As I said on Monday, many people assume a false conflict between substance and style.
There are those who believe style is a distraction that diminishes substance. They believe that style is unnecessary if the substance is good. In their minds, style shouldn’t matter.
There are those who get so caught up in style that they fail to discern or provide sufficient substance. In their minds, style matters as much as substance, if not more.
But there's no universal truth that places substance and style in conflict. No law says you must sacrifice style to gain substance or sacrifice substance to improve style.
So, don’t create a false conflict that doesn’t exist.
Discipline in substance and style is a matter of sequence. You must decide which comes first: style or substance?
Prioritize substance first and secure it. Then, polish it and deliver it with the most effective style for the setting. As a reliable rule, do not prioritize style until you have proven substance.
Brick by brick. Do the work.
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