# Writing as externalized thinking To have a good understanding of the world we first gather information and knowledge through reading, conversation or observation. Then we need to organize and draw relationships between pieces of information to create practical models of the world. Writing, programming, maps, diagrams, network, mathematical notation share a common purpose in allowing us to organize our thoughts, ideas and models through external representations (outside of the brain). Externalizing information, models and theories forces us to formulate and clarify our line of thought without letting our (lazy) brain tell us that we already know. By 'writing down' our thinking we can verify it's logic and truthfulness. It also helps with retention gives us a tangible representation we can use as a reminder and improve over time. ## Related - [[Logical Thinking]]