Part of the reason I haven’t been writing is because I have been reading more and more Merlin Mann these days. And while I’m not a writer, some of what he says resonates with me. I want to stop writing just for the sake of writing or putting more content out there. I want what I write to matter and be of good content. I want to produce worthwhile content.
This is not one of those meaningful posts, so if you want to skip the fluff, go ahead and skip this one.
A couple of years ago (okay, four at this point, but who’s counting) I posted an article on my new years resolution. My resolution was simply, “I will DO more!”. The article can be found on one of my legacy blogs: maczack.blogspot.com, along with other interesting things I wrote when I was young. To quote one paragraph that gave me the inspiration:
I recently re-watched the movie “Batman Begins” and was struck by a single line in the movie. “Its not who I am underneith, but what I do that defines me.” That really struck me hard, as I have always lived with the notion that it is enough to be a good person. This line means that being a good person is simply not enough. You have to do good things. I cannot succed at life if I am mearly a good/smart/intellegent/athetic person, I have to do things with my gift. I am not who I think I am, I am what I do with myself.
What I like about the “I will DO more!” resolution is that is easy to achieve. Okay, my goal might be to build a west coast version of the Empire State Building, but I’ll be happy with myself if I can just get the sketches down, because that is more than I have right now. People who talk about getting “in shape” have a notion of what they want to be at the end, and work towards that end. When they don’t see the end happing right away, they get discouraged.
One of my coaches at the moment has fundamentally altered my way of working. I no longer focus on the end result. I focus on the process. If I keep working the process, the end result will be better. I might not be a master of my craft now, but if I keep studying, someday I will. I’m no longer focused on being the best, or achieving this monumental accomplishment, I just focus on being better, doing better, achieving better. Eventually greatness will come.
I’ve been doing this “I will DO more!” type resolution for the past couple of years. Last years was “I will read more!”, and I did. This single unifying process that allows me to keep being productive every year.
This year, I’m a little stuck, there are bunch of new things I’d like to work on:
- Get in better shape
- Become a better programmer
- Be a better friend
- Become a better artist
- Write better articles
- Give more hugs
These are all important, to do each of them only requires minor steps in my general routine. So instead of one New Years resolution, this year I have six. Oh fun.
Just as a little aside, here are the books I read this past year (I’m sure I’m leaving some out, but they probably weren’t memorable):
- The Blind Side
- Code Complete 2
- The Cult of the Amateur
- Outliers
- The Creative Habit
- Web Form Design