The door is unlocked

"Never confuse movement with action."
– Ernest Hemingway

The following tweet from Sahil Lavingia, Gumroad's CEO, resonates deeply with me. So much so, that I saw a picture I took of a door in my photo gallery, immediately thought of this post, and shared a few quick reflections back on my Instagram:

Some rooms look inaccessible. You may stare at the door for years, yearning for what's on the other side.

And when you finally work up the courage to try the door, you realize it's unlocked.

— Sahil (@shl) January 18, 2020

How many times have you gotten stuck between "I want" and "I do?". So many people get stuck preparing for that first step for too long when the real work comes after taking the leap.

Want to start a blog as a software developer? Don't build one from scratch with the latest tech; just start writing on any platform. Your room is the article, not the blogging platform. The blogging platform is the door.

I get it: it's tempting to think that if we only did this and that, we would be set up for success. But we are not: we are procrastinating because we are afraid of what will happen and because we feel we need to have everything 100% clear before we even begin. But we won't have anything 100% clear ever, and we will only succeed if we expose ourselves:

• You write good articles by writing bad articles and getting better.
• You write reliable code by learning from past bugs you've created.
• You design great UIs by understanding what's clear to your user from past iterations.

You don't achieve things by watching others work, either: you have to get out and start walking your path, and learning from others along the way. The best designers and developers, and anyone for that matter, are the best because they've put in the hours and the deliberate practice to their craft. There is no accident.

Default to action. Reach out for the door, and you will be surprised to see how different things are when you grab the handle. Even if it doesn't open at first, you'll be closer than ever to open it, and you'll know much better what to do from there.

Some links for you

What's Your Company's Emergency Remote Work Plan?

Article

With Coronavirus spreading, there's so many companies resorting into remote work. While I've been working remotely for 6 years now, and I love it, I fear that this being the first stint at remote work in many companies can lead to a pretty bad experience on what remote is: which would leave us with more people opposed to remote work once the emergency clears out.

This is a great starter guide by HBR that could streamline your organization and, even if nothing happens, will leave you more organized.

The Sliding Scale of Giving a Fuck

Post

If you've read this far, this is my gift for you. It is an incredible article by Cap Watkins. So much so, that I think it warrants one (or many) emails.

It presents a framework to navigate most situations in life and business. A quick check to see clearly how you feel about something, because if everything is a matter of life-or-death to you, you'll die many times.