Write and you shall receive
David Perell and the power of online writing
Friends,
Have you ever observed someone who is living their purpose and so in it that you get goosebumps? This was my experience of David Perell during the first Zoom session of Write of Passage.
For those not familiar, Write of Passage is a five-week accelerator for online writing. Every week, participants publish an essay online, which is why you may have noticed my burst of posts over the last month. I am in the final week of the program now, along with 236 others from around the world.
As I prepared for that first session, I sat on a stool in my kitchen and opened Zoom on my MacBook, unsure what to expect. Suddenly the screen came alive. Fun dance music started playing and a 10-9-8 countdown started on the screen. When the countdown ended, a dark-haired guy in his late-20s with a smirk and a stylish camp shirt appeared on the screen, throwing his arms into the air and smiling. “Welcome to Write of Passage!”
This was David Perell.
The backdrop of David’s Zoom looked like it had been designed by the producers of the Netflix show “Love is blind” with its just-so lighting and furniture. The production value was high and so was David’s energy.
Impressed and intrigued, I leaned toward my screen as David shared his personal story of transformation through online writing:
“I was the kind of person who was interested in ideas for many years, but I had nobody to share those interests with…. Writing online changed all of that for me…. I started to attract people who shared my most passionate interests and they didn’t just share my interests, they enhanced them too.”
While he was speaking, I scrolled through dozens of faces in the Zoom to get a feel for others in my cohort. I saw a mix of men and women from their 20s to 50s. All of them were smiling and glued to their screens as David noted how his personal journey turned into a larger purpose:
“I had a moment when I was like, Wow, writing online is powerful. I realized I want to spend many years of my life talking about writing online and getting people to write online. And so here we are, eleven cohorts in and we’ve had almost 2,000 students from 70 countries go through the program.”
David went on to articulate his guiding beliefs about the value of online writing. As a student of credos — I was enamored with John D. Rockefeller Jr.’s credo at Rockefeller Plaza when I lived in New York City — I jotted down some of the statements of beliefs I heard from David as he spoke. I will coin them here as The Perell Principles:
Writing online can transform your life.
Writing is meant to be social.
Writing is a means to bigger things.
Writing online helps you harness the power of the Internet.
After making his case for online writing, David posted a collage of photos of everyone in our cohort. “Picture yourself in five weeks,” he said as I noticed my tiny-sized photo on the slide. “Who do you want to become?” I thought of my goal to practice writing personal essays but not much beyond that.
The zing of resonance
I’m not very religious, but I could tell from that first lecture that David was a man of faith. There was a moment as he spoke about the transformative power of writing when I felt the zing of spiritual resonance and, yes, goosebumps. In that moment, I could tell he was channeling the will of a higher power. His calling seemed clear: to help people use writing to find their own callings.
I sometimes view charismatic personalities like David’s the way people on the keto diet look at carbs — attractive but something to regard with skepticism. So rather than becoming a Perell fanboy right away, I decided to participate in the program and observe David’s leadership with an open mind.
Why I love Write of Passage
After five weeks, five essays, and dozens of group sessions, my skepticism is gone. I am five-star impressed with David and the program.
So yeah, I’m a fanboy.
The Write of Passage team has embodied The Perell Principles and executed on them brilliantly. Their frameworks for online writing like “POP” — encouraging people to make their writing “personal, observational, and playful” — have juiced my writing. The design of the program has been a first-rate educational experience with its mix of workshops, live sessions, and “gyms” where you exchange feedback with others. (Better designed than most of my courses were at Stanford, for perspective.)
It is too early to say whether Write of Passage has transformed my life, but I can say that it has awakened something within me. Writing my first few essays felt like a release of lava from a crack in the earth. It was a chance to articulate things that had been building within me over the last half-decade, through Covid, parenting, and a disquieting political chapter. Although it felt vulnerable and TMI to share some deeply personal writings, the universe held me. Which is to say, my Facebook friends were supportive and I didn’t get the hate I half-expected after writing about my political past. The support of the Write of Passage fellowship gave me the confidence to take these risks, since so many other participants were doing the same (my readers know I am a believer in the power of fellowship).
The tactical lessons from Write of Passage have been valuable too, even as someone who has built media companies and published in major outlets. For example, I had never used Substack. The program forced me to get up to speed and offered workshops on how to use it. This will benefit me professionally, since I’m about to launch a policy think tank and the initial site will be on Substack.
Since participating in Write of Passage, I’ve noticed a sparkle in my writing which, when you think about it, is crucial in an era of AI. I mean, why write at all if I can’t be more fun and human than ChatGPT? Interestingly enough, David gave an overview of AI in one of the final presentations of the program, sharing prompts that can make ChatGPT a useful writing partner. That’s one thing I notice about David: He’s always building intellectual capital about writing.
Five links to learn about David Perell’s work
The ideal way to experience David and all his course has to offer is just to take it. If you write online, I can’t recommend it enough. Their next cohort will kick off in Spring 2024. If cost is an issue, apply for one of their scholarships.
If you’re skeptical or unfamiliar, as I was, here are some links I would suggest for learning more about David and his work:
The ultimate guide to writing online - This is a meaty guide to many of the principles of Write of Passage. It is your cheat sheet to the program if you can’t participate or want to learn more. My favorite bit: “Don’t get upset with your lack of progress until you’ve published at least 50 articles.” His ideas about writing in conversation are worth noting too.
Write to find yourself - In this interview by Jim O’Shaughnessy, the renowned quantitative investor turned podcaster, David articulates the idea of writing to find yourself and how the Internet is shaping intellectual life. I love the detail that O’Shaughnessy and Perell connected through online writing, another proof point that David eats his cooking. O’Shaughnessy now sponsors several Write of Passage scholarships each cohort.
David’s annual review 2022 - This will give you a feel for David as a person and where he is in the building of Write of Passage. He openly shares some of the shortcomings he’s working on, like an aversion to conflict. I am inspired by those who track their goals in public this way.
“How I write” podcast - David has a new podcast where he interviews writers he admires. I haven’t listened much yet, but I can tell it is a useful way to learn the craft of online writing. In the latest episode, David interviewed The Psychology of Money author Morgan Housel. David later summarized Housel’s writing principles (which are quite good) in a tweet.
Write of Passage - This is David’s company and the program I’ve been in, in case you want to check it out. Did I mention I recommend it?
The fifth Perell Principle 😇
In Write of Passage, participants share draft essays with the community for feedback and edits. In an early draft of this essay, I noticed that David commented on my line about him channeling a higher power. “Thanks, this is what I try to do,” he wrote. “Matthew 6:10.”
His note validated what I had observed during that first session. It told me he’s in touch with it, too. Not long after, I noticed this tweet:
Looking back now, it is remarkable how much I have internalized The Perell Principles. And I want to add a fifth one:
Writing is a way to channel and find your calling.
David has found his higher calling through online writing. The most important and esoteric Perell Principle is that the rest of us can too.
Your kingdom come, Your will be done.
Appendix
Thank you for reading this. I love it when people comment on my posts and add to the conversation. Here are some conversation starters:
How has writing touched your life — or not?
For others in Write of Passage: Did I capture the experience? What was similar or different for you?
Did I get the Perell Principles right?
Special thanks to
for your feedback.If you this post touches you in some way, please like or share it. And subscribe if you haven’t already. I appreciate your support. 🙏
Great read — inspiring me to start writing publicly!
Totally with you! Write of Passage is the place for online writers to be. I will highlight one issue with WOP, there just wasn't enough time! I wanted to connect with everyone there, the conversations were always electric. Thanks for spotlighting David. He so deserves it.