Thinkers vs. Doers. Which One Are You?
Spoiler: you don't have to be just one or the other
Simple + Straightforward is a weekly letter filled with essays, tips, and ideas to live life more simply and intentionally. If you find value in it, feel free to share with friends and family you think would enjoy a dose of simplicity every Friday.
I’ve been thinking a lot about Leo Babuta’s “Thinking mode vs. Doing mode” this week.
In a wonderfully succinct essay, he talks about what happens when you make the switch between dreaming about doing something and actually doing it.
So many of us - myself included - get stuck in thinking mode. Which as Leo says, can be awesome. We all need to dream and fantasize.
But what I’m most interested in is how we switch modes. Thinking into Doing.
How do we decide what means enough to us to commit to doing, versus what stays a pie in the sky idea?
And what happens when we make that switch?
Do you think about things, or do things?
OK, so the title of this week’s mailout is a little bit tongue in cheek. This isn’t a Buzzfeed quiz.
I don’t believe people are one or the other.
But I do believe that people can get stuck in one of the modes from either habit or fear. And both modes make for difficult circumstances.
Take the doing mode. I think most people would assume this is the “good” mode to be in. That person does things, they go out there and try to realize their dreams.
But it’s not always good. How many of us have had a boss who has a “great idea” on a Friday afternoon, makes you work on it all weekend only to trash it on Monday for the next great idea?
Sometimes doing without thinking can be disastrous.
But the problem with always being in thinking mode is that it can feel like a life not well-lived. Always dreaming, never doing. That can lead to frustration and discontent. Your deathbed regrets could fill a book.
As with almost everything in life, the answer lies in the middle, not at the extremes.
I wrote last week about writing down 100 life goals, choosing the top five, and deleting the rest.
Having five top goals means you only need to make the switch from thinking into doing mode five times. Much more achievable than 100.
It’s prioritization. Desperately wanting something gives you motivation which can push you into making the commitment to do the thing.
Make the list. At least then you have a good idea where you really want to make that switch from thinking to doing.
Making the switch
One of my 2022 goals was to fully commit to writing on Medium. But for the first three months of the year, I kind of mucked about. I would write what I’ve always written, something in the region of 10 articles a month.
The rest of the time I thought about writing on Medium. I would fill my journal with my desire to write properly on the platform. But I never actually executed my wish.
Until one Monday in early April when I had a stern chat with myself. Why would I make this commitment and not follow through when the execution?
So for the first time this year that’s exactly what I did. I sat. I wrote article after article. I prioritized writing on the platform. I doubled my output.
And it’s paying off. Big time.
Once you’ve identified where you want to make a change from thinking into doing, how are you going to commit to it?
I did it by holding myself to account, but my goal wasn’t huge. After all, I was already writing on Medium, all I was doing was upping my output.
But maybe you have a big change in mind. Maybe it’s a move to another city, or even abroad. Maybe it’s chasing a new career. Or starting the side hustle you’ve always wanted to start.
I’ve made some big changes in my life and all of them had two things in common. First, whatever the change, it became my utmost priority, the thing I wanted most in the world. Like when I opened my wine store and bar back in 2013. Or when I sold it in 2020 for a traveling life. I was determined to make both of those changes and because I’m stubborn, very little was going to stop me.
They were numero uno on my top five list of goals. In fact, they were my only goal.
This determination also helped when it came to the difficult changes I had to make in my life in order to achieve these goals. Things like getting by with almost no money in the early years of the wine store, or selling my house and all my possessions when it came to leaving the UK.
Second, I told people about it, people who would hold me accountable. My friends, my family. Hell, I even told my boss about my plans to open my wine store, and funnily enough, I was overlooked for promotion a couple of times afterward. Which made my decision even easier.
As Leo says, having other people hold you accountable, it’s like jumping off a cliff. No turning back.
Scary? Yes. Worth it? Totally.
But once you know what you really want, not doing it becomes more terrifying than the change itself.
Something to read this weekend
3 articles from my collection
What Happens When We Try to Find Our “Happily Ever After” in a New Country
How to Live a Simple Life When the World Around You Is Busy, Noisy, and Says Your Choices Are Dumb
Again, I’ve taken down the paywall for these articles so you can read them to your heart’s content.
3 of the best articles I’ve read this week
It’s The Death of Millennial Corniness - Gabrielle Moss
What Moving to Italy Taught Me About the Pursuit of Happiness - Isabella Martin
Here’s Your Secret To Success: Go The F*ck To Sleep - Ryan Holiday
Here’s to an awesome weekend for you all.
If you need me, you’ll find me stuffing my face with Porto’s fish, wine, and cachorrinhos (Portuguese hot dogs stuffed with cheese. My waistline hates them, my brain loves them).
Saúde! (Cheers!)