Why Work and Death

because work, taxes, and death are certain — and I am not an accountant

Work Taxes and Death

There's this common idiom you probably know. The quote most commonly attributed to Benjamin Franklin goes: "In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes."

Which is mostly accurate, except it leaves out work. There can be no taxes paid unless you have the money. And you can't get the money without work.

So if I were to rewrite the quote, it would go: "There is nothing certain in this world except work, taxes, and death."

We all spend the majority of our lives on work. It matters because we all have to do it.

The Work I Didn't Choose

For me, my chosen work is being a developer. But I have a job as a help desk agent. That's not where I want to be.

I'm 30 years old and stuck doing work, I can't draw meaning from. But here's the thing — this job gave me some free time in between taking calls and doing the things that don't matter to me. I had time to work on the things that do. So I decided: I will pursue the work that means something to me.

I still sell my life for 40 hours a week, but I spend on average 20 hours a week working on my own projects. And while I'm not where I want to be yet, something changed when I made that decision.

In doing work that I believe in, my doubts about myself fall away.

The Shift

I was once told to treat every project as a friend — every time you work on it, you strengthen the relationship.

When I started CodeMaster, I was in a low time in my life. I didn't have the salary that felt like it gave me choices. I felt stuck. I tried getting certifications, but I felt unmarketable without a way to demonstrate what I learned. I was practicing LeetCode, learning data structures and algorithms, prepping for interviews. I was doing a lot, but also had a lot left to work on.

Then I thought to myself: what's the one thing that scared me? What have I been putting off?

I had a portfolio with no projects. I had a folder full of half-completed projects. That was my pain point. If I could just finish one project end to end, maybe that could be my greatest point of change.

Working on CodeMaster became my north star. If I can create an application that people use and benefit from, I feel like I would be able to do anything. I would prove that I belong in this space — to myself.

The Mission

From 30 on, I'm deciding to spend the majority of my time shipping products.

I want to develop applications that people pay me to use. I want to develop products, and I want this blog to show proof: I can ship applications people want to use.

I want to see the work that I have done and say "it was good."

For a long time, I defined myself through competition. I was always comparing myself to everyone else. I couldn't win against everyone, and eventually every loss felt like I was losing more of the qualities that made me unique.

How do you get out of that? How do you start winning?

The way to win, I believe, is to stop making the measuring stick other people and make it solely myself.

That's what I've been working towards.

What This Blog Is About

I have only one goal for this site: to put my work into the world.

This blog is about shipping — how we can get there. How we can develop, ship, create, and do it while people give you money for it. Taxes are a certainty and you can't have sustaining work if you can't sustain a living.

Death always follows behind any work you do, because there will be an end to the work you can do.

People who work regardless of their feelings are more likely to finish something than someone who doesn't. While I don't live to work, my chosen work brings me meaning. It's more than the pursuit of happiness  because it's unwavering through all waves of emotions life incites. I don't know what will make me happy but I know what would keep me going.

What you work on today — the drudgery of the task — becomes what the public remembers of us in death.

What You'll See

I am just a woman chasing a dopamine high. I always wanted to do something that's impressive to me. For me, CodeMaster is a test to prove I can execute. If I can complete one project, I'll be able to complete others.

What if I didn't put my work on the side? What if I made it the reason — the mission?

This site will be a conversation about the work I completed. Every week, I'll share what I'm building and how I'm getting there.

If the mission is work and the goal is to complete projects through that work, how can you fail your mission with such a broad definition?