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Momentum is a concept we’re all familiar with in the context of science, but it has some important personal and professional applications as well.

I’m a creature of habit. Reflecting on the past few years of my life, it’s easy to see how the decisions I make impact what I’m likely to be doing in 6, 12, and 24 months down the line.

This is neither good nor bad, but it’s an important observation.

In order to balance out this trait, I have committed to periodic change and calculated risk. This is most evident when you look at my last three mailing addresses (two different states, two different countries). Getting out of my comfort zone and routine helps keep me sharp.

Many of us spend the best years of our lives making other people rich. That’s the reality of the working world. And while many make up from the madness and disengage from the Matrix through freelancing and entrepreneurship and passion projects, it’s common to see people actually creating jobs (that feel like coffins) for themselves instead of the freedom businesses that they once envisioned.

As I caution many aspiring job-quitters, quitting is the easy part. Perhaps not emotionally (that’s the hardest part), but certainly in execution.

But then what?

Instead of working with management to help turn an unfulfilling role into an important and valuable one, some jump ship without a second thought. When you’re young and single and smart and ambitious and have 6 months of savings in the bank, you can “afford” to do things like that. I’m all for sticking it to the man. Really.

But in my 29 months of being in the real world, I’ve seen enough to understand the importance of planning, timing, and strategy. This doesn’t mean that I’m opposed to taking flight, of course. As a matter of fact, a measured approach sometimes entails making even riskier moves (with outsized rewards).

But I’m very careful about the story I tell and the flames I fan with my story. Doing what matters is important, but so is rent. And finding an excuse to buy the next iPhone.

Maybe I’m getting old.

I moved to Buenos Aires, Argentina almost two months ago.

I don’t know Spanish, so learning it has been a goal of mine, despite being able to get along here with a remarkably small amount of it at your disposal. I’m passionate about the written and spoken word, so it’s been a fascinating and gratifying adventure.

The adventure hasn’t unfolded in the way that I expected, though. Instead of just learning Spanish, I’ve been learning about accents, dialects, the peculiarities of the language, and the language (vocabulary, for example) itself.

It’s natural to want to learn how you say certain phrases in Spanish and think that you can call it a day, but I’m seeing that this will lead to a very poor mastery of the language.

Put another way, I’m not able to “trade” my English words and phrases for Spanish ones.

After so many of my questions were met with, “it doesn’t work like that in Spanish” (paraphrased), I started thinking more deeply about what I was missing. I also started to “relax” and get a feel for the texture and idiosyncrasies.

With enough of the right practice and simply noticing things, I’m able to teach myself a bit of Spanish along the way because of the mental framework that I’m developing. I’m now able to — very quickly — determine that someone didn’t learn Spanish in Argentina by how they say certain words.

It’s similar to how you’d pick up on a midwest accent or if someone is a non-native English speaker.

The whole experience is pushing me to reconsider how I approach the unknown, and how my existing mental models can both help and hinder the gaining of new knowledge.

As with many things of this sort, there’s no cute bullet list (despite my love for them) that I can pass along to help, you just have to [::motions with hands::] feel your way through it and learn from your mistakes.

That’s my approach, anyway.

Saludos!

I recently made the following changes to my schedule:

1. Sleeping in until fully rested.
2. No meetings during the week.
3. Breaking my day into task-based sections.
4. Taking a daily break for a walk and snack at a local cafe.

I think I’m onto something, and I’ve noticed the following results:

1. I get more work done.
2. I enjoy my work a lot more.
3. I complete tasks more rapidly.
4. I need fewer breaks when working.

Constant course correction seems to be the name of the game.

Also, these banana muffins I’ve been on lately.

Amazing.

My friend Chris proposed a writing challenge this afternoon, and I accepted.

I won’t tell you what’s at stake (not because it’s interesting or scandalous, or involves breaking the law or public nudity, but rather because secrets are fun), but I will tell you that I’m back (and alive, as it turns out).

I’ve got a lot to tell you.

Chat soon.