Today’s post is about why it’s good to know and share where your information comes from.
Table of Contents
Why I think people don’t cite their sources
Insecurity
If you tell people where you got your ideas from, you will become useless and redundant. No one will engage with your work because the person you got the idea from is doing it “better” than you. This is a scarcity mindset that is rooted in the belief that we are constantly in competition with one another.
oUR need to be “original”
We want to believe that we are original. This idea of innovation and originality really stresses people out. One of my favorite creators called Ali Abdaal often says this quote: ” There are no unique messages, only unique messengers.” Once you embrace the fact that a lot of the things you care about and share aren’t new fresh unique ideas, there’s a weight of your chest and you can stop procrastinating on actually doing the work.
Yes, what you’re saying or doing has been said before. Might you know who it was previously said by? If yes, give them credit and then proceed to describe what this discovery means to you in your own words.
It’s been done before but it hasn’t been done before..BY YOU. That, to me, is what creativity truly is.
Sharon Malonza.
Why cite your sources?
I got a few points of this points from this blogpost.
Attribution serves as a fact checking tool
You never want to quote someone out of turn. it is important to maintain the fidelity of the person or piece of work you paraphrased or quoted.
It makes you a good researcher
It forces you to pay attention to detail and form patterns and make connections.
It makes you a good creator
“Citing specific sources for the various facts that we present removes the hallmarks of intellectual laziness, vague thinking, and sloppy writing as generalizations, clichés, and outright false claims, e.g., as when the phrases, “everyone knows” or “they say,” are replaced with specific sources.When you cite sources properly, you leave no question in your readers’ minds regarding your point.”
Citing your sources makes you more credible. i am more likely to trust someone who references the people or work that inspired theirs. This is because I can always go back to those sources for some further exploration.
Why i cite my sources
I try to cite my sources for two reasons; one reason impacts others while the second affects me.
I believe in giving credit where it is due
It is ethical to acknowledge the work other people put into their creations of whatever kind. It is good practice to refer people back to the source of your information because there could be so much more that your audience can gain from them beyond that specific idea you borrowed.
This is especially important but not limited to people who have less traction than you do. Stealing from “smaller” businesses, artists , creatives and companies is still stealing. In fact, it is more detrimental because you are potentially infringing on their intellectual property and their source(s) of livelihood.
As I mentioned here, I have been paying attention to what I consume. Imagine how many ways you are going about you day to day life passively implementing actions/beliefs/principles that you might have mindlessly picked up from TikTok , a conversation, a blogpost or YouTube?
I am harnessing my idea generating machine by building connections between everything I consume to the way I live my life.
It takes a lot of effort to be aware of what is informing how I live but it takes mindful living to another level.
Share your thoughts with me down below!
Thanks for stopping by!
“Always remember that your hair is your crown and your body is a temple; embrace it, love it and take care of it.”