If we think carefully about this number, we can immediately feel the amount of work that has to be done to achieve it.
I saw this number for the first time in a quote from a famous illustrator, Walt Stanchfield, who says, „We all have 10,000 bad drawings in us. The sooner we get them out, the better.“ After learning this quote, I look closely at the painting every time I visit a museum and think about how many bad drawings are behind it.
We can only see the Perfection behind the great master’s painting and cannot imagine the long hours of work required to achieve it. However, as science evolved, we discovered that layers of imperfections were hidden behind the Perfection of the paintings.
Reflecting on my work, I realized how far I was from achieving success. I calculated the number of hours I had worked as a software developer and estimated that I had worked almost 20,000 hours. Despite this, I still felt like I was failing all the time. I took some time to think about it and realized that if I had divided these hours by the number of languages and tools I had worked with, I would have worked less than half of the 10,000 hours each.
I did not have a good conscience and was not kind to myself, which led me to pursue Perfection constantly. I fell into a cycle of working long hours on the same task, even putting in extra hours. I overthought every scenario, including the edge cases. My backlog started to grow, and I struggled to accept feedback to improve. My imposter syndrome grew daily, and because I felt like an imposter, I needed to spend even more time on my tasks until I thought they were perfect.
Over the last 18 months, I stopped chasing success and started to learn how to fail successfully.
My initial approach was to apply development methodologies like TDD, test driven development, to my daily life. Instead of going through a lengthy ideation process and complex implementation and presenting it to the world for testing, I started with small tasks. I created a draft, tested it out, and then refactored it. I repeated this process until I achieved the desired outcome. This way, I didn’t get stuck in a task without delivering something visible to others. By applying TDD, I was able to create continuous delivery, which allowed me to learn from my mistakes and fail fast. Sometimes, the minimum is enough for what you need. With this approach, you can foster a culture of feedback and avoid overthinking.
For my second approach, I sought out friends who were fearless in providing me with constructive feedback. I shared with them what I was working on, listened to their feedback, and made necessary changes. I also received support from mentors and joined online communities with similar interests. I attended events both within and outside my company to expand my network.
Finding a safe place to test my task was also crucial. I needed a place where I wouldn’t be criticized for my mistakes but could teach others what I had learned. It had to be a supportive environment where I could gain the confidence to try and test new things.
To improve my self-knowledge, I decided to take a few initiatives. Firstly, I started practising mindfulness. I took some time in the morning and evening to reflect on my day and learn from it. I also created a journal to keep track of my progress, including my goals and achievements. It’s important to acknowledge our accomplishments and not start afresh every day. Additionally, I encouraged a culture of feedback. I welcomed positive feedback as a sign of doing well and viewed negative feedback as an opportunity to learn and improve.
It has been quite a journey so far, and I must admit that I have encountered both successes and setbacks along the way. However, I have learned that whenever I face failure, I feel secure enough to keep trying and not give up. This mindset has helped me overcome my insecurities and enabled me to play a vital role on my new team. I provided valuable input in selecting the right technology, assembling the team, and even learning a new programming language.
But I would like to share one last advice. So, let me ask you: have you ever considered how to kill the idea of Perfection?
This advice was a valuable lesson I learned in Porto. The lesson came to me while I learned about the Palácio da Bolsa, which houses an incredibly beautiful Arab room. The room was designed according to the principles of Arab architecture, which state that only God can attain Perfection and that humans cannot achieve it. To reflect this belief, the architect purposefully introduced an imperfection in the room’s design - the main door is slightly off-centre.
After learning this lesson, I began to intentionally add small imperfections rather than strive for unattainable perfection.
Despite my natural desire to do everything perfectly, I remind myself every day that progress is more important than Perfection. By applying these valuable lessons, I have been able to make meaningful steps towards my goals. While the journey may not always be easy, I am committed to pushing forward and achieving my dreams, no matter what challenges may come my way.