Remember back before high-speed internet was a thing? I fondly remember going outside to the yard and playing various games with my siblings. Whether it’s soccer or football, with arbitrary plants in the yard being designated as the goal lines. I also remember other hobbies of mine, such as video games and sketching. While I still play video games, something I have noticed as my career has progressed is that outside of programming, I find that I have lost my patience for refining other skills.
Why?
My hypothesis? Unfair expectations. The longer I program professionally, the more adept I become at it. I think it’s because I’ve spent so long polishing this skill that I’ve lost the patience for polishing other skills that I may have been more proficient at in the past. When it comes to starting on a new programming project, I am able to knock it out within a couple of days if I am really focused. Yet, when it comes to almost anything else, such as drawing, music production, or any other thing requiring creativity, I get frustrated with the gaps in my knowledge or the level I’m at. With programming, I find it easy to focus on filling gaps in my knowledge. There are various resources online for filling in knowledge gaps and also, I have good friends and mentors (friendtors, for short), that will readily answer any questions I may have. For other hobbies, that’s something I lack now.
The Solution?
During college, I used to breakdance and I also used to mess around with Ableton a little bit. Much like I have friends and mentors for programming now, I had a lot of friends in college who taught me the ropes and foundations and helped me practice/refine my craft. Perhaps finding that type of friendtorship once again will be beneficial. Or perhaps I should just reframe my perspective and remind myself that Rome wasn’t built in a day. Who knows? It’ll be an interesting mental obstacle to overcome.