Reminders to myself

It’s almost always better to over-communicate than under-communicate.

What’s obvious to you may not be obvious to others, and vice versa.

You control the inputs, not the output.

Focus on what you can do. The effort. The habits. The choices.

Your ego distorts your view of the world.

If you want to see things as they really are, be curious. Ask questions.

Always prioritize correctness over speed.

When you allow yourself to be more you around other people,
you give them permission to be more themselves too.

Every time you tell someone you will do something and then you don’t do it,
their trust in you goes down.

Which things did you commit to a long time ago that you are still doing?

Even if you don’t believe in it anymore?

No matter how many of your desires come true, your baseline happiness will not change much.

When you get what you want, you feel excited for a short time.

Do. Then talk.

Don’t:

If you communicate something important to someone verbally and not in writing,
don’t expect them to remember it.

Not every product idea needs to become a company.

It is okay to build something just because you want to build it.

If your investment strategy is to put money into something because it will “go up in the future,”
with no understanding of why or how,
then it is a bad investment strategy.

There are certain narratives that live in your mind about certain people.

These narratives can be so strong that even when new information appears that contradicts them,

Just because someone gets emotional while talking to you does not mean you also need to get emotional.

Their reaction is usually shaped by things that happened in the past,

When people close to you criticize you, they are usually coming from a good place.
They don’t want to belittle you.

Love yourself the way you love your family and friends.

Any product or service that requires users to significantly change their behavior in order to use it is likely to fail.

People don’t change their habits easily.

There is nothing more beautiful than a person who wants to grow.

Someone who learns from their past mistakes and tries not to repeat them.

It’s not the smartest people who win.
It’s the ones who learn the fastest from their mistakes.

What if you’re wrong and everyone else is right?

Always consider that possibility. Take it seriously.

If you do it now, you won’t have to do it later.

You are good enough. You don’t need to achieve anything in the future to prove your worth.

You’ve done things you regret. Everyone has.

Don’t give unsolicited advice.
Most people aren’t looking for solutions — they’re looking to be understood.

You have to learn how to be okay with disappointing people.
It’s impossible to live your life and please everyone at the same time.

There is nothing braver than asking for help.
Do it as often as you need.
It has always helped you.

Looking for project ideas?

Go out into the world and talk to people.

There is no “best” or “worst.”
There’s only better or worse.

Everything will be fine eventually.
It always has been, and it always will be.

Say things even if they feel obvious to you.
Everyone has a different brain and a different life experience.

How much did you think about other people today?
That's probably about the same amount they thought about you.

You vs you. Always.

Comparing yourself to anyone else is one of the fastest ways to feel miserable.

Jealous of someone else's success?

Aim that jealousy at the effort they put in to get there.

Comparing yourself to your peers and feeling behind?

Comparing yourself to others is never a good idea.

Talking to someone?

Don't focus on the words.

Care that an important problem gets solved.
Don't care that you are the one who solves it.

Trying to explain something to someone?

It's hard. Really hard.

Remember this:

A 45 minute meeting can end after 11 minutes.

Forget about being a “leader.”

Be the best cheerleader instead.

All good advice eventually points to one thing:

Keep improving yourself.

You know who cares the most about your title at work?

You.

You’re always going to be a work in progress.

And that’s exactly how it should be.

Exponential growth is real. It’s one of the fundamental laws of the universe.

So what does that mean for you?

When someone says
"I don’t believe you can do that"

"But you said that 10 years ago..."

Wait.

Self sacrifice should be the last resort.
Do not self sacrifice by default.

It’s not the mistake that gets you into trouble.

It’s how you respond to the mistake

It is ok to mess up.
Everyone does. It is part of being alive.

If your default response is worry or explosions
people will eventually stop telling you important things.

Tiny daily improvements add up in ways that feel impossible in the moment.

If you get just a little better every day the compounding will take care of the rest.

You can do so much in this life
if you're ok with people laughing at you
for two seconds.

You cannot change other people's behavior.
You can only change your own.

"I'm just not born to do that... so why try?"

Oh really?

Life is struggle.
As you grow, you’ll solve the problems you have now, but new ones will replace them.

Arguments are usually won by the person who speaks more eloquently.
Don’t be fooled by that.

New rule.
You’re not allowed to judge your ability at something until you’ve done it for at least a year.

After you finish a project, document it.
It can be tiny. It can be rough. Just capture something.

Be shameless about learning from other people.
Age, background, money, intelligence, appearance... none of it matters.

In your pursuit of success, make sure you do not trap yourself.
If you get everything you thought you wanted but end up miserable, that is not success.

Do not worry about your salary.
And do not compare it with anyone else.

People mirror each other without realizing it.

But remember this:

Nothing great will happen if you live your life on autopilot.

Everything you're good at now was something you were once bad at.

Remember that as you get older.

Your feelings are never invalid.

Find a safe place to express them.

Always do things in a way that makes sense to you.

Even if it takes longer.

You and your life partner are on the same team.

Remember this when you find yourself in an argument.

Before you take someone's advice, look at their life.

Are they living in a way you want to move toward?

There is no best or worst.

There is only better or worse.

Try not to make the same mistake twice.

If you do that consistently, you become truly dangerous.

The only thing that’s truly under your control is the doing part.

Do it with as much attention as you can.

Looking for project ideas?

Go out into the world and talk to people.

Work on an idea only after the initial excitement fades.

In most cases, once the hype dies down, you will not even want to work on the idea that felt exciting just a little while ago.

In whatever you create, put as much of yourself into it as you can.

Your perspective and your voice are what make the work meaningful.

It’s easy to wonder what other people think of you.

But the truth is that most people are too busy thinking about themselves.

Having a passion for one thing is good.

But having a passion for learning is even better.

Whatever big thing you want to do in the future, break it down.

Find the smallest step toward it and start today.