become a poet

relax. nobody's asking you to write a sonnet or perform at a slam poetry night. but if you've never tried to express something real in as few words as possible, you're missing out on one of the oldest and most powerful forms of human expression.

poetry is compression, not decoration

bad poetry adds unnecessary flourish. good poetry strips everything away until only the essential remains. it's the opposite of how most people communicate — using 500 words when 50 would hit harder.

think about the best texts, tweets, or lyrics you've ever read. the ones that stopped you mid-scroll. they worked because every single word earned its place. that's poetry, whether or not it's labeled as such.

why you should try it

writing poetry forces you to confront what you actually feel versus what you think you feel. when you try to describe loneliness or anger or joy in a handful of lines, you quickly realize how much of your emotional life runs on autopilot. you use the same words everyone uses. "i'm stressed." "i'm fine." "it's complicated."

poetry demands better. it asks: what does your specific version of stress feel like? not stress in general — your stress, right now, in this body, in this life.

how to start without feeling ridiculous

read first. pick up bukowski, rumi, mary oliver, or warsan shire. notice how they make you feel something in under a minute. then try writing your own.

start with this prompt: describe a moment from today in five lines or fewer. no rhyming required. no metaphors necessary. just precision. say exactly what happened and how it felt, using the fewest words possible.

it will probably be terrible. write another one tomorrow. and the next day. you're not trying to get published. you're trying to get honest.

the real benefit

poetry makes you a better communicator in every medium. emails, conversations, presentations — everything improves when you learn to say more with less. brevity is a muscle. start training it.

if this resonated, share it with someone who needs to hear it.