Do or Do Not, There is No Try

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.

– Roosevelt flexing on haters in April 23, 1910

Rupi Kaur

I would not be the empire I am today if I had stayed

Murals

A non profit that create murals. Community led ideas where everyone, kids to pensioners, are involved in its creation. A positive message with artistic expression.

Normal People

I remember being young and wanting my life to mean something, I wanted to stop all the violence committed by the strong against the weak, and I remembered the time several years ago when I felt so intelligent and young and powerful that I could almost achieve such a thing, and now I knew I wasn’t at all powerful and I would live and die in a world of extreme violence against the innocent, and at most I could help only a few people.

The outside world touches against my outside skin, but not the other part of me, inside.

Normal People, Sally Rooney

Paralysis By Analysis

Choosing to stay well-informed burdens me with indecision. Taking fifty steps back, looking at both sides of an argument and their origins brings about shades of grey. I realise that nothing is as clear and simple as it first appears. Ultimately, knowledge can be paralysing.

The trick is to balance idealism and pragmatism.

Looking for Alaska

You spend your whole life stuck in the labyrinth, thinking about how you’ll escape it one day, and how awesome it will be, and imagining that future keeps you going, but you never do it. You just use the future to escape the present.

Looking for Alaska, John Green

It might be teen fiction, but it’s also a slap in the face.

Education

I speak at schools where I hear students, as young as 14, stress about selecting their profession. There’s a sense of urgency of getting it right, no matter how often I say, “y’all need to chill”.

The irony is that this tunnel vision doesn’t broaden their horizon or experiences, the very thing you need to facilitate experimentation and discovery of skillsets and passions.

I think kids these days try to “grow up” too early. But I also understand the pressure they’re under.

My ex-manager taught me that everyday is a school day, learning never truly stops, it’s whether you’re paying attention or not. Post-education life might not feel like class, but it’s when you learn the most about yourself.

No More Paper Receipts

Startup Name: Till
Vision: Digitised receipts

Summary
No paper receipts required when paying by card. Digital receipts are instead directed to a depository integrated with the card issuer and bank. One can view receipts within transactions on their banking app.

Why is this important?
The world is increasingly paperless. This is another avenue of reduction. The ink used for receipts can often contain BPA, which is toxic btw.

Solving Local Problems

There should be an engine that brings tech teams to volunteer their skills to local governments. Something tells me there are efficiencies to be had, and funding to be released. We can build better societies while building our careers.