Not Doing The Thing
Chris Williamson wrote about all the things that are not doing the thing back in October 2022.
It’s a reference to the Strangest Loop blog and this post…
-things that are not doing the thing-
Preparing to do the thing isn’t doing the thing.
Scheduling time to do the thing isn’t doing the thing.
Making a to-do list for the thing isn’t doing the thing.
Telling people you’re going to do the thing isn’t doing the thing…
…Reading about how to do the thing isn’t doing the thing. Reading about how other people did the thing isn’t doing the thing.
Reading this essay isn’t doing the thing.
The only thing that is doing the thing is doing the thing.
-The Strangest Loop (I think written by Loopy)
Confession: recently, I have been more involved in Notes on Substack.
Dopamine hits all over!
Sending hearts for stuff I like. Receiving hearts for my stuff that people like. Connecting with other writers.
It’s lovely.
And it’s not doing the thing.
While it’s related to doing the thing and it takes place where I am posting the thing (my writing), it is not doing the thing.
It’s time taken away from what I am here to do: write 1,000 posts.
Action: less Notes, more writing.
Good reminder.
There is No Substitute for Experience
We get better by doing.
By doing the work. Having the conversations.
Showing up. Taking the action.
“…the most important thing I’ve ever learned in my life:
Action isn’t just the effect of motivation; it’s also the cause of it.” - Mark Manson (this post)
Getting the Reps
Me repairing as many times as it takes in my marriage
Showing up present and regulated as a father
Writing 1,000 posts (or more) over the next 4 to 10 years
+500 coaching calls
Moving and lifting to stay fit
The books and workshops and podcasts are great but at some point you have to swing the club to get better at golf*.
Do the thing.
Writing and publishing and taking feedback and figuring this out.
“Most everybody I know who does interesting creative work went through a phase of years where they had really good taste and they could tell what they were making wasn’t as good as they wanted it to be. They knew it fell short. Everybody goes through that.”
- Ira Glass, from this excellent post by
Hundreds, Thousands of times, over and over and over.
This is what is required.
The Only Way is Through
More from
The way to find your voice is to use your voice.
There’s no work around for experience.
The hardest way is actually the easiest way.
To go straight at it.
To allow ourselves to suck for the first part.
To keep going in the face of that. To get better.
What are you working?
What is the thing you are doing?
Here to support you.
Keep Going
*Golf may not be a great example here, at least for me. My game is likely unhelpable and I still need to play to work on it.