It’s okay to start with a bit of guess work on a blank piece of paper. Most new and hard things often don’t have a map to follow.
At some point the guess work needs to turn into an estimate, maybe a plan, or even a commitment. At some point, guess work no longer becomes an excuse.
This makes sense, because when people succeed, they never give call it guess work.
I was recently reminded that when we make a decision we’re simultaneously saying ‘yes’ to one thing, and ‘no’ to everything else.
If we keep this idea in mind when making decisions, all of a sudden the bar for what we spend our time and energy on goes up dramatically.
I had a wonderful time in Prague last weekend with Maru and my in-laws. It’s a city famous for its beauty, and it more than delivered. I loved walking its streets, seeing its historical sights, and visiting its cafes and restaurants.
My two top highlights were (1) a tour on the history of the Jewish Quarter and the Jewish people in Prague, and (2) learning about the life and work of author, Franz Kafka—I loved eating in Cafe Louvre and Cafe Savoy and imagining him talking philosophy, politics, and writing with his friends.
As I’ve written about recently, I’ve been taking photos on film. Here are a few of my favourites of the wonderful Prague.
If you’ve ever played video games, you’re probably used to seeing the message “Game Over”. You’ve tried to beat the level, or a boss, but you either aren’t powerful enough yet, or you’ve yet to nail the mechanics.
But Game Over doesn’t mean your game is actually over, it’s an invite to try again. You weren’t good enough this time, but the game expects you to improve, to overcome, to learn from your errors, and to eventually succeed.
Maybe Game Over isn’t just for video games.
We visited Winston Churchill’s home today, the beautiful Chartwell House and accompanying gardens.
Great care has been taken to leave the house unchanged since Churchill’s death, and the volunteers are eager to share their deep knowledge about the place.
One thing that stood out to me was Churchill loved painting. He picked it up at 40 years old, and painted over 500 canvases.
He once said, “If it weren’t for painting, I could not live; I could not bear the strain of things.”
It was amazing to see this side of the man, and how he leaned so fervently into this creative pursuit at an age when many wouldn’t consider trying.
“Pay in four installments over the next six weeks,” says a buy now, pay later advertisement on the tube.
At the bottom there is the small print: something something about “unregulated credit”.
Nevertheless, the consumer shrugs, buys, and borrows from their next paycheck.
I get frustrated with euphemisms like “unregulated credit”.
I wish the risks of these products were more clearly stated.
Such as, the Financial Conduct Authority does not keep tabs on this business, they’ll likely charge you higher interest rates, their terms may be vague and hard to understand, they may not adhere to responsible lending practises or have a complaints process, you may wind up in a debt trap, suffer anxiety from aggressive collection practises, and your credit score could suffer.
Maybe we’d think differently about buy now, pay later if the ads were a little more honest.
I’m a big fan of any work where someone takes something complicated and makes it simple to understand.
Maybe it’s because I know it’s hard, or because I know it’s valuable, or because I know a lot of care and craft is required to do it.
Whatever the reason, when I see it, I enjoy it. I sometimes deconstruct it. And I try to learn from it.
The US election is in a few days, and understanding the electoral college system isn’t straightforward. So I appreciated this BBC article which breaks down how the system works and what each candidate needs to do to win. If you’re interested in understand it better, it’s worth a read.
There’s clearly thought, care, and craft that’s gone into producing this article, and it’s worth sharing and recognising.