“Don’t you all ever tell me you can’t do something” — A case for laying bricks

I’m having a tough time figuring out what to write about today. I know I owe you guys more tutorials and I know I need to write about something other than inspiration. But today I’m just struggling to figure out what to write about at all.

The thing is, I can’t think about it that way. Because I can’t build all of this at once. I can’t write a full course on how to program, develop a software product, and make money to live all at the same time. I have to build this all piece-by-piece. I have to work on something new, create something new each day that will be part of the larger picture.

And as I thought about that more, I think this relates a lot about Will Smith’s story about building a wall. You will have to watch the video below for the full story but the quick version of it is as follows.

Will Smith’s father tore down a wall when he and his brother were younger, then asked them both to rebuild it. As they got started it seemed like an impossible task, to build this 30 feet wide by 16 foot tall wall. But day-by-day after school, they mixed the concrete and laid each brick one-by-one.

It took them a year and a half, but on that final day, after they laid that last brick, they had a wall. They had accomplished something that seemed impossible, but they made the impossible possible.

After they laid that last brick, their father looked at them and said “Don’t you all ever tell me you can’t do something.”

And that’s the thing, as you set out to reach your goals, they might seem impossible. But you don’t have to reach for the stars and build everything to achieve that goal all at once. You can built it piece-by-piece and over time, you will make it to the finish line; you will achieve that goal (just remember, it’s not always about a specific goal but following the journey toward the goal).

So watch Will Smith talk about this story below and don’t forget the lesson. This blog post is just a brick along the way. It started out without an idea (or actually lack of an idea) and ended with what I believe turned out to be a decent post. So as I lay this brick, I know it is just a piece of the puzzle along the way, and one day I will have my wall.