Vector Initialization

The C++ and cryptography puritans will hate me for using that as the blog headline.

The fact, however, remains that that is what it has been.

A goal was set. A rough path was laid out. And we started walking. Literally.

In the spring of 2020, while the world has been dealing with the dreaded coronavirus, some of us have been dealing with another issue as well. This issue cannot be contained with masks and washing hands though. It requires a lot more intent, a well timed (and a well meaning) nudge, an incredible amount of motivation (some of it external in nature) and a lot of accountability.

The issue is of less-than-optimal health.

FACT: we are growing older to a point where niggles are now more than just a bother.
FACT: we have little tiny version 2s which look up to us as if we had all the answers in the world.
FACT: the body does not react and respond like it used to even a few years ago.
FACT: all the sitting and programming is finally taking a toll on our bodies.
FACT: something needs to be done about it.

So, here we are. A group nearing the dreaded middle age where we should know more about the functioning of the world and a little more about ourselves. And we stand ready to change both.

Our lack of overall health, and the time at home that this virus has provided, has allowed us to create a group of like-minded individuals that wants to be and do better.

At the end of April 2020, we had our first weekly competition. And it all started with walking.

Some of us found it tougher than the rest. But, that is not what it was and will be about. It is about getting better. Every day and every week. 

Slowly and surely though, in our very first week, we had in excess of half a million steps and the group was off toward trying to reinvent ourselves as people that took their health and our future state seriously.

We are not just developers, scientists and VPs and managers and CEOs and homemakers anymore.

We are on our way to transforming ourselves into individuals who want to live a better life with a healthier tomorrow. We are bound by the commitment to hold ourselves and each other at a higher standard of accountability. And all of this started with a single step in the right direction.

Rumpelstiltskin Principle

Are you thrashing?

Do you ever give yourself advice? I do. I find it weirdly helpful to talk about things out loud.

The 

Let go. Have fun.

Lessons for a father - Scared of everything

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There are not a lot of things in this world that do not scare me at some level. Everything from driving my car to watching a movie to eating at a restaurant. There is always the notion of "what if" lurking somewhere in my head. 

What if I get a flat driving on the interstate with my kid depending on me for safety? What if the movie, that we waited for so long and invested so much effort into watching, is a dud? What if the restaurant's definition of hygiene and mine do not meet and I go home with a food borne disease?

The same fear accompanies me to work. What if a bad or hasty decision on my part leads me to play a part in negatively impacting someone's career? What if I do not invest enough time in choosing a solution for my team and client that leads to short term gain but a long term problem?

There are, indeed, a lot of "what if's".

Every day there is a struggle to be more and do more. Every day, with a shrinking world, our lives are becoming harder and easier (depending on what you do and who you ask). In times like these, what would I gain from being scared all the time?

I treat my fear as a motivating agent. Instead of cowering in fear, I try and do something about it.

With my son in the car, for example, I take extra care to drive safe. With the dependency that my team has on me, I do not rush to decisions. They are a lot more deliberate. To not get out of date with the knowledge of my art, I try to read and learn continuously.

Yes, I might not have an end for my fears, but I do realize that the only way over it is through it.

Lessons for a father - What, Why, How and the 2/3rd!

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I like clarity in what I do. I would like to think that a lot of us do. Clarity, however, needs a few questions to be answered.

The most important question after we figure out WHAT we are doing is WHY we are doing it. If there is a reason to our effort, our deed is not in vain. Even if we falter, our attempt has a direction and a purpose. 

What we do, coupled with why we are doing it, definitely answers 2 of the 3 most important questions.

Now to the third question. HOW do we do what we do if we know why we are doing it?

Here is my belief. If we know why we are doing something, we would know exactly how to do it.

By keeping the end result in mind (WHAT) and the reason to do it (WHY), the HOW would make itself very evident.

Take, for example, our intent to become good citizens of a country. That is what we want to do. We want to do it so the country that we represent is well projected (one of the many examples of why we would want to be model citizens). If we really believe in what we are doing and why we are doing it, there might be little need for written laws. We would all know how to do what we want to do.

Good leadership and parenting are other examples (in many more) of what we might want to accomplish. We want to become better leaders and parents to help nurture individuals with a capacity to think and lead in their own way. Again, how we do that can become very clear to us, almost automatically, as long as we answer the WHAT and the WHY.

The what and the why answer 2/3 of the questions that we would need to accomplish results and taste success. As long as we do that, how we do that should come very naturally to us.

Lessons for a father - Want to solve a problem?

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Problems seem to be ubiquitous. They are also equal opportunity. Everyone, irrespective of rank or race, has them - problems.

So, what do we do with what we seem to have plenty of?

We solve them, one by one.

The question, then, really is - how?

We would all like that one talisman that would solve all our issues for us. Fortunately, we we have all been blessed with it. Unfortunately however,  and almost always in the hardest of times, we keep forgetting about it.

The power we are after is the power of BELIEF. Every solution, no matter how big or small, has to start with an unwavering belief that a solution is possible. 

Without belief in what we are doing, and in the ultimate success of our hard work, we might not get far. Once we have that, what we need next are truthful intentions.

We must want to, above anything else, solve the issue.

With belief, correct intentions, hard work and a dash of circumstance, we can be unstoppable in our pursuit of success.