Facing the Blank Page

In the previous post, I bravely announced that my big project for 2025 was a fiction writing journey. Like many aspiring writers, I've been wrestling with those familiar voices of self-doubt: "No one cares about what you write." "You should probably start with short stories and see if you can get those published first." "Do you know how many people actually make money from books?" "Nobody reads books nowadays." These aren't just random fears – they're the voices of perfectionism and imposter syndrome that can plague any creative endeavor.

During my journey reconnecting with French through YouTube this year, I discovered something useful. There's this fascinating philosophy professor and author, Fabrice Midal, who wears striking yellow outfits, including yellow glasses. His bold fashion choices aren't just eccentric – they're a testament to his philosophy of authentic self-expression. One of his books is titled "Foutez-vous la paix!" (in French).

While it loosely translates to "Give yourself a break!" in English, the French version carries more weight, especially in first person: "Je vais me foutre la paix!" The English translation feels tepid in comparison. In French, you can really let that sentence land by emphasizing "FOUTRE" – that initial "F" sound seems to physically expel those nagging doubts about rejection letters and critical voices.

What about fear? "Je vais la FOUTRE dehors" (I'm going to throw it out) et je vais me FOUTRE la paix. Even emphasizing the "P" of "paix" works – it's like pushing away those persistent doubts that try to derail our creative ambitions.

Now, whenever those familiar doubts creep into my thoughts – whether about writing, professional projects, or any creative pursuit – I return to my new mantra: "Je vais me foutre la paix." It's become more than just a phrase; it's a permission slip to create without the burden of perfectionism.

PS:  I wrote this post a few days ago.  It's now January 1st and I've typed the first 1,000 words.  The journey has started.  I am on my way. 

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Related and Recently Read: "Uncertain: The Wisdom and Wonder of Being Unsure," by Maggie Jackson (2023).
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Coming Next: A series on Knowledge and Fiction.

Already in 2025 Mode: Setting My Sights on Fiction

I know it's not 2025 yet, but I've been in 2025 mode for weeks.

Yes, there are still things to do in 2024 and loose ends to tie up, but I love planning the next year—and sometimes even the next decade. As I edge closer to 60, it’s not just the next year or even the next decade that has my attention. I’m thinking about the next 30 to 35 years. What will life be like between 2025 and 2065?

It’s natural to approach that horizon with mixed feelings. Fear and anxiety still creep in occasionally, but I’m choosing to approach the future with positive energy and optimism.

But I digress, as I always do. I have a lot of projects planned for 2025, though I won’t go into all of them now. Perhaps someday I’ll write more about how I approach project identification, selection, planning, and monitoring. (No, I don’t apply a full PMP framework to my personal or professional projects!)

The main point: My big project for 2025 is a fiction-writing journey.

This project started in mid-2024, but I haven’t consolidated anything yet. I just know I have enough in my head and in notes to turn this into a reality—as long as I block time on my calendar to write. I don’t believe in waiting for inspiration to strike. Writing takes discipline to complete a first draft and even more to edit the work into shape.

Unlike previous fiction-writing efforts, I plan to write about this journey while it’s still in progress. I won’t reveal much about the plot or characters but will likely explore the key themes here on the blog.  There is enough alignment between the themes of the fiction and the themes of my non-fiction work to generate content that is coherent.

This project will be somewhere between speculative fiction and fictional memoir, with the action set in 2065. It’s a new challenge, but one that connects deeply with my long-standing interests and allows me to take on (or play with) the role of "futurist". 

More to come as I dive in—here’s to a creative and productive 2025.

Image generated by ChatGPT based on the blog post as prompt and minor adjustment.
The manual typewriter is an interesting AI touch and by the time I write "The End" on the last page of the manuscript, my hair might indeed be all gray. 

Taking Concept Mapping and Potentially Knowledge Graphs to Another Level

I can't pretend that I'm able to keep up with technology developments associated with AI but almost every week there is something that gets my attention. Today it's research from Meta into LLMs based on concepts rather than individual tokens.  

Large Concept Models: Language Modeling in a Sentence Representation Space, December 15, 2024. 

Link:  https://arxiv.org/abs/2412.08821

In the past year, I adjusted my mapping method to match what the technology could handle in terms of knowledge graphs, moving from multiple words and sometimes sentences to individual words, and paying much more attention to the connecting words. Now it is quite possible that the technology will evolve to mimic how we think and I can return to mapping in sentences rather than individual words. 

"In practice, a concept would often correspond to a sentence in a text document, or an equivalent speech utterance. We posit that a sentence is an appropriate unit to achieve language independence, in opposition to single words. This is in sharp contrast to current LLMs techniques which are heavily English centric and token based."

We don't think in individual words.  We think in combinations of words that express concepts. This assumes that concepts aren't individual words but rather snippets of sentences.  This is going back to the way I mapped conversations at NASA, using snippets rather than individual concepts.  This actually makes much more sense to me and always has. 

This research looks a language modeling in a sentence representation space.  I jumped the gun and immediately connected that to knowledge graphs and the challenges I've encountered trying to connect the dots around knowledge graphs and concept mapping. I'll have to dissect this and figure out if I'm totally off base. There may be subtle and not to subtle differences between concept mapping and concept or knowledge modeling that I am not grasping.

The "conceptual" approach described in the paper has potential implications for knowledge graphs:

• It could enhance semantic understanding:  By focusing on concepts rather than individual tokens, large concept models can better capture and represent the relationships and hierarchies in knowledge graphs.
• It could advance reasoning capabilities:  By operating at the level of concepts, large concept models could potentially perform more sophisticated reasoning based on the interconnected data in knowledge graphs, enhancing decision-making processes and inferencing. 
• It could also improve traceability and our understanding of how the models operate. Conceptual representation would be easier to follow just like a concept map made of sentences is much easier to follow than a concept map made up of words and connecting sentences. 

I'm sure there is more to it but that's as much as I can grasp right now. 

Pivots and Pathways: Learning, Unlearning, and Recombining for Growth

Imagine yourself in a room with just one door—the door you entered through. At first, the room feels full of promise, a new space to explore. But as time passes, you’ve seen everything it has to offer. The room becomes familiar, even stifling. There is so much more you want to experience, but the only door leads back to where you started. What you need are more doors, new ways to move forward. And here’s the remarkable thing: these doors don’t already exist. They are created through your creativity, imagination, and willingness to pivot.

A pivot is the hinge on those doors, enabling movement into new rooms, new pathways. Unlike a labyrinth with a single correct exit, these pathways are yours to design. Sometimes, a pivot starts as a window, giving you a glimpse of what lies beyond. When you’re ready—and when you’ve overcome the fear of stepping into the unknown—that window transforms into a door. The pivot is what makes that door’s opening possible, turning an idea or aspiration into a tangible opportunity.

Not all pivots are intentional. Life throws its share of curveballs, forcing us to adapt. But whether a pivot is chosen or imposed, it requires resilience and openness to learning. Navigating these transitions involves more than simply stepping through the door; it’s about learning through change, unlearning old certainties, and recombining past experiences into something new.

Learning and Unlearning: The Twin Pillars of Growth

Pivots compel us to learn new skills, adopt new perspectives, and stretch beyond our comfort zones. But they also force us to confront what we need to unlearn. In organizations, this is often referred to as shedding “zombie knowledge”—outdated practices that linger even when they no longer serve their purpose. The same concept applies to individuals. To embrace a pivot, we must be willing to let go of habits, beliefs, or frameworks that no longer align with where we’re headed.

Unlearning creates space for fresh insights and innovation. It’s not always easy—after all, certainty feels safe—but it’s essential for growth. New pathways challenge us to rethink our mental frameworks, making us more adaptable and curious. They push us to ask, “What else is possible?”

Recombining: The Creative Potential of Pivots

Of all the aspects of pivots, recombining is perhaps the most exciting. It’s the process of weaving together threads from your past to create something entirely new. Recent experiences, long-held interests, and latent skills can intersect in surprising ways, opening doors you hadn’t imagined.  I always find mapping to be a very valuable "recombination" tool, allowing me to connect previously disconnected ideas.  That's partly why I call it "insight mapping". 

For example, I’m currently exploring how to recombine my experiences with volunteering with older adults with my decades-long interest in Personal Knowledge Management (PKM). PKM has been a personal tool for organizing and making sense of information, but I hadn’t thought about applying it more broadly in my work until now. By combining these threads, I see the potential to develop services that help older adults navigate the complexities of later life, what Susan Wilner Golden describes as the 4th and 5th quarters of life (in her book Stage (Not Age)). This pivot has sparked a burst of creative energy, a new way of looking at how I can contribute.

Resilience and the Courage to Pivot

Whether a pivot is self-initiated or forced by circumstance, resilience is the bedrock that supports it. Resilience is not just about bouncing back; it’s about bouncing forward—using the lessons of the past to propel yourself into new territory. Each pivot is an opportunity to reassess what matters, to experiment, and to move closer to a life of coherence and purpose.

Conclusion: Crafting Your Pathways

Pivots are not detours; they are pathways. They challenge us to learn, unlearn, and recombine in ways that create new opportunities and greater clarity. The next time you find yourself in a room with no apparent exits, remember: the doors don’t have to exist yet. Your imagination, experiences, and aspirations can build them. And when you’re ready to step through, visualize the hinges, create your pivot and step walk forward.

What pivots are you considering, and how might they lead to new pathways in your life?

As a side note, good Personal Knowledge Management habits are helpful when considering and creating pivots.