Things to remind myself about
What makes work good is time to read, think, slow down, and create a rich inner life. In other words, good work comes from slowing the fuck down and trusting that good ideas will come through if we give ourselves enough time and space to see them.
Creativity requires connecting the dots, and connecting the dots requires allowing time for my subconscious to consolidate my ideas and make associations. This means that, from time to time, I need to just stare out the window and do nothing.
This doesn’t feel productive, even though it is.
This doesn’t feel productive, even though it is.
Ozan Varol • You’re doing better than you think. Here’s why. - Ozan Varol
A degree of relaxation is necessary to have good ideas because one doesn't have them so much as receive them—and one cannot receive anything with clenched fists.
The thing about patience is that you need to practice deliberately by slowing yourself down, taking a break, and not following the crowd.
By slowing down, you might not get to the finish line first. You might get an average result. But you are also more likely to stay in the game longer because you avoid burning yourself out over the short run.
By slowing down, you might not get to the finish line first. You might get an average result. But you are also more likely to stay in the game longer because you avoid burning yourself out over the short run.
My countervailing advice to people trying to understand something is: go slow. Read slowly, think slowly, really spend time pondering the thing. Start by thinking about the question yourself before reading a bunch of stuff about it. A week or a month of continuous pondering about a question will get you surprisingly far.