<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">Why we self-sabotage</li><li class="ql-align-justify">The beauty of life and the importance of your future self</li><li class="ql-align-justify">How to connect with and create your desired future Self</li><li class="ql-align-justify">How to expand your Future Self far beyond what you currently imagine</li></ul>

Dr. Benjamin Hardy covers:

Being connected to your future self is the secret to being truly present

#1 Without hope in your future, your present loses meaning#2 A reactive narrative about your past stunts your future#3 Being unaware of your environment creates random evolution#4 Being disconnected from your future self leads to myopic decisions#5 Urgent battles and small goals keep you stuck#6 Not being in the arena is failing by default#7 Success is often the catalyst for failure

7 Threats to your future self

(Hope is more powerful than optimism)1.) A clear and specific goal2.) Agency thinking: Belief that you have control over your life and your actions matter. You can change your life. 3.) Pathway thinking: You see a path, have a path or can create multiple paths from where you are today towards your goals.

You need to have hope to connect with your ideal version of yourself.

"You own your experiences; they don't own you. Rather than devaluing your experiences because they were painful, you increase their value by learning more and more from them.

Dr. Hardy explains scientifically that we assume our future self is the same person. This is a mistake since we are constantly evolving.Your future self is and will be different, and having the flexibility and long-term goals will help you navigate towards the life you want. The trick is not to see yourself as a finished product. You may be in a "messy" time period, but that's okay. Remain flexible and graceful.  Your trajectory is more important than where you are today.

Your Future Self is a different person... and that's wonderful!

Your actions today create a ripple effect on your future self. Each positive choice you make increases the likelihood of more positive choices ahead. Make wise investments in your actions!

Everything is either a cost or an investment

Going through the motions isn't enough. You need to commit to deliberate practice and actively seek self-improvement. Don't shy away from challenges or practicing with those who are better than you. Investing in yourself, even when it's uncomfortable, is how you grow. The more willing you are to make mistakes, the closer you get to greatness.

Be aggressive in making mistakes

<ol><li class="ql-align-justify">Clarify your contextual purpose</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Eliminate lesser goals</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Elevate from needing to wanting to knowing</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Ask for exactly what you want</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Automate and systemize your Future Self</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Schedule your Future Self</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Aggressively complete imperfect work</li></ol>

7 Steps for Being Your Future Self

Dr. Hardy states: "Given your current context, what is the most important thing you could achieve or realize right now? What is the next level that would be utterly amazing to achieve? " Clarifying your contextual purpose involves:<ol><li class="ql-align-justify">Connect with your long-term Future Self</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Clarify your contextual purpose through your three major priorities</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Set massive 12-month targets based on your three priorities. </li></ol> (Hardy, pg 131)

What is the most important thing you achieve right now?

Your life is like a garden. If you're not intentional, your garden will be overrun with weeds and randomness. This occurs if you have too many competing goals and priorities

You have to feel/know that what you want is already yours. Living in the moment and actually feeling like you have what you want will put you in the right state of mind to receive.  Don't be afraid to be bold and unapologetic in asking what you want. The universe has a way of getting you what you want you just have to ask.

Knowing and asking for what you want

The book describes how many people procrastinate on important tasks. Focus your attention and time on the things that matter. Make sure you schedule and fight for your top three big goals.  Ship what you have! Get in the arena and iterate. Don't let perfection or "I'll do it tomorrow" get in the way. Shipping what you have is 10x better than never taking action at all.

Finish what you start and ship it!

This book offers powerful insights and strategies to help readers connect with their future selves, make intentional choices, and accelerate personal growth for a more fulfilling life

This isn’t a book about BECOMING it’s about BEING: noted psychologist Dr. Benjamin Hardy shows how to imagine the person you want to be, then BE that person now. When you do this, your imagined FUTURE directs your behavior, rather than your past. Who is your Future-Self? That question may seem trite. But it’s literally the answer to all of your life’s questions. It’s the answer to what you’re going to do today. It’s the answer to how motivated you are, and how you feel about yourself. It’s the answer to whether you’ll distract yourself on social media for hours, whether you’ll eat junk food, and what time you get up in the morning. Your imagined Future-Self is the driver of your current reality. It is up to you to develop the ability to imagine better and more expansive visions of your Future-Self. Your current view of your Future-Self is very limited. If you seek learning, growth, and new experiences, you’ll be able to imagine a different and better Future-Self than you currently can. It’s not only useful to see your Future-Self as a different person from who you are today, but it is also completely accurate. Your Future-Self will not be the same person you are today. They will see the world differently. They’ll have had experiences, challenges, and growth you currently don’t have. They’ll have different goals and priorities. They’ll have different habits. They’ll also be in a different world—a world with different cultural values, different technologies, and different challenges.

productivity

Productivity

personaldevelopment

Personal Development

motivationandinspiration

Motivation & Inspiration

habits

Habits

books

Books

Dr. Benjamin Hardy is an accomplished writer whose work has resonated with readers around the world. Dr. Benjamin Hardy has published several books that explore a range of topics, from fiction to nonfiction, and has received critical acclaim for the ability to weave compelling narratives. Dr. Benjamin Hardy's writing style is known for its depth and authenticity, and has earned quite a loyal following of readers.

Dr. Benjamin Hardy

Be Your Future Self Now

Good code reviews are about collaboration, not criticism. They build quality into the development process and ensure knowledge sharing across teams.

Code Reviews Matter

Avoid Tight CouplingTightly coupled dependencies create fragile systems. When one module changes, others are more likely to break. By loosely coupling components, each part can evolve independently, reducing risk.Versioning is CriticalUse version control for external libraries to ensure compatibility. Lock dependencies to specific, tested versions to prevent breaking changes.Keep Dependencies MinimalDependencies add complexity. Evaluate if adding a library is worth the long-term maintenance before using it.

Managing Dependencies is Key

<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">Strong communication sets engineers apart, helping them convey ideas clearly and effectively.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Engineers should adapt their language to technical and non-technical audiences.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Written documentation and effective speaking skills are equally critical to success.</li></ul>

Communication is a Skill

<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">Writing clean, maintainable code makes future updates easier for everyone.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Structuring code to be modular helps reduce technical debt.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Maintainability saves time and effort in the long run, making the codebase adaptable.</li></ul>

Prioritizing Maintainability

<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">Failure is a natural part of the learning process in engineering.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Failing quickly and iterating helps build robust, resilient software.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Reflecting on failures helps engineers learn and improve their approach.</li></ul>

Embracing Failure

<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">Familiarity with essential tools like version control and build systems increases productivity.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Deeply understanding your tools reduces errors and speeds up development.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Tool mastery also helps engineers troubleshoot more effectively.</li></ul>

Mastering Tools

<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">Documentation provides critical context for code, aiding future development.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Clear documentation makes onboarding easier and improves team knowledge sharing.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Well-documented code reduces dependencies on specific team members.</li></ul>

Importance of Documentation

<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">Testing assumptions is essential to avoid bugs and unexpected behavior.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Both unit and integration tests are needed to validate functionality under different conditions.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Testing builds confidence in code changes and minimizes the risk of failures.</li></ul>

Testing Thorougly

<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">The tech field evolves rapidly, requiring constant learning and adaptation.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Engineers should stay informed on new languages, frameworks, and best practices.</li><li class="ql-align-justify">Being open to learning keeps skills relevant and contributes to career growth.</li></ul>

Continuous Learning

This book provides essential concepts and practical guidance to help new software engineers build a strong foundation and thrive in their careers

Key concepts and best practices for new software engineers — stuff critical to your workplace success that you weren’t taught in school. For new software engineers, knowing how to program is only half the battle. You’ll quickly find that many of the skills and processes key to your success are not taught in any school or bootcamp. The Missing README fills in that gap—a distillation of workplace lessons, best practices, and engineering fundamentals that the authors have taught rookie developers at top companies for more than a decade. Early chapters explain what to expect when you begin your career at a company. The book’s middle section expands your technical education, teaching you how to work with existing codebases, address and prevent technical debt, write production-grade software, manage dependencies, test effectively, do code reviews, safely deploy software, design evolvable architectures, and handle incidents when you’re on-call. Additional chapters cover planning and interpersonal skills such as Agile planning, working effectively with your manager, and growing to senior levels and beyond. You’ll learn: <li>How to use the legacy code change algorithm, and leave code cleaner than you found it</li><li>How to write operable code with logging, metrics, configuration, and defensive programming</li><li>How to write deterministic tests, submit code reviews, and give feedback on other people’s code</li><li>The technical design process, including experiments, problem definition, documentation, and collaboration</li><li>What to do when you are on-call, and how to navigate production incidents</li><li>Architectural techniques that make code change easier</li><li>Agile development practices like sprint planning, stand-ups, and retrospectives</li> This is the book your tech lead wishes every new engineer would read before they start. By the end, you’ll know what it takes to transition into the workplace–from CS classes or bootcamps to professional software engineering.

Be Your Future Self Now

The Missing README

Eduardo Guillen