Don’t be a dabbler

I started playing racquet ball. It looked fun.

I started playing. HOly shit this is fun.

I was smashing the ball against the wall.

I even went out and bought goggles & short shorts. Yes, I’m doing this.

But I start playing with a friend who’s better than me. He crushed me.

I fought back, day after day. But I can’t win. He’s been playing forever, I just started.

Fuck this sport. Who wants to be trapped in a box for hours anyways?

I’m going to play a REAL sport, like Tennis.

So I go outside to the Tennis court. Ah the fresh air. This is so much better than that sweaty box. Those schmucks playing racquet ball are missing out.

I start rallying. This is great. In fact, my racquet ball skills come in handy.

I buy a sweet tennis racket. I’m rafa nadal in this bitch.

Unfortunately, my backhand sucks.

I try it 1-handed, 2 handed. There’s no power. No coordination.

Fuck this sport. Who wants to sweat around in the sun all day?

So I decide to try Golf.

fuck.

29 years of wisdom tell me that my success comes down to how I handle plateaus.

Let me introduce 3 types of people. Which one are you?

The stresser-achiever

I ran into a lot of these people at Duke.

They grind through everything. They are stressed the whole time. Eventually they burn out. (👋consultants 👋bankers)

The Dabbler

This used to be me. Work hard. Have fun. Love making rapid progress.

Progress stops. Motivation drops. Fuck this. I’m going to go do THAT instead.

The Master

The master knows how progress actually happens.

When a master hits a plateau:

She does not panic like the stressor-achiever.

She does not quit like the dabbler

She simply says “ah…a plateau….to be expected.” She greets plateaus like an old friend. Part & parcel of the journey.

HOW TO GET UNSTUCK:

Here’s how I get out of plateaus. I wonder what others do?

1. Change My State — when you feel frustrated, tired or shitty — you cannot get the creative energy to break out. Music. Pushups. Fresh air. Boom, motion>changes>emotion, instantly.
2. Get Clear — I write down. Why am I doing this? What do I want out of this?
3. Bring in a mentor — I immediately ping someone in my braintrust. I recently heard of a technique in programming called “Rubber Ducking” which sounds perfect. Buy a rubber duck. Put it on your desk. When you get stuck, talk to the duck. The act of saying it out loud will often bubble up the right answer.
4. Time Box It — I am best when I have a time constraint. This throws perfectionism out the window.