tool for that. Even Warren Buffett is known for his habit of writing down investment decisions with such simplicity and clarity that anyone, not just finance experts, can understand them. In fact, Buffett reportedly said that if you can’t explain your investment thesis on a single sheet of paper, you don’t understand it well enough.
Writing forces you to know what you think—and why.
The Misconception: Writing Slows You Down
A common belief in engineering teams is that writing slows things down. After all, shouldn’t we be building instead of documenting? But here’s the twist—writing actually speeds things up over time.
Why? Because it reduces ambiguity. It cuts down on miscommunication. And most importantly, it prevents costly rework caused by misunderstandings or missing context.
When you take time to write:
- You define the real problem—not just the symptoms.
- You spot assumptions and trade-offs before they come back to bite you.
- Your thinking becomes transparent, making alignment across the team easier.
In global teams, this matters even more. For many, English isn’t the first language. Verbal conversations can be misinterpreted. Writing creates a shared, reviewable source of truth—so everyone is on the same page, regardless of accent or phrasing.
Far from being a bottleneck, writing is the clearest path to clarity and speed.
Why Engineers Resist Writing
Let’s face it—engineers are builders. We take pride in code and output. Writing feels abstract. But here’s a truth we don’t talk about enough:
Good engineering is built on good thinking. And good thinking thrives in writing. You create mental infrastructure when you articulate your thought process via a one-pager, a design note, or even a few bullet points. You future-proof your decisions. You gain reusable clarity.
How I Try to Inculcate This in My Team
I’ve been encouraging my team to write more, especially during the design and decision-making phases. A few small but effective strategies I have successfully employed it:
- Reframe it:
- Don’t ask for “detailed documentation.” I asked for solution options in a bullet format.
- Start with one-pagers:
- Just write the trade-offs, options, and reasoning. No need for polish.
- Lead by example:
- I share my technical write-ups to normalize the habit.
- Reward clarity:
- Celebrate deep thinking. Recognize those who slow down to think deeply before speeding up to build.
A Personal Anecdote: Learning the Hard Way
When I joined my current team, hardly anything was documented. Institutional knowledge lived in individual heads, and changing anything felt risky.
“A core component of making great decisions is understanding the rationale behind previous decisions. If we don’t understand how we got ‘here,’ we run the risk of making things much worse.” – G.K. Chesterton wisely said.
That was our situation. Without knowing how the castle had been built, everyone was afraid to touch it. Making even minor changes felt like walking through a minefield. So I began writing. For every small change, I documented the rationale, the alternate paths considered, and the reasoning behind the chosen one. Slowly, others followed.
Have we mastered this? No. But we’ve matured as a team. Now, there’s no hesitation. New members onboard faster. Decision journal is a new normal. We know why certain decisions were made in the past—why they made sense then and why they might not now.
There’s no blame game. Instead, we focus on continuous improvement, grounded in a shared understanding of how we got here.
Final Thought: Writing Is an Act of Engineering
“If you can’t write it down, you probably haven’t thought it through.” – Shane Parrish.
I’ve come to believe that writing is not a luxury—it’s an engineering skill. It’s how we build clarity, reduce waste, and make better decisions. So if you’re someone who wants to grow not just as a coder but as a thinker: Write before you build. Think before you write.
In the long run, writing won’t delay your work. It will accelerate your understanding—and your impact.