Last week, my nephew was over to work on a crafting project. While cutting massive pieces of cardboard in the shape of a sword, my nephew looked up and said, “Auntie, what’s that?”

That was it. I carved out time a few days later to do the dreaded task of demolishing the old built in shelves. While it wasn’t easy (those shelves were caulked and painted, making them a bit tricky to remove), the project only took a weekend.

So what does this have to do with tech debt? 

Have you ever caught up with a friend the day after they had a great dining experience? They’re raving about the food, the ambiance, the conversation, even the funny anecdote about how their dining partner tried to share a bite of their amazing desert and dropped it in the water glass instead. 

Now imagine someone sharing that same level of enthusiasm and detail about their previous day’s experience…but it wasn’t about an amazing meal, it was about a meaningful meeting they had. 

Wait, what? A meeting? Seriously?

It didn’t go according to plan. It was even better.

I had recently learned a new silversmithing technique called fold forming, which involves folding, hammering, annealing, and unfolding sheet metal to create three-dimensional shapes.

Everything went according to plan. Except I didn’t like it.

I was going fast. Too fast. Way too fast. Especially for my 6-year-old reflexes.

So what did I do?

I sat down.

I’ll bet you could have figured out who each one was for without looking at the cards.

It’s birthday season in my family. In the months of May through August, we have 8 birthdays to celebrate. This past weekend, we got together to celebrate three of those birthdays.

You’re hungry. It’s been a long day. You head into your kitchen, close your eyes, and reach into the fridge and grab 3 random ingredients, sight unseen. You do the same from the pantry. You throw each of the ingredients into a large pot, simmer for 20 minutes, and then ladle the results into a giant bowl. That’s dinner.

Ok, that probably shouldn’t be dinner.

When we live into our full potential, our energy shifts. We stand up straighter. We move with more confidence and ease. We are so much more effective.

But getting to that point can be difficult.

You’re not alone.

I remember being a bit confused by the phrase, which seemed very unusual to me as a young American the first time I saw them during a family trip the summer after I graduated from high school. If you’ve ever visited the London Underground, you know the phrase I’m talking about, the one on signs everywhere. MIND THE GAP.

If you really think about it, at their core, most goals are about increasing our independence. But sometimes our goals don’t actually bring independence.

In the early days of setting a habit goal, we usually get some good momentum. But once that honeymoon period is over, it’s easy to fall off the wagon.

So, how can we get back on track?

We’ve all been there…we set a goal or aspiration that excites us but is a bit of a reach. One that we know will move us forward towards an exciting future. We’re ready to go. But it’s daunting. Overwhelming, if we’re really being honest. How in the world am I going to do THAT, you ask yourself? And perhaps you set that aspiration aside for another day, too overwhelmed to take it on right now.  

What would this look like if it were easy?