johnmaconline

I wondered if it would get easier as the year wore on.

It got easier, but not in the way I was thinking. The writing itself didn’t get any easier. The commitment, however, did get easier.

I knew that each day I had to write (except for just a handful). At first, that was a daunting task. But as the year wore on, that commitment became something I looked forward to rather than dread. In fact, here I am, still going.

The writing, though. Still the same. Some days it flows. Others, well, it’s a cat fight.

I gave myself the 250 word limit to give myself permission to write and publish small bits. Short would be ok. 

But a curious thing happened along the way. Many times I found myself having to cut articles down to fit within 250 words. I didn’t expect that, but I started to learn the importance and power of editing. I know I’m too wordy (also when I speak). So the 250 word limit helped me focus the content. 

Sometimes I spent longer editing that I did writing. I think that’s a good thing. Many great writers talk about the importance of editing, removing unnecessary words and explanations, and honing the final product.

I have not always kept 250 words, but when I go above, I do so with intention. 

“If you eliminate the unnecessary words, the reader will have time to catch his breath and to think.”

– Ernest Hemmingway

“The first draft is just you telling yourself the story. The second draft is you telling the story to someone else.”

– Stephen King

“The more you leave out, the more powerful it will be.”

– Raymond Carver

My parameter was to publish each day, not write each day.

Not initially, though. Since my purpose is to get better at writing, my initial goal was to write to completion each day. Come hell or high water, I’d need to commit. Just f’n do it — David Goggins style. 

Then, as I designed the project and really thought about the necessary boundaries, I realized even with my best intentions and discipline, I just wouldn’t be able to get it done some days. I can’t always place my own needs above the needs of the groups I’m a part of. I’m a husband, dad, team leader, and team member. Although I’ve become very good at controlling my own time, empathy, leadership, and professionalism demand prioritizing other’s needs over my own sometimes.

Hence, publish every day. I knew I’d have to work ahead to do so. But how far?

For the first few weeks, I worked ahead by one day. I wrote each day and published that article the next morning. That was too close to the hairy edge, stressing me out. I missed my 8:44am deadline one day in November. 

Over the next few weeks, I pushed the pendulum too far the other way. At one point, I was ten days ahead. A curious thing happened — I found myself not as focused, not thinking about topics, and I even “just didn’t write” a few days. Ten days was too much cushion.

I found a happy medium. I worked ahead just enough that if I couldn’t write on a particular day, I wouldn’t miss the deadline, but I’d be uncomfortable enough that for sure I’d write the next day. 

The happy medium is between two and four days ahead. That’s where I’m at right now as I write this — two days ahead. 

I learned that too stressed doesn’t serve me, and neither does too comfortable. It’s such a fine line between clever and stupid. 

I purposely wanted to try writing different types of stories. 

I wasn’t sticking to a rigid timeline, as in, “OK, let’s try narrative personal stories for the next 6 weeks,” but I found that once I started with a genre, I tended to stay there for a bit. Like a mindset.

I didn’t have a schedule of story types, but looking back, I can roughly group them as follows:

• Observational opinions (I’d call it Seth Godin style).
• Self-improvement / Personal Development
• Narrative personal stories
• Success in today’s work culture, team building, leadership, and professionalism

The easiest for me to write was, by far, the observational opinions. I guess I have a lot of opinions that I’d like to share. 

The hardest was the narrative personal stories, especially the ones where I dug in and shared the emotions of the time (maybe still?). I kept saying to myself, “Don’t worry, nobody reads it anyway.” But almost surprisingly, I think these might be the most satisfying. I’m sure a connection exists between the difficulty of the inwardness and the satisfaction of getting it out. 

One exception is the story about working on the iPod with Apple. That flowed out like water down the falls — once started, it could not be stopped. First, I’ve told that story (in person and standing at the front of rooms) several times, so I’d already had its basic structure. But also, I’m still really angry about it. It happened 20 years ago, and I cannot let it go. It feels like yesterday. I can recall the emotions of that moment in a heartbeat. No professional part of me can see anything other than ineptitude, fear, and short-sightedness. Coulda, woulda, shoulda. Of course, none of us know the result of paths not taken, but the ripple effects of that single dastardly decision reach far and wide.

More to come…

Some observations from the “Every Day for a Year” project. 

I needed boundaries. 

Luckily, I recognized going in that I would need to bound the problem, or I would fail right away. Hence, the parameters. I knew this from writing articles for the last few years and developing software for 30 years. 

There’s a big lesson here. Namely, we sometimes think that creativity, problem-solving, and “our best work” require less or no boundaries, when in fact, boundaries, even strict boundaries, are the exact things we need to unlock progress. Our minds can only handle a limited number of variables at once. Therefore, eliminating some variables, even artificially, can help you make progress, eliminate the wrong path, and finish what you started. 

I do this quite a bit as a leader. When my team gets stuck or can’t get started, I bound the problem and eliminate some variables. 

I needed boundaries, so I created some. In hindsight, the two most important were publish every day at 8:44 am and 250 words. 

More to come…

Why writing?

The young me thinks this is just plain crazy. Essays? The teenage me thinks I’m an idiot. But somewhere in my adulthood, I got the bug for putting words on paper (rather, typing on a computer keyboard. I hate writing longhand). 

I like to make things. In fact, I’ve committed my entire professional life to making things (as an engineer and software developer). That part of me is just as satisfied with a completed article as it is with a computer program, fully automated test system, or set of shelves I’ve built from scratch in my garage. 

Start with a blank sheet. End with something. I live for that.

I would suck in the service industry. I would suck as a doctor or a lawyer. I know I suck at sales. But I’m good at making stuff, helping others make stuff, and leading teams that make stuff. It’s good to know something about yourself. 

I’ve been writing a bit now for about 7 1/2 years, or at least, that’s how long I’ve been publishing off-and-on-again blog posts here. Here is my very first, from May 5, 2016. It’s terrible, but I wanted to get better. To get better, I must continue to do it.

As I started writing, I began to notice and then appreciate the ability to get stuff out of my head. It helps me make sense of things. Most of these articles are just me explaining shit to myself. You’re a voyeur. 

And the last reason is that I hope to continue well into the twilight of my life. Maybe it’s fiction. Maybe it’s more and better articles. Maybe it’s something entirely different. 

No matter where you are or who you’re with, you can always write. 

When I committed to The250 project, I knew I had to create some parameters and boundaries. 

I had already been publishing articles on johmaconline for over six years. Sometimes, with months in between. The250 project was going to be about commitment and discipline. I could not keep trying to do what I was doing. 

It took me too long to write. I got too hung up on what it was. I struggled with topics. I struggled with my voice. I was way too focused on “making them good” (which, of course, is bullshit). I didn’t really have a set purpose.

So, I knew I needed parameters. These parameters, although in some ways limiting, in other ways would provide the exact set of boundaries to keep me on task. The parameters needed to define some of the things with which I struggled. That way, I didn’t have to think about them. I could focus on the writing itself.

The parameters:

1. When? Publish every day at 8:44 am Eastern time.
2. Publish, not necessarily write. I knew that there would be some days, for very good reasons (not lack of discipline), that I just wouldn’t get a chance to write. Therefore, my parameter was publish, not write.
3. 250 words or less. 250 words is generally considered a single page. Size matters.
4. Topic? Whatever. Allow myself to explore. OK, this one is really squishy, but I knew what I meant. I was going to have to dig a bit here. 
5. Done is better than good. Ship it, always. No matter what.

More to come over the next few days…

“You’re on a 365-day streak on jmaconline!”

That’s what WordPress just told me.

I did it. That was my goal. Publish something on The250 every day for a year. Here is the first post from this run. 

What was the purpose of this exercise?

Discipline — to commit to something each day, no matter what else was happening around me. Discipline is freedom. Many success and life coaches preach about the benefits. By honing your focus on smaller, daily actions, you make the larger, more daunting tasks seem achievable while also creating a life rich in purpose and meaning. 

Improvement — You wanna get better at something? Do it. Keep doing it with intention. 

Practice what you preach — Even though I’m no certified success coach, I am a leader, a Dad, and a mentor to some. Coaching doesn’t require that you have “been there, done that” (i.e., how many great players were also great coaches?). But, the type of leader I want to be is a servant leader. Part of serving is engaging in the practice. I have little respect for unhealthy doctors. 

To be a writer — You are because you do. Not because you have a degree or have been chosen by The World. You can choose yourself. I want to be a writer. I am a writer, and I will conduct myself as one. 

More to come about this project over the next several days…

Tension is an engine.

It moves us forward or backward. It pushes us side to side. It gets us off our butts.

In a world seeking instant gratification and easy answers, tension serves as a reminder that the journey matters as much as the destination.

Philadelphia passed 100 homicides for 2023 in March. The problem is guns. The problem is a progressive DA. 

Homicides in that same period (Jan – March) are down 14% from 2022. We’re definitely making progress. I’m scared to visit.

Over the last two years, the average global surface temperature is between 0.8 and 1 degree higher than 1965. We’re doomed if we don’t do something drastic over the next decade. That’s nothing. What are we worried about?

Teachers earn 25% more, on average, in states with collective bargaining, and school support staff earn 15% more. Teacher’s unions are an important and helpful resource. Teacher’s unions are ruining our public school systems. 

Facts are facts, but rarely do we discuss the facts. We discuss our interpretation of the facts. Then we use those interpretations as “fact-bludgeons.” See this fact here? This is why I’m right, and you’re wrong.

The answer lies outside of the facts. 

The key is not to eliminate subjectivity but to be accountable for our own views and respecting others’ views. Owning our subjective beliefs means acknowledging that while they may not be universally applicable, they are still a valid part of our personal narrative. Respecting others’ views acknowledges and validates their different life experiences.

And that’s not only acceptable, it’s essential for a nuanced understanding of the world and ourselves.