Be pragmatic

I spent three weeks configuring neovim once. Zero work done.

No direction. No problem to solve. Just idealistic drive to make myself feel good.

Now I use Ubuntu. VSCodium. GitHub. They’re boring. That’s the point.

When tools are boring, I think about the work.

Two Questions

Question 1: Does this work matter?

Strip away assumptions. Does this make things better? Am I contributing to harm? What happens if I succeed?

This needs first principles. Real ones. Not inherited opinions or resume padding.

Question 2: What’s the best way to do it?

Pick what works. Ubuntu over Void. VSCodium over config files. GitHub because it’s simple and robust.

The trap is confusing these. Sophisticated tools don’t make work meaningful. Simple tools don’t make work shallow.

If Question 1 fails, stop. Question 2 doesn’t matter.

If Question 1 passes, be ruthlessly pragmatic about Question 2.

Your career is roughly 80,000 hours. How many will you spend solving real problems?

Not looking impressive. Not signaling values. But actually improving the world.

You have 80,000 hours.

First: Work on problems that matter. Think from first principles.

Then: Pick tools that let you move fast.

The world needs problems solved. Not perfect implementations of wrong solutions.