The Futility of Utility

"I don't know where I'm going, but I know exactly how to get there."

I recently heard this quote from Boyd Varty. It spoke to me, because one of my greatest fears is not getting to where I want to be. Not because I don't think I'll get there, but because I don't know where "there" is. I don't know what I want to be , do or accomplish . I don't know ... See more

The trouble with planning is that it only works for achievements you can describe in advance. You can win a gold medal or get rich by deciding to as a child and then tenaciously pursuing that goal, but you can't discover natural selection that way.

I think for most people who want to do great work, the right strategy is not to plan too much. At each... See more

Everyone I know is scheming for the future. They’ve got big goals and get up every day and work like mad to try to achieve them. I’ve always found something odd about that: Despite all this effort, people don’t seem to think too much about the specifics of what would happen after their goal is achieved.

Can you learn to enjoy the process as the end in itself, not the means?

In the beginning, the dissonance between the scale of your aspirations and the reality of your days will riddle you with anxiety. You will be tempted to strip the unknown of its surprises and travel to the future: What if my customers churn? What if a competitor introduces a be... See more