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I had a goal of programming every morning for an hour, and it wouldn’t stick… Once I dropped any pretense of making money, or getting anything out of it other t

I had a goal of programming every morning for an hour, and it wouldn’t stick… Once I dropped any pretense of making money, or getting anything out of it other than enjoying the craft, it has finally stuck.

VelesDude 3y ago
There is the idea that I kind of subscribe too but not entirely, that if you want to improve yourself - you would just do it rather than force it. In that trying to force it is like Sisyphus. In giving up the battle, you are freed up to actually do it. So your exaple is great, you had a good intention but once you gave up that structure then you actually got to the goal.
- aerhardt 3y ago
  It still takes discipline, I don't wake up every morning dying to program - sometimes the task at hand is boring, sometimes the motivation is not there, sometimes a little bit of a and a little bit of b. And I still code to a good standard of quality: I try to balance not being overly perfectionist, with making my practice deliberate so that I keep improving. For example, I test, refactor, document and plan with a backlog. But removing users from the equation lifts a massive weight from my shoulders. Like the article says, I leave that for work.
ponow 3y ago
So, do the habit every day, but don't do it because of any secondary goal (like money), other than the immediate goal doing the habit itself. Problem is, if you haven't completely bought into the habit yet, and it feels uncomfortable relative to other options, I don't know that you can avoid asking yourself "why" you're doing the habit. In your example, I guess you already find programming fascinating, but hadn't found the discipline to practice regularly. But I still don't know how many people wouldn't abandon developing the habit if they get stuck in the weeds. Imagine learning the violin, because you've liked to listen to classical music. It takes a lot of faith when you're stuck hearing how bad you sound at the beginning, and how you have to duck nasty glances or comments from others in your household that have to endure your practicing. A secondary goal might be to be admitted to an orchestra and do concerts that your friends and family might attend. But that being "vanity" means that we should only focus on the primary goal of enjoying violin music. Again, I see many people getting lost in the weeds without secondary goals of some sort acting as a lodestar.

VelesDude 3y ago

There is the idea that I kind of subscribe too but not entirely, that if you want to improve yourself - you would just do it rather than force it. In that trying to force it is like Sisyphus. In giving up the battle, you are freed up to actually do it. So your exaple is great, you had a good intention but once you gave up that structure then you actually got to the goal.

aerhardt 3y ago
It still takes discipline, I don't wake up every morning dying to program - sometimes the task at hand is boring, sometimes the motivation is not there, sometimes a little bit of a and a little bit of b. And I still code to a good standard of quality: I try to balance not being overly perfectionist, with making my practice deliberate so that I keep improving. For example, I test, refactor, document and plan with a backlog. But removing users from the equation lifts a massive weight from my shoulders. Like the article says, I leave that for work.

ponow 3y ago

So, do the habit every day, but don't do it because of any secondary goal (like money), other than the immediate goal doing the habit itself. Problem is, if you haven't completely bought into the habit yet, and it feels uncomfortable relative to other options, I don't know that you can avoid asking yourself "why" you're doing the habit. In your example, I guess you already find programming fascinating, but hadn't found the discipline to practice regularly. But I still don't know how many people wouldn't abandon developing the habit if they get stuck in the weeds. Imagine learning the violin, because you've liked to listen to classical music. It takes a lot of faith when you're stuck hearing how bad you sound at the beginning, and how you have to duck nasty glances or comments from others in your household that have to endure your practicing. A secondary goal might be to be admitted to an orchestra and do concerts that your friends and family might attend. But that being "vanity" means that we should only focus on the primary goal of enjoying violin music. Again, I see many people getting lost in the weeds without secondary goals of some sort acting as a lodestar.