Friday Flow #42
Imposter, problems, needle
What’s up?
For me, I’ve finally come to the end of #Ship30for30, finally! From next week, it’s back to weekly essays! I enjoyed writing these daily, but honestly I’m glad to get back to regular programming!
But I miss it a little bit. Funny, because I didn’t know for certain at the start if I would be able to make it through. I mean, I thought I could, but you know how these things go. I realised halfway through that I’d be able to finish it—but then came the usual self-doubt: “But do I still have enough good ideas?”
Yes, my brain still feeds me that question. Probably always will.
How do I deal with it? I don’t, not really. I just keep writing. It’s the only way I know to really deal with impostor syndrome: to just keep going anyway, and let your action be the answer to the question.
How about you? What do you do when the questions come?
We don’t (really) solve problems… (atomic essays)
My penultimate essay was on something I’ve been thinking about awhile: how we’re always really just trading off problems for new ones. Even good things come with new challenges. It’s something I want to write a bit more on in future: how life is more art than math, and how with problems we want resolutions more than solutions. Keep an eye out, it might be my next essay!
This was my most personal of all 30 essays. I actually realised after hitting send on this one that I was holding my breath and my tummy felt a little light. You’ll see what I mean when you read it, below.
Here’s the other essays this week, coming up to the final atomic essay on Tuesday.
Day 27. Watching Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., I noticed how much conflict was sparked by moments where the parties had a chance to take a path—and chose another. So I turned it into an essay. The moment you need to watch for in a conflict
Day 28: This was inspired by the fact that it was a Sunday. The theme itself, though, isn’t exactly. It’s about how structures built to serve people become structures we force people to serve. Sabbath, Procrustes, structures and people
Day 29. Already talked about this. :) We don’t really solve problems. We just…
Finale! Perhaps the single most resonant of all the essays, and I don’t think it was just because it was the last one. I feel like people really resonated with the theme, which (I thought) was one of my more abstract. Check it out yourself and see what you think: One shoe = no shoes.
Threading the needle (Yoruba proverb)
Where the needle sets its eye on, the thread follows.
Or in other words, we tend to move in whatever direction we’re facing. Sounds obvious, until you realise that when we’re driven by fear, we’re essentially facing the direction opposite to where we wish to go.
Where’s your eye set on?
I’d also like to know: does the proverb spark any other meaning for you?
Miscellaneous
I’ve been watching The Office lately, starting with the (much shorter—and some say, better) UK version and currently on the longer US one. It’s hilarious and I have thoughts. The short version: I didn’t like anyone in the UK version (which I think was the point), but the US version is rather kinder to its characters. I like both differently.
I’ve also really enjoyed The Falcon and the Winter Soldier but I feel like these MCU shows keep not quite living up to their promise: they’re good, but not great. But also they’re the first set of MCU shows and I’m hopeful they’ll only get better.
“We also know that the corruption in Nigeria is inextricably linked to the corruption in cities such as London, New York and Paris.” That’s from a great essay by Chibundu Onuzo reflecting on the latest UK scandal involving the PM and his former top adviser, and how corruption is often viewed as characteristic of poorer countries—when richer countries are often helping to sustain it.
Talk soon,
Doc Ayomide
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