Congressional Budget Office
A federal agency that publishes budget and economic analyses for Congress.
Where Congressional Budget Office comes up1 episode or test
- Read only executive summaries
- Summaries rarely over 30 pages
- Read the whole report
- Did work others found boring
Outworking skimmers gave him an early edge
From Ezra Klein, own account
What was said about Congressional Budget Office
Reading full CBO reports gave Ezra Klein an early edge over skimmers. Early in his career, Klein says, most people read only the executive summaries of Congressional Budget Office reports, which are rarely over 30 pages. Reading the whole report was a big opportunity for a young journalist, because you can beat people by doing work they find too boring.
Klein wrote a commencement address, never delivered, titled 'just do the work' or in this case 'do the reading'. His line: "You could just beat people by outworking them".
Ezra Klein Gives His Best Writing Advice
Early in Klein's career many people read only the executive summaries of its reports of about 30 pages, so reading the full report was an easy edge.
Reading full CBO reports gave Ezra Klein an early edge over skimmers. Early in his career, Klein says, most people read only the executive summaries of Congressional Budget Office reports, which are rarely over 30 pages. Reading the whole report was a big opportunity for a young journalist, because you can beat people by doing work they find too boring.
Klein wrote a commencement address, never delivered, titled 'just do the work' or in this case 'do the reading'. His line: "You could just beat people by outworking them".
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