You’ve probably heard it before – I know I have.. and probably not in a software development context. Of-course, this is a very general rule which again applies to many aspects of life. Since by essence this is quite a broad notion, today I’m going to be composing more of a life coach post instead of software development. But it’s easy to project it to that context afterwards.
Getting Started
We constantly find ourselves being consumed by our daily lives and obligations that it becomes literally a battle against time to make ends meet. This of-course undermines insidiously the more spiritual aspect of life – motivation, creativity, inspiration, innovation, meditation, virtues. Surviving at all cost becomes the center of life and the spiritual part becomes a.. luxury. I won’t go into a rant post, so I’m just going to say it should be the other way around, having as center the more spiritual aspect of life, because that is the actual source of energy for the physical to manifest and function properly.
Beyond the drama, mamma, it’s not that we don’t really practice spirituality in our daily lives – we would probably go nuts if we didn’t – it’s just that the stagnant loop and system feeds itself and protests at and tries to squash any effort of non-conformity – and, sadly, this is contagious leading to further resistance by our circles and environment.
“Demetris, whatever does this have to do with ‘the more you do it’ thingy?”
Exactly – it’s all about mentality – a more spiritual aspect. The ground needs to be prepared first. It will take effort to break the loop, and you need to be prepared for it. You need to sacrifice that little time (from all unproductive and energy draining activities) once in a while to make that extra mile that gets you out of your false comfort zone and do whatever it is that you feel the need to do to fulfill your purpose or destiny – it’s there: you feel it, you know it. Oh, and by “once in a while” I certainly mean daily, because the gravity of the matter pulls you back to that.. (pause for dramatization).. fallen and static state.
So, now that we have.. aligned our thoughts, let’s get started!
Start Sloppy, End Professionally
“I’ll start tomorrow”
“Just after I finish this”
Oh, really? Goodbye.
I kid. I understand. It’s the system. I won’t repeat what I’ve already mentioned in the previous section. Instead, I’ll teach you how to fight. And this is how you do it: you press “Start”. Pressing that “Start” button means accepting the fact that right now you’ll make a little sacrifice to do what you have to do.
“It won’t be as good as it would be if I had the right time”
“I am tired from all the other stuff going on”
NO!
First of all, unless you press “Start” you are not going anywhere.
Period.
Now, “anything” is better than “nothing”. I am not fond off sloppy work, at all, especially if I have the option to have something done with perfection, but in comparison to “doing nothing”, “anything” is infinitely more. Don’t get me wrong. Sometimes it’s better to do nothing.. by letting a professional do it for you – the right professional, that is.
The shade..
On every effort, on every pass, you WILL get better because you’ll strengthen yourself. You’ll find it easier to re-start (resume), easier to perform, easier to continue and easier to repeat. This constant betterment will eventually result in nothing less than a professional.
Use Resistance as Validation
So, we’ve began our journey to finally.. doing it!
But, if you find yourself inexplicably procrastinating or feeling disheartened it means you may be onto something. If you find your circles or environment delaying you, or even worse, preventing you, again, you may be onto something.
So, instead of losing energy from all sorts of resistance, from internal to external, you may utilize it to your advantage and feed from it; use it as a form of validation. Your.. “gut feeling”.. will help you through to discriminate between what is just plain worrying, what is actually going wrong and what is actually going right. You want to be doing the right thing, the right way and dealing with any wrongs that come in your way.. the right way.
Way.
Getting Better
Doing something again and again is like in one word: training. Becoming better and good at something almost comes naturally, as if we are gradually programming ourselves. But it doesn’t end there. When we do something again and again, once we’ve achieved a skillful level, we start to process it to an even deeper level; even at the level of our subconscious, which is remarkable. We may start calculating new ways through which we can execute that something even better. And that may in fact be the point at which not only improvement occurs but actual breakthrough.
Positive Feedback
The process of starting, at first, may feel like a.. drag. And that is exactly why it is important to overcome this initial obstacle. Because once that is out of the way the process begins to feed it self. The first pass disciplines for a second pass and the second pass motivates for a third pass and the third pass inspires for a fourth pass and a fourth pass empowers for a firth pass and so on.. This positive feedback, or loop, multiplies our efforts’ effectiveness every time we perform and that improves not only quantity but also quality.
Living for It
Whatever it is that you’ve been putting aside for so long now becomes one of the core ingredients of your life. It keeps you active in the aspects you’ve been neglecting and that, not only paints the monochrome scenery but also, brings about a feeling of fulfillment.
And that’s not all – doing means going forward – not via time but via actions. Past is no longer determined by time but by our actions. You want for something to really belong in the past? Don’t wait for the future – build one. Doing means Healing. Healing means Life. Too soon? This is a whole new post to discuss. Maybe later..
And since we’ve talked about positive feedback and multiplying, life is based on actual multiplying. No, really. Living organisms multiply their cells for growth and regeneration.
Just Do It
There’s not much to say about this after everything that’s been said.
Oh, you are still here? Go get to WERK!
If you had the time to read up to this point, you’ve already made your first sacrifice. Thank you.
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