johnmaconline

You’re following an invisible script. So am I.

The rules aren’t written down anywhere, but they guide our decisions, whether we realize it or not. They come from deeply ingrained beliefs we inherit from family, community, and The World. They tell us what’s normal, what’s expected, and what’s possible.

And most of the time, we don’t question them.

“Go to college and get a job.”
“Buy a house with the white picket fence.”
“Never quit.”
“Money does/doesn’t matter.”
“The smart people think like this.”
“That’s too risky.”
“You can’t be a if you think _“

These scripts operate in the background, shaping our choices without our permission.

Who told you that? Is it actually true? What if the opposite were true?

Maybe it’s time we rewrote some of our scripts.

If you’re familiar with Bob Ross then you’re familiar with happy accidents.

“We don’t make mistakes. We just have happy accidents.” 

Delivered in his trademark calm, soothing, eternally optimistic demeanor. 

He viewed any “mistaken” brushstroke or color combination as an opportunity to add character and uniqueness to a painting — even if unplanned. Each accident could lead to beautiful and unexpected results, making each piece more interesting and personal.

He’d turn an unintended dark splotch into a bush or a light splotch into a reflection on a lake. He’d turn an errant brush stroke into a bird or a cloud.

He made you feel like you could do it. You, a beginner without ever having picked up a brush, could create something artistically satisfying and beautiful. Even experienced pros make mistakes and encounter unexpected moments. It’s all about how you deal with them. He helped you frame a perspective of experimenting without fear. 

During its original run from 1983 to 1994, Ross’s The Joy of Painting attracted over 80 million global viewers. I was one of them. I started to view titanium white and dark sienna as characters in the show. He struck a chord. 

Try stuff. Embrace the unexpected. See accidents as opportinities. You can do it.

We don’t make mistakes. We just have happy accidents.

It used to be the exclusive domain of luxury goods, but now everyone cares.

Packaging matters.

YouTube is stocked full of unboxing videos and package rating videos.

Packaging is what you see first. What you hold first. What you feel first. Packaging signals that what’s inside is special, satisfying, and important. What do you want your packaging to say about what’s inside?

What’s inside matters. Of course, it does. Ultimately, it’s what’s inside that matters the most.

However, just like your messaging, your packaging matters. No matter what you’re packaging.

Some days start to get away from you.

I’m not talking about the flow, necessary wandering, or spurious opportunities that pop up and you should follow. You know what I’m talking about — the “all of a sudden it’s lunch time and you realize you’ve been working on everything, yet nothing.” You got 400 tabs in the browser open. Windows scattered all over the desktop. Papers strewn about the desk. 

That’s Resistance.

But its OK. You can stop it here. You can pull it back and get on track. Here’s what works for me.

First, grab your list. Or, if you didn’t actually make one, do it now. Second, pick something you can knock off right now. Like a 5-minute kinda task. It doesn’t have to be the most important. It doesn’t even have to be something that’s requiredfor today, but it has to be useful. 

Schedule the appointment.
Send the email.
Review the document.
Create the Pull Request.
Submit the expense form.

It’s NOT:

Clean your desk.
Clean your inbox.
Closing tabs and windows. 
Organizing. 
Getting a snack.
Taking a shower. 

Those are Resistance tasks. They’re not helping you. 

It can be an almost mindless task, but it’s gotta be productive. It’s gotta help you move forward. 

Do it now and then cross it off. One down. 

That’s how you pull it back. Now you’re on your way. 

You might have the greatest product on earth, but if nobody knows about it, it will fail.

You might have the greatest marketing and messaging about your product on earth, but if your product isn’t any good, you will fail.

It’s both-and.

It’s a spectrum, of course. Great messaging can pull along mediocre products, and a great product can weave itself into the culture through mediocre messaging.

But make no mistake — you’re gonna need both.

We live in a world obsessed with speed. 

“Go fast and break things.” 
“First to market wins.” 
“Hustle harder.”

Sometimes, that’s what we need to do.

Sprint when feedback matters more than perfection.
Sprint if it’s a two-way door decision. 
Sprint if you need the momentum to fuel the team. 

But if you’re sprinting in the wrong direction, you might not get to where you want to go. Sometimes, we should stroll a bit.

“Measure twice. Cut once.”
“Haste makes waste.”
“Well begun is half done.”

Stroll if the stakes are high and failure is permanent. 
Stroll if it’s a one-way door decision.
Stroll when reflection creates insight. 

It’s not all or nothing, however. Fast and slow aren’t enemies. They’re partners. 

If you’re a leader, get good at knowing how and when to shift gears.

Sprint to learn. Stroll to decide.

It sucks out there. Just keep scrolling.

It’s amazing out there. Just keep scrolling.

You want more of that? Just keep scrolling.

You want more stuff? Just keep scrolling.

You want more distractions? Just keep scrolling.

You want more titillation? Just keep scrolling.

You want more reasons? Just keep scrolling.

You want more “I told you so?” Just keep scrolling.

Your device and The World behind it will happily provide you with all of whatever you want. You just have to keep scrolling.

Because that’s what they want.

Ghandi’s famous quote goes like this:

“Be the change you wish to see in the world.”

Except Ghandi never said that. Or, at least, not quite like that. Here’s what he really said:

“If we could change ourselves, the tendencies in the world would also change. As a man changes his own nature, so does the attitude of the world change towards him.”

The quote we use today more closely resembles a quote from the early 70s by a Brooklyn educator named Arlene Lorrance who was the creator of an effort called THE LOVE PROJECT. 

“One way to start a preventative program is to be the change you want to see happen.That is the essence and substance of the simple and successful endeavor known as THE LOVE PROJECT.”

This, of course, isn’t exactly the quote either. Which begs the question: Where did it come from? (Or, at least, it begs the question from my engineer self.) 

No one, apparently.

(Note: Here’s an interesting article discussing the origin story for that quote.) 

But here’s the thing — it doesn’t matter. It’s a powerful quote, regardless of it’s factual origin, because it conveys a powerful message that resonates with us as humans.

It starts with you. Be the change. 

When I first started working as an intern at GE Astrospace, my entire work experience until that point was in situations where the boss always told me what to do.

“Paint that window.”
“Clean those dishes.”
“Make that pizza.”

And when I was done, I’d ask the boss what to do next.

“Dig that hole.”
“Gather the trash.”
“Prepare the ingredients for tomorrow.”

This is how I thought work worked. I have a boss. The boss tells me what to do.

Therefore, for the first couple weeks of my internship, I beat a worn path between my desk and the boss’s desk, constantly asking him what I should do.

“Here, read this to learn about total dose testing.”

I’d do it, and an hour and a half later, “OK, done. What should I do now?” Like a child.

Then he snapped.

“I can’t constantly be telling what to do. You’re gonna have to figure it out. Talk to Jim. Talk to Rob. It’s time to act like a grown up here.”

Yes, he said it was time to act like a grown-up.

Oof.

And then I started to figure it out.

Once you figure out how work works, you’ll never worry about AI taking your job.