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I usually like to save my existential crises for later in the week, but thanks for helping me dive right into it on a Monday morning.

mitchty 8y ago
Its really not anything more than that silly yoda quote "do or do not there is no try". Motivation/willpower is a very weak way to get things done, approach it instead with "I'll just write one line of code today/work on it for 15 minutes straight/document one thing/design one function". You'll likely find that once you start, you'll do more than you planned, the crux is almost always the start. You look at the entire body of work and think "its too much to do in one sitting", but ultimately thats your reptile brain talking you out of expending energy needlessly. So just use that little mind hack to get you out of your cognitive dissonance and started. And if the prior posters statement gets you into an existential crisis, I'd start reading up on the stoics, buddhists, etc... Yes even if you're an atheist/whatever, accepting ones fate in the universe has no meaning is ultimately relieving. Or as a Shinto priest once told me: Life is a dance, dance to the music while it plays, you may not get another chance to dance!
- MarsAscendant 8y ago
  > And if the prior posters statement gets you into an existential crisis, I'd start reading up on the stoics, buddhists, etc... Not that it's not a good advice (I'm quite enjoying Meditations by Marcus Aurelius), but I'm fairly certain the above-poster said so in jest.
thomk 8y ago
This comment made me burst out laughing. Well done sir.
aecorredor 8y ago
HAHAHA
iliomad 8y ago
Also laughed out loud at this. Thanks :) It's also quite a freeing way of approaching a project - as long as I don't go to the extreme of not caring at all! Reminds me of the "pale blue dot" perspective - when stressed visualise planet earth from further and further away.....

mitchty 8y ago

Its really not anything more than that silly yoda quote "do or do not there is no try". Motivation/willpower is a very weak way to get things done, approach it instead with "I'll just write one line of code today/work on it for 15 minutes straight/document one thing/design one function". You'll likely find that once you start, you'll do more than you planned, the crux is almost always the start. You look at the entire body of work and think "its too much to do in one sitting", but ultimately thats your reptile brain talking you out of expending energy needlessly. So just use that little mind hack to get you out of your cognitive dissonance and started. And if the prior posters statement gets you into an existential crisis, I'd start reading up on the stoics, buddhists, etc... Yes even if you're an atheist/whatever, accepting ones fate in the universe has no meaning is ultimately relieving. Or as a Shinto priest once told me: Life is a dance, dance to the music while it plays, you may not get another chance to dance!

MarsAscendant 8y ago
> And if the prior posters statement gets you into an existential crisis, I'd start reading up on the stoics, buddhists, etc... Not that it's not a good advice (I'm quite enjoying Meditations by Marcus Aurelius), but I'm fairly certain the above-poster said so in jest.

thomk 8y ago

This comment made me burst out laughing. Well done sir.

aecorredor 8y ago

HAHAHA

iliomad 8y ago

Also laughed out loud at this. Thanks :) It's also quite a freeing way of approaching a project - as long as I don't go to the extreme of not caring at all! Reminds me of the "pale blue dot" perspective - when stressed visualise planet earth from further and further away.....