About Needing to Slow Down
Yesterday I had more issues with syncing back home. Whenever this happens, it ruins my workflow since my “OhSnap” folder (my “inbox” it GTD terms) is disconnected from my work computer. I managed to fix things toward noon and get my SSH server up and going (and therefore, TRAMP), but that only fixed half the problem.
This time it was my capture template. Worked before, but now it told me there’s something wrong with my target file — a file I can access no problem using TRAMP on my home machine. The syntax and path check out as well.
Without journaling, I can’t take notes about what I’m doing at work. This is a core part of capturing information that would help me later on if I need to reflect or solve the same issue again. So, I started taking notes by directly accessing my journal and creating titles instead of using capture.
I’m getting tired of this. Last week I lost two days worth of org while I was setting up my VM at work. Now, because I moved my home Linux installation to my SSD, I lost connections to my synced files and SSH was down. Before that, I needed to solve my settings at work. Before that, one of my bosses gingerly informed me I can’t use the Mac the way I did, which meant no more Homebrew. Going to Emacs on windows was more than I could swallow (I have to do some actual work). This is what lead me to a VM this week.
There’s always something.
A whole week of troubleshooting my productivity system instead of actually using it. Truth be told, it’s a good system when it’s in place. It’s limping, I’m learning tons as I go and become better at it, but man. I can’t go through so much maintenance each time. My issues become more specific too. It’s not just asking for help on Reddit anymore.
I’m realizing my main problem is that I go to fast. I don’t let one system work long enough to draw a conclusion and record the process fully. Instead, I constantly tinker and improve and build the next thing. For example, I could have waited on re-installing Linux on my home machine, especially after I learned imaging would not work. But I’m restless. I want things to good, and as soon as I settle on one way, I learn something better.
There’s also GitHub, and the option to save versions of what worked before — but I have no idea how to use it. GitHub is one of those things locked behind a stupid mental wall of “oh no. This is serious coding stuff. This is not you.” It’s the same thing that holds me back from going on in my Shell courses, and writing scripts at work. I need to get obsessed with something (like Org-mode), to push me through that so my interest is so great I forget I’m actually messing with code. Coding is not the Matrix. It’s not a chip in your head and then suddenly “I know how to program.” It doesn’t matter if it’s a trivial HTML snippet or a script in Shell or PowerShell. It’s the same principle: “When faced with a problem you do not understand, do any part of it you do understand, then look at it again.”
And then there’s also this line: “You have to learn to crawl, before you learn to walk, but I just couldn’t listen to all that righteous talk” (Amazing, by Aerosmith).
This is not easy, but I got to slow down. It’s not the first time my excitement breaks things that are meant to be slow and stable. Emacs and Org-mode opened so many new possibilities to me, maybe this is yet just another lesson.
Originally published at joshrollinswrites.com on July 24, 2018.
