Friday, March 11, 2016

Year End Evaluation: Going Forward

This post concludes one year of continuous posting on the UCC-Made Easy blog.  It has been fun, educational and highly productive.  When the blog was first suggested by and discussed with Conner, we agreed to evaluate at this point to determine a strategy for going forward.  The blog cannot be valued in a standalone context, but must be viewed in a larger one.  There are other matters which must be attended to.  For example, in two weeks I will be presenting a presentation entitled: Juveniles, Detention and Freedom to the Missouri Juvenile Justice Association and members of the Missouri State Bar Association.  Time spent writing about bills of lading must be viewed not just in the context of this blog, and the positives, but also what it takes from other areas. In October, I will be doing the most important empowerment presentation for professionals I have ever done.  This takes months to prepare.
            Upon evaluation, I have decided to keep doing the blog, but not on a weekly basis. The blog has demonstrated my core philosophies and approach to the Uniform Commercial Code, as well as the manner in which I approach litigation and drafting.  But it is extremely tedious and linear writing—both of which, not incidentally—have benefitted me greatly.  That stated, it is highly inefficient in a teaching context as opposed to vertically integrated fact patterns that provide information on many levels.   By way of illustration, I have done between 55-60 posts. The earlier posts were short, but the majority of them averaged 1200-1400 words.  If we choose the midway of 1300, the posts generated 78,000 words, and covered most of Article 1, a good portion of Article 3 and a small introduction to Article 2 and  Article 7.  The reason this is so many words is because it is written on a linear level—basically, this is what this section means in this context.  I would estimate that at this rate it would take well over a millions words to get to a satisfactory level of content.
The Uniform Commercial Code Made Easy by way of comparison has a total of 115,569 and covers an overwhelming majority of the Code. Many of the words are contained in the detailed indexes of the book, so the actual number is even shorter. While writing The UCC Made Easy required a great deal of discipline, it provided the opportunity to operate at a much higher level during the process. The book is written at, and operates at multiple levels at the same time.  Much like the text of the Code, which is not surprising since the book is predicated upon many factual assumptions upon which the Code was written.  From my perspective, the efficiency of the book is exponentially higher than a linear text.  That is not to say one can’t learn from a linear text; indeed, it may be more efficient for a certain type of mind. 
By way of analogy, linear instruction is like an enormous warehouse covering hundreds of thousands of square miles.  Multilayered and Multidimensional instruction is like a massive skyscraper.  Depending on which floor you exit, you will be presented with multilayered Code discussions and sections. It requires inferential reading and effort, but the net effect is mastering the book, and achieving an extremely high level of Code knowledge and success.
The point of all this is that I must move some of the 7-10 hours spent each week on the blog to other areas.  Productivity is not an option; direction can be in some situations.  Right now I am traveling, and will not be doing a UCC content post during March.  Thank you for reading, and I look forward to communicating with you in the near future.

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