Not Overthinking, Just Start

At the beginning of the year, I had a sudden thought. Instead of just working and tending to the kids, it is important for myself to get back into self improvement. I need to build myself up so that I have options, instead of merely assuming that life will go on smoothly forever.

One of those goals were to resume writing in a new platform, focusing on a few categories such as personal productivity, automation and AI, leadership etc.

Yet it is June, and I have not written a single thing. Yes there are other contributing factors like:

• Need to study and pass my SANS exam - which I did, in May

• Going on a holiday in June

• Trying to meet other goals like reading books, HBR, paying more attention to investments

But I figured the main thing that did not help was overthinking it.

Initially, I had asked ChatGPT on how to set up a free blog, integrated with Obsidian so that I can type it in Obsidian and have it synced. I entered a world of github pages, vercel etc, where I spent a lot more time trying to learn how to configure it, find themes etc. I did everything except writing.

In the end I realised I might have been overthinking it. The aim was simple, to start writing and building up a personal brand. Instead I got into a rabbit hole of trying to jump in too deeply into blog themes and syncing methods.

Eventually I asked ChatGPT to give me a few recommendations of free blog sites that could allow me to copy and paste markdown so that the formatting stays. That is what it did, and after a few other questions, I settled on one of the options.

I did stray a little as I tried to learn how to set it up. There was a moment I learnt that there was this headless mode allowing me to host it in vercel. Ten minutes later I realised I was overthinking again. I asked ChatGPT how to set it up, and I realised that I could first proceed as is, and if eventually I wanted to have more control, I could just set it up then. Then I went back to basics - a bare site on a default design and now I am writing my first ever post.

So recognise the signs when you start overthinking when you try to achieve your goal. Realise what you wanted essentially - for myself, it is to start to write and build a personal brand. And do just that. Because if we do not even start, months will fly by and we won't be closer to our goal.