Systems Series
Planning Without Predictability
Good planning doesn't mean predicting the future accurately. It means building in the ability to be wrong without everything falling apart.
Small Systems, Long Horizons
Long-term goals create pressure to build complex systems. But the systems that actually last tend to stay small. Not because the goal is small, but because the system survives.
I Don’t Write Weekly
It looks like I write consistently. A post every Sunday. No gaps. But that’s publishing, not writing.
Designing for Future-Me
I used to think good systems were about optimization. Now I think they are mostly about removing decisions. A good system does not make future-you better. It asks less of them.
How I Decide What Not to Build
We are rewarded for adding things. Features. Tools. Processes. Commitments. But the real skill is deciding what not to add.
The Plateau Problem: Progress Is Not Linear
Progress rarely feels like progress. It comes in bursts, separated by long periods that look flat. The plateau is not where things stop. It is where most of the work happens.
Designing Systems That Survive Your Absence
I left for a month without a laptop. Only my phone. It forced a simple test: what in my life and work actually keeps running without me? So before leaving, I designed for absence: automate the boring parts, make defaults safe, document what used to live in my head, and remove workflows that require constant supervision. Absence is a design tool. Remove yourself from the loop and the hidden dependencies show up immediately.
Shipping Experiments Instead of Chasing Outcomes
I used to chase outcomes: perfection, being "done", traction. Now I try to ship experiments instead: small, real slices I can evaluate and iterate on. Outcomes are noisy. Shipping is controllable.
How to Stay Consistent Learning Finnish: Systems Over Motivation
I stopped trying to stay motivated to learn Finnish and started designing the system around it. Once exposure, retrieval, and feedback had defaults, progress became boring and reliable.
New Year's Intentions, Anchored by Systems
Why I still set goals, but rely on systems, reflection, and consistency to carry the year.