Relies on personal experience much too strongly for what?

Funny, I like Swimmer's articles for exactly that reason - they've very relate-able and demonstrate techniques of framing and analyzing a problem. There's also a certain helpfulness that comes from simply going "hey, someone else shares this trait with me! Clearly I can have this trait and still succeed at rationality, since she's doing it".

Rhwawn,

I am new to this community, so perhaps you can help me understand why you think a personal anecdote weakens/detracts from an essay.

You've certainly pointed out a trend, but I too would disagree about it being a problem.

It's uncommon to find somebody who's both willing to be very open about the sort of things she writes about, and at the same time capable of deep introspection and self-reflection. I find her articles very useful and interesting.

Perhaps adding an "anecdote" tag can address this issue. That way, those of us (myself included) who find this sort of post useful can read them, and those who do not can avoid them.

I enjoy any articles that feature people trying.