I’ve answered over 30 thought-provoking questions from this community, and I’ll continue to add new ones. Every answer is personal — drawn from my own experience, not from a list of best practices. Below you’ll find all of them, ordered by topic. If you have a question you’d like me to answer, send it to team@lisanneswart.com.
Questions about
Myself
If I could introduce a law that applies to everyone in the world, what would it be?
The law I’d introduce has nothing to do with crime or politics. It’s quieter than that — and I think it would change more than any policy ever could. My answer surprised even me when I thought it through.
Do you ever get intimidated by people you admire or get to work with?
Yes — and pretending otherwise would be dishonest. What I’ve learned is that intimidation and admiration are almost the same feeling, just pointed in different directions. Here’s what I do with that.
What would my friends consider to be my best quality?
I asked around before answering this one — which is either brave or reckless, depending on how well you know your friends. The answer wasn’t what I expected.
Which role models do I have?
The people I look up to most aren’t famous. Or rather — some are, but not for the reasons you’d expect. I’ve found that the most useful role models are the ones who are honest about what it actually costs them.
What is adversity?
We talk about adversity like it’s a test you either pass or fail. I’ve come to think of it differently — less as an obstacle and more as the specific friction that shapes who you become.
What kind of things did you wonder about as a child?
The questions I asked as a child were embarrassingly big. I hadn’t yet learned to scale them down to what’s considered appropriate. Looking back, I think that was the right instinct.
What life lesson did you learn the hard way?
The hardest lessons tend to be the ones nobody warned you about — not because the warning wasn’t there, but because you weren’t ready to hear it yet. Mine came late, and it cost me time I can’t get back.
Is there something new you’d like to learn?
Learning something new as an adult is humbling in a way that’s hard to describe until you’ve tried it. I share what’s on my list — and why one particular thing keeps getting pushed to the bottom of it.
What is my personal take on failure?
I used to treat failure as evidence of something. Now I treat it as information. That shift didn’t happen overnight — and it wasn’t the result of reading a self-help book.
What small act of kindness was I once shown that I will never forget?
It happened in a moment I almost didn’t notice. A small gesture from a stranger that I’ve thought about many times since. Kindness like that doesn’t expire — it keeps going.
Which personality trait do I root for in others?
It’s not ambition, and it’s not kindness — though both matter. The trait I root for most is one that’s harder to spot, and almost impossible to fake.
What’s the most interesting documentary I’ve ever watched?
I’ve watched a lot of documentaries — it’s one of my favourite ways to learn about something I know nothing about. The one that stayed with me longest changed how I see an entire subject.
What do I consider the most underrated quality in people?
Everyone talks about grit and creativity. The quality I keep looking for is quieter than both — and I think it’s what makes everything else possible.
If you could give 3 pieces of advice to your younger self, what would they be?
The tricky thing about advice to your younger self is that you probably wouldn’t have listened. But if I had to try — three things, in order of how much it would have mattered.
What’s the most useless thing I ever bought?
There’s one purchase I think about every time someone talks about impulse buying. It was expensive, well-intentioned, and I used it exactly once.
Probably more than I’m aware of. But there’s one I’ve noticed and consciously kept — because it turns out it does something useful, even if it looks strange from the outside.
Which daily spiritual practices do I have?
I don’t meditate on a cushion and I don’t journal every morning. My practices are less structured than that — but they’ve become non-negotiable in a way I didn’t expect.
If I could travel anywhere in the world, where would I like to go next?
There are places on my list for beauty, and places on my list for what they would teach me. The one I keep coming back to is on that second list.
What is the number one most valuable skill everyone should master?
Not communication, not time management, not coding. The skill I’d put above all of those is older and less glamorous — and yet almost nobody deliberately works on it.
Is there a motto or principle I live by?
I’ve heard a lot of mottos that sound good but collapse under pressure. The one I keep returning to is almost embarrassingly simple — but it’s the one I actually use.
What is something I used to value that I don’t value anymore?
It was something most people still consider worth chasing. Letting go of it felt like giving something up — until I noticed how much space it freed.
What is the part I love most about learning languages?
It’s not the vocabulary or the grammar. The thing I love most about learning a new language is the moment when you realize you’re thinking slightly differently than you did before.
What Got Me Into Riding a Motorbike — and Why I Love It?
The first time I rode, I was terrified. The second time, I understood why people who ride can’t stop talking about it. It’s not about speed — it’s about something harder to name.
Thought-
provoking Questions
Explore more thought provoking questions I’ve answered below.
Questions about
Creativity
What writing habits would I like to share with you?
My writing habits are less romantic than people imagine. No candlelit desk, no perfect morning routine. What actually works for me is simpler — and easier to steal.
Where do writers get their ideas from?
The honest answer is: everywhere — and that’s the problem. Having too many ideas is just as paralyzing as having none. I share how I filter signal from noise.
Do you write with an audience in mind?
Yes and no — and getting this balance wrong is one of the most common mistakes writers make. Writing for everyone usually means reaching no one. I explain how I think about it.
What role do artists play in shaping social change?
Artists rarely have the loudest voice in the room. But they’re often the ones who change what the room is willing to hear. I make the case for why that matters more than it looks.
What motivates you to write? What keeps you going every day?
The honest answer isn’t inspiration — inspiration is unreliable. What keeps me going is something more structural, and far less exciting to talk about. But it’s the thing that actually works.
Reading 500 pages a day, as Warren Buffett does, is a goal that sounds inspiring and leads to paralysis. My approach starts with a woman who shows up to the gym every morning, orders a coffee, scans the room, and leaves without using a single machine.
What types of nonfiction books do I love to read?
Not all nonfiction is the same — there’s a whole category called literary nonfiction that reads more like a novel than a textbook, and it’s where my favourite books live.
What, in my view, is the power of storytelling?
As a child I would go to my parents’ bookshelf before I could read properly — just to hold the books, inspect the covers, inhale the pages. That pull never left. I’ve tried for years to explain it in exact words, and this is my best attempt so far.
Has my taste in books changed over the years?
The books I loved at 20 are very different from what I reach for now. That shift tells you something about how you’ve changed — which is why I find the question more interesting than it first appears.
Thoughtful Questions about
Work & My platform
Is it more important to do what you love or to love what you are doing?
This question sounds like a riddle — and it is, a little. The answer I landed on surprised me, and it’s not the one most career advice gives you.
What is the core vision driving my blog’s content and purpose?
I’ve resisted defining it too tightly — because a blog that tries to be everything becomes nothing. What I keep coming back to is one word, and this piece explains what that word means in practice.
How much of success do I attribute to luck versus hard work?
The honest answer is uncomfortable for both sides of this debate. Luck matters more than most successful people admit — and effort matters more than most lucky people acknowledge.
When does self-promotion feel authentic to me?
Self-promotion done wrong feels like bragging. Done right, it feels like an invitation. I’ve been thinking about where exactly that line is — and what makes the difference.
How do I advise readers to tackle procrastination and stay motivated?
Most procrastination advice tells you to start. Mine tells you when to stop. Knowing when to quit is an underrated skill — and one that took me too long to learn.
Why is ownership everything to me?
Ownership is one of those words that sounds abstract until you lose it. I write about what it means to own your work, your decisions, and your outcomes — and why I’ve made it a non-negotiable.
What do I love most about my newsletter?
It’s not the open rates. It’s a quality of attention that doesn’t exist anywhere else online. I try to explain what makes a newsletter different from every other way of reaching people.
Examples of other personal blogs that I’d recommend
Most blogs are trying to rank on Google. The ones I love are written as if Google doesn’t exist. Here are the ones I actually read — and what makes them worth your time.
If I were starting today with no audience, what would I focus on first?
Not a product, not a platform, not a content strategy. The scarce resource today isn’t tools — it’s trust. An audience isn’t something you accumulate. It’s something you build by making promises — and keeping them.
Why did I choose this medium for expressing my creativity?
Writing online is an unusual choice — it’s slow, it’s public, and the feedback loop is unpredictable. Here’s why I keep choosing it anyway.
What is the one thing I want readers to take away from my writings?
Not information. Not inspiration, exactly. The one thing I want is harder to measure than both — and yet I can always tell when it’s worked.
Thoughtful Questions about
The World
What’s a quiet cause I wish more people cared about?
Some causes get a lot of attention because they photograph well. The one I write about here is harder to see — which is exactly why it stays underfunded. I’ve been thinking about it for years and this is the first time I’ve written it down properly.
