It is everywhere, and without it, we fall short. The towns we live in, the roads we drive on, the days we live, the seasons, it is structured.
Within that, we can be ourselves, shape the towns to our liking, choose the hours we are awake, and the seasons we thrive in.
Yet it all starts with structure. Maybe craft benefits from the same. A genre gives structure, but within it, wings to thrive.
So often in the research journey, the writeup can get you stuck. It feels like a struggle to formulate the words on paper for the work done. Increasingly, however, I realize that, the same person I was in the past, when scribbling notes in class, is the same person I am today, i.e., always seeking to write to understand.
In going back to previous notes, there are nuggets of gold, entire sections written out, prepared for my current and future self. The challenge is then, only to trust the past self, and only improve what needs to be improved today. No need to reinvent the wheel. Thank you to my past self.
We are always forecasting, from judging the speed of oncoming vehicles as you navigate your way, planning our day to day activities, to planning for retirement.
In doing this, we might rely on trends from the past. The trends tells us a good story about the past, while smoothing out the bumps and valleys. It also gives us the false confidence that the conditions of today will prevail tomorrow. That we will not be more innovative than we are today, or that there won’t be new stumbling blocks.
Sometimes, though, the bumps and the valleys might reveal more about the future than the overall trend. Like the past, the future is seldom a force-fitted graph.
We’re seldom on a completely new path. Others have walked down the same road, and learnt the lessons we’re about to.
When we feel stuck, we can reach out to them. Of course, there will be differences in context, slight deviations etc., but there will also be elements we can use from their lessons.
We’re not stuck, we’re re-exploring tracks blown away by the wind.
Occasionally, we feel we’re in unfamiliar territory. We doubt whether we’re the right person to solve this problem. We feel like impostors a lot of the time.
The doubts are good, for it tells you that you need to prepare, and not take the challenge for granted. If you prepare, you’re ready.
In that time of greatest need, we learn that all our deliberate and subtle preparation was necessary for this moment. We learn that these moments are what makes us grow, fall, and stand up if we want.
We’re ready, and we’re human. Fall, stand up and keep pushing.
Random Walks 