Chapter 11: The World isn’t on your Timeline
- Nathan Hoehne
- 7 minutes ago
- 2 min read
I’m writing from a train between Sarzana and Pisa. My wife and I have been backpacking through Italy this past week. There’s something so freeing about carrying all your belongings on your back and depending on public transportation.
It’s true, we’re missing out all the fun that comes with road trips:
Marital tensions rising after that missed turnoff.
Anxiously scanning the curb for enough space to park.
Locals leaning on the horn as a long line of cars stacks up behind me.
Wondering if we have enough rental insurance to still have some savings when we get home.
I actually love driving but I’m so glad we decided to do this instead. Breaks me out of my fierce North American individualism.
Last week I talked about how breaking out of the mold let’s you bend the world in ways you didn’t think were possible but I think this needs to be held in paradoxical tension with the fact that the world is not on my timeline.
Train workers go on strike.
My bus is delayed.
All the seats are taken and I have to keep my balance on a sweaty, sticky, smelly tin can filled with other humans.
The world doesn’t revolve around me.
There are 8 billion other people in the world who have their own goals, aspirations, calendars, quotas.
People are people not obstacles to overcome.
Concrete Step #11: Start early
I finally have all my accounts set up to be able publish apps to both the app stores but it took a long time:
To set up business developer accounts for the Play / App Store, I needed a DUNS number.
To get a DUNS number I needed a business.
To start a business, I needed a business name.
Each step took weeks of waiting and discipline to keep the ball rolling (this stuff is really boring and easy to procrastinate).
But start now instead of assuming that things will move on your timeline because they won’t.
Like when you’re travelling, if you plan your itinerary expecting busses and trains to get places at specific times, you will be super stressed and a torture to deal with.
But if you start your days early, and take trains when they come, you’ll be way more relaxed and people will want to help you.