Journal
What’s on my mind. Lessons and notes from building software, written as I go.
Skill is a library of recognized patterns. Volume plus a feedback loop builds it - and AI makes it worth more, not less.
2026-07-19If I restarted at 18: build things AND write about the grind. Your first projects will be bad - document them anyway.
2026-07-19Document everything, ship to real users, and do work you're proud of - visibly. Building is cheap now, proof is the moat.
2026-07-19Writing about the problem on paper is my biggest coding lifehack. Offloaded brains find better solutions.
2026-07-19Can't start? Set a timer for 30 seconds and work until it rings. Once you're in, it's easier than it looked.
2026-07-19Following along is not learning. Struggling is learning. Take advice, then build the thing yourself.
2026-07-19I shipped a product redesign in three days - years of reps, not a step-by-step guide. Build, ship, review, improve.
2026-07-19A cozy zero-friction environment, a lot of volume, and goals based on inputs you control.
2026-07-19Early mornings are the best way to build something extra - in two-week sprints, not as a permanent mode.
2026-07-19Review your own transcripts like tape, log the recurring errors, drill the top 3. The loop works on any skill.
2026-07-19I picked the hardest school and lost half a year. Match the school to your level, drop what doesn't work, sleep.
2026-07-1925-30 work hours a week through the degree: skip lectures, 3-day exam prep, group study, sleep, one thing at a time.
2026-07-1920 minutes of self-testing beats a 2-hour lecture. Testing is friction, and friction is learning.
2026-07-19Don't re-read presentations. Have AI generate tests from your materials, answer, get corrected, then teach a friend.
2026-07-19As a freshman, do the coding exercises yourself. No AI on the basics - get the syntax into your own hands.
2026-07-19Not the syllabus. Two meta-skills: knowing how to study, and doing one thing at a time.
2026-07-16Five subjects worth your maximum attention - from someone who just finished the degree.