add post 200 days of learnings

Author: Max Holzheu

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+---
+layout: post
+title: "200 Days of Learnings"
+date: 2015-05-05 09:40:32 -0500
+comments: true
+categories: learning
+---
+
+There is a hypothesis that you always learn something every day. I felt
+intuitively that that was true, but had some doubts regarding the validity of it
+on a longer term. After all, claiming that a specific thing happens _every_ day
+is a bold thing to say. In the end, our lives consist of days: days of happiness,
+days of anger, days of boredom (is it possible for anyone to be bored these days
+anymore?). Is it really true that you learn something _every_ day of our lives?
+I wanted to know. So I figured I would start writing what I'd learned each
+night.
+
+200 days later, I'm pretty sure I have an answer for you. But first, the data:
+
+- Days I wrote: 221
+- Days I forgot to write: 20
+- Total Days Monitored: 241
+- Current Streak: 42 days.
+
+As you can see, I hit my 200 learning a couple weeks ago. It's a major milestone,
+and I wanted to share it with you by listing some of the aforementioned
+learnings with you. 
+
+After all these days, I'm convinced that each day has a lesson for you, and it's
+up to you to either take the lesson of let it go. For me, reflecting on the day
+has become an integral part of who I am, and although some lessons are bigger
+and more grandiose than others, they are lessons nonetheless. So, without
+further ado, let's see what we've got (I haven't looked at them for a very long
+time either, so it will be just as exciting to see what I've learned so far):
+
+[I've abbreviated "Today I learned" to TIL, since most of my notes start that
+way.]
+
+- 2014 September 7. First day.
+
+Hackathon #smartcitygt. Learned not to complain about having to be in the
+best environment to deliver results. Learned that you should always challenge
+your limits (often just false limits once you test them).
+
+- 2014 September 10
+
+I confirmed that writing 'Today's To Do List' is an awesome idea to get
+productive.
+
+- 2014 September 13
+
+TIL how a spider makes its spider web. Spoiler: It's a spiral, not concentric
+circles.
+
+- 2014 September 15
+
+TIL how to say hello in Ukrainian: Privit.
+
+- 2014 September 17
+
+I learned the importance of not signing NDAs mindlessly, since that would
+limit our possibilities.
+
+- 2014 September 18
+
+I have to learn to expect less of others.
+
+- 2014 September 19
+
+TIL about continously questioning of our own beliefs. The importance of raising
+awareness about issues (and that it is mentally fatigating for me to do so).
+
+- 2014 September 20
+
+TIL that a good way to create a website is by sketching it on paper first and
+then dividing user flow in chunks, which are then discussed before done.
+
+- 2014 September 22
+
+TIL about the Business Model Canvas and how to fill one, and realized that there
+are a lot of people trying to change Guatemala for the better. I also learned
+that one should always teach employees as much as possible. Ideas are not
+stolen, businesses are not stolen by betrayals. One should think that the odds
+are better that they will stay vs they will set up the competitor. Open
+knowledge.
+
+- 2014 September 24
+
+Today I burned out at work. I came back a little later and could do some more
+work, but I wasn't as productive as I wanted to be. I learned not to be too hard
+with myself.
+
+- 2014 September 26. The day it starts paying off to be reflective.
+
+On a meta level, I discovered that I'm now more aware of my own actions, and
+regulate them before and evaluate after I've done them. I understood the value
+of thanking an effort to help, even if it didn't help me at all (the good
+intentions matter).
+
+- 2014 October 01
+
+I learned that little details make the difference. And I mean it with
+people. Be kind and do something extra nice to people you care about from time
+to time. It won't go unnoticed. And you'll love more. And be loved more. And
+that's what we all want.
+
+- 2014 October 09
+
+TIL to stop caring about what others think about you. You just have to be clear
+and transparent with yourself and with others. Be you. Be true. Be congruent.
+There will always be people who agree and people that don't. Surround yourself
+with people that agree with your vision and work towards it.
+
+- 2014 October 16
+
+If I sleep less, I am less patient.
+
+- 2014 October 17
+
+TIL that leadership is not about imposing your ideas. It is not about wasting
+your time convincing others. It's about having clear and straightforward ideas
+that are so great others can't say no. Have a clear thought of where the
+conversation should go. I learned that talking to influential people can be
+beneficial for making your point across all members. I don't have all the
+answers, and people often have great ideas that expand on what you had planned
+from the beginning. Clear thoughts.
+
+- 2014 October 25
+
+I learned that there are cases where saying what you want to say will not help 
+you achieve whatever you want to achieve. In those cases, remaining silent is a
+much better alternative.
+
+- 2014 November 5
+
+TIL that I mustn't let other people's moods bring me down. I also confirmed that
+helping others out makes me feel great. I am a positive and enthusiastic person
+in the inside.
+
+- 2014 November 8
+
+TIL to speak the truth clearly and without fear of rejection. Tell about your
+past experiences, your present decisions and your future goals. If someone has a
+problem with that, that's not your fault. And if they're vocal, you can defend
+with more truth.
+
+- 2014 November 10
+
+What doesn't get measured doesn't get improved.
+
+- 2014 November 11
+
+TIL about the Bitcoin protocol and how it uses P2P, Digital Signatures and Proof
+of Work to function. I also learned that taking a shower increases your quality
+of sleep. I've been trying this myself and it definitely helps. Take a shower
+with lights off to start relaxing your body, preparing to sleep. Perfect wind
+down routine.
+
+- 2014 November 14
+
+TIL about Amazon Kindle's ability to convert .pdf to .mobi by sending it as an 
+email attachments with the subject "Convert". I also learned about the 
+importance of understanding others and not go with the mindset of trying to 
+convince them, but rather to understand.
+
+- 2914 November 23
+
+TIL that if you want to achieve something, you'll have to do two things: 1.
+Speak your mind without fear, and 2. Be laser focused and not care what others
+think. I also want to miss less sunsets.
+
+- 2014 November 27
+
+TIL that a fire is hypnotizing and that wine makes me sleepy.
+
+- 2014 November 28
+
+You don't have to be the best, you just gotta be well connected.
+
+- 2014 November 29
+
+I learned that there is a class-skipper subculture at MIT, where students learn
+independently much faster than their class-attending peers, because they use the 
+textbooks alone and teach each other.
+
+- 2014 December 1
+
+TIL about how DNS DoS attacks can have massive repercussions on the Internet and
+is a form of cyberwarfare. I also learned that it is harder to succeed as a 
+partially remote team than a fully remote team because of the consistent 
+communication channels, i.e. everything gets talked about in Slack, or
+Facebook, etc., which enables the whole team to understand better why certain
+decisions are being made. The remote people have to feel included and not left
+out.
+
+- 2014 December 31
+
+Today I realized how tiny our problems are. I shouldn't even be bothered by
+small offenses. Always ask: _will I remember this one year from now?_
+
+- 2014 January 9
+
+Austin is not walkable. Not with a carry on bag.
+
+- 2015 January 12
+
+People are genuinely good and trying to help you.
+
+- 2015 January 18
+
+Today I lost my fear and switched to Vim as my primary text editor, thanks to
+Ben Orenstein. [UPDATE: I will never go back. I love Vim now.]
+
+- 2015 January 20
+
+Have a system. Life is a numbers game. Which directly translates to having
+purpose in what you're doing. You have to focus on the essentials, and say no to
+everything else.
+
+- 2015 January 28
+
+TIL that approaching people is not that bad after all. It's just a matter of
+  being different, being memorable. Being memorable, even if you don't get what
+you wanted, will make people help you.
+
+- 2015 March 4
+
+TIL about fear payoffs. When you are afraid of doing something, ask yourself
+what you're gaining by not taking action. Is it comfort of not having to make a
+decision?
+
+- 2015 March 17
+
+Craft your failure so, that you learn the most from it. If you're not failing,
+you're not learning as fast as you could.
+
+- 2015 March 28
+
+TIL it is actually possible to travel without checking any bags at the airport.
+So much more liberating. 
+
+- 2015 April 21
+
+TIL the importance of powering through. Of being constant. I need to get better
+at this.
+
+- 2015 May 2
+
+TIL that in order to get long term respect for your determination and
+discipline, I have to say no and risk short term retaliation. I have to focus on
+what makes the most impact (massive) and do only that.
+
+Sticking to a habit is hard. Doing something consistently is incredibly
+difficult to achieve. That's why the books we read keep advising us that in
+order to be great at something, it's not about cramming every bit of information
+into one session, and then never look at it again, but rather maintain a steady
+pace over a longer period of time. 
+
+Do you want to become a better writer? Write 500 words each day for a year. What
+you end up with is 182,500 words. Considering that an average page has 250
+words, you will have written 730 pages! The mere exercise of imagining being
+tasked with writing 730 pages sounds excruciatingly difficult. How will I, a
+mortal, be able to do such a thing? I've never done it before! That is the power
+of the consistent habit.