Some environments shout out smart.

That young random doctor in that fancy hospital for instance; The chamber, the white coat, the receptionist, the forms you fill before you are allowed to meet the doctor - all work to prime your brain with the belief that your doctor is smart. That you are in safe hands.

Software is no different. The plush offices of that smart product company, the bean bags, the large television screens on the corridor, the huge long passageways, the professionally trimmed grass in the gardens that surround the office - all designed to prime the customers brain to believe that the people who work in the company are really smart.

But what about that talented doctor who runs his own small practice and refuses to get a monthly pay check from that hospital?

What about that young programmer who decides to write his own application and not work for that development shop?

Or that writer who decides to publish on Kindle instead of going with a professional publisher?

Or that artist who sells his own painting instead of showcasing them at a known gallery?

When you decide to give up systems and environments which make your clients believe you are smart, you are left with only one thing that will convince your clients you are indeed smart and will make them keep coming back to your work:

You.

Here is to all individuals who don't need environments and systems to earn respect, attention, business and success.

Respect.

My obsession for making a PC look like a Mac dates back to 2006. The quest is just as much about exploring new tools and utilities as it is about the esthetic element of having a Zen like desktop. Here's what my desktop looks like today:

Getting a dock that looks like the Mac doc is easy.

And so is getting a free utility that shows your outlook tasks and calendar items on your desktop.

With the number of folks cribbing about the windows start screen, getting a launcher is even easier.

Most of them will automatically map to your windows key and start off when you hit the windows key on your keyboard.

I however; prefer the Zen like simplicity of Launchy; instead of having an obtrusive start button or a start screen.

It's open source and rather easy to grab and install.

Wouldn't it be amazing if we could just replace the start screen with the simplicity of Launchy when we hit the Windows button on our keyboards?

But Launchy options don't provide any settings to invoke Launchy when someone presses the windows key on their keyboard. For me this is a deal breaker since I'm so used to hitting the window key if I want to start something, learning a different keystroke to launch applications is just insanely difficult and I keep going back to the window key. I could of course disable the Window key but that would just make hitting two keystrokes to launch applications that much more non productive.

Remapping or reprogramming the default windows start screen with Launchy when the window key is pressed seemed like the only valid option if I was to use Launchy.

Launchy may not provide this out of the box but it does provide options where we can map invocation of Launchy to ATL + CRTL + Space; so we do that as the first step.

But we still want Launchy to replace the Windows Start Screen when someone presses the Windows Key on their keyboard.

Enter AutoHotKey.

If you don't know what AutoHotKey is, you should spawn a browser window right now and start reading. It is an amazing little tool that allows you to write tiny scripts for remapping keys and sending keystrokes, messages and do a lot more when specific keys are pressed on the keyboard. This is amazing because it just makes most of us geeks super-productive but what intrigued me was it's ability to capture the window key.

The first thing we do after installing AutoHotKey is Right click the AutoHotKey taskbar icon and click "Edit This Script" menu item. We then clean up the file and add the following line of script:

With AutoHotKey we have the option of sending multiple keystrokes when any key (including the windows key) is pressed, however, after having Goggled for hours on how you can remap the windows key on your keyboard to not show the windows start screen at-all, it seemed like there were no direct solution; until there was a sudden realization that when we hit the escape key the start screen disappears. That's what led to the creation of the above script.

In the above script we're mapping the left window key to first hit escape, then hit the ATL key (indicated by ^) + CRTL Key (indicated by "!") + Space (indicated by {Space}). So we basically hit Escape to hide the default Windows Start Screen and then send keystrokes to invoke Launchy.

After this script is modified you save it,  Right click the AutoHotKey icon and click the "Reload this Script" menu item. Once this is done you hit the windows key and launchy kicks of.  To put simply, you train AutoHotKey to not try to take control of the start screen, just hide it in milliseconds of it showing up.

The takeaway? Well actually there are two:

1. It's very easy to remap the windows / start key on your keyboard to do anything you want it to by sending Escape key followed by the keystrokes you want to send. The escape hides the default windows start screen. The other keystrokes you send do what-ever it is that you want them to do (in this case it's opening Launchy).
2. When Google fails; rely on Ocaam's Razor.

And now that you've remapped the windows / start key on your keyboard, have gotten rid of the Windows 8 start screen and have a minimalistic replacement for it, give your self a pat on the back and please get back to work. Oh and of course, spend some time on AutoHotKey - there's some serious damage you can do as a developer / geek when it comes to automating tasks and making yourself more productive with this tool.

Quick aside: The solution of automating the hit of escape key before sending other key strokes isn't full proof in scenarios where the application you are working with also captures the Escape key; but for most cases this should do the trick. If you know of a better way to remap your windows key I'd love to learn. Please drop a line in the comments section and let me know.

Some ideas are demanding. They crystallize in your head and then they grab you by your collar demanding that you work on them. Others are more subtle and silent, gently whispering and seeking your attention. Some show up while you are having a shower and follow you through days, weeks and months occupying a silent calm place in your head. Some even spread like a virus and some have the potential of consuming your head and giving you a gush of dopamine much like Romantic love does.

Like any real life relationship your relationship with your idea also changes with the volume of time you spend with it and the amount of effort you spend on it. Sometimes you feel strongly attached to the idea when you spend more time on it. At times, you need to stop working on  the idea and give yourself a long break, to realize how much the idea meant to you. And some ideas, like some relationships, just don't work out. Some even die because of lack of attention or time.

Your relationship with your idea is just as real as your relationship with your spouse or your loved ones or your colleagues or acquaintances who you bump into.

Some of these "idea-relationships" will fizzle out; some will die a natural death; but given the right environment and encouragement, some of these idea-relationships will grow; so much so that you even end up giving it more importance than your own selfish interest or well being.

So the next time you hush an idea because you're too lazy to work on it or too scared of the consequences of a failure, think about the potential of forming a long term full filling relationship with an idea that can change your whole life and your entire existence. 

Not every acquaintance becomes a close friend and not every idea has to see the light of implementation, but the ones that bring you the promise of a better life, the spark of romance and the pleasure of flow deserve just as much time and attention as important relationships do in your life.

Your being busy with a full time job is not an excuse to ignore your relationships with your loved ones.... and your ideas.

I'm not a fan of new years resolutions. After all, the volume of will power in your brain is limited and will power is often overrated, but if an idea has been occupying a certain part of your brain and has been flirting with you for months, why not start by squeezing out just a couple of hours every weekend and going on a romantic date with that idea?

I'm not saying you have to finish every project you start; but it's also important to realize that your ideas deserve some work and a fair chance before they can start taking a life of their own. 

Just like any real life relationship, your intent and love isn't enough. Your ideas demand your time, attention, effort and serious work and they may still fail. But if they do take a life of their own, they have a potential of changing your life as well. Is your next idea capable of doing that? Well, the real question is, are you willing to put in the effort to find out?

We like to imagine an author sitting in front of an empty document when an idea hits him and he starts slapping keys on his keyboard uncontrollably. Or an artist sitting in front of a canvas when he taken over by a jolt of inspiration and he paints his first strokes with a bold sense of certainty; the start of an amazing painting.

We like to think of innovative software products all around us as something that started when a talented programmer woke up in the middle of the night and did a "File / New Project"; then he proceeded to write code the entire weekend to ship something remarkable Monday morning.

Real life creativity however works very differently and anyone who's ever shipped any form of art, be it writing an article, drawing a picture or conceptualizing the developing a software product knows that it is often the start that is the most frustrating.

Start is when:

1. Flow just isn't there.
2. Self doubt of not getting anywhere and merely wasting time on an idea that won't materialize is at it's highest.
3. Most crap is produced (there is a dozen posts with just titles on my live writer cache and over a dozen folders with project names craving attention on my personal hard drive) and thrown.
4. An idea is tested for it's worth (and it's ultimate destiny).

The first 80% of the project is the riskiest bit where most personal projects get scrapped. And rightly so. Maybe you had to build on 80% of the idea to realize that it won't click. Maybe you had to draw more than half the sketch to realize that it does look hideous after all. Or write most of the article to realize that no-one other than you is going to be interested in reading it. Scrapping something at 80% done isn't wasted effort. It's Net-Practice. Effort invested to see if your idea will stick.

And if you do it long enough, throwing one bad idea after another after brining bits and pieces of it into existence, every once in a while, you are likely to bounce into an idea where you mulishly work on a project surrounded with self doubt and slowly but surely manage to cross the 80% threshold. You aren't utterly disappointed in the output. In fact, you secretly continue to admire it. Something inside nudges you to continue working on the project. This is when your self doubt starts to go down and the idea starts to take shape into something beautiful; something real.

This is where the fun begins.

When you reach the 80% mark, and you begin to see something real taking shape in front of you and you love what you see, magic happens. Suddenly:

1. You're in flow.
2. Self doubt of not shipping anything worthwhile starts melting away and eventually disappearing.
3. The idea has proven itself (at-least to you).
4. You know that if you push just a little harder you actually might be able to ship and find out if the rest of the world thinks like you do.
5. You know that in reality you're not 80% done at all; but the end does look achievable and absolutely stunning.

For all you know you might still be shipping crap; but the fear of failing has suddenly given way to the curiosity of finding out how awesome your idea truly is. This is when most creativity thrives, flow happens and one serendipitous thought gives birth to another. True you're not just 20% away from shipping, you just think you are; but this is where you sign that silent unspoken pact with yourself that you will ship this idea. That this idea will come into existence. That you will give it all you can; so that it gets a fair chance at surviving when it is shipped.

Of course; you're nowhere close to shipping; and not even in the same vicinity of "completeness" that you want to be in. But then, 80% done is usually when you can stand back, look at the piece of art, and see is getting born. This mere act results in nothing but pure geek awesomeness. This is where you can stop worrying about the bigger aspects of success (or survival of the idea) and focus on the small intricate details that will make your art amazing.

And yet we spend so much time glamorizing The Start or The End, when in reality 80% done is where most creativity thrives; where most fun begins and the most rewards of intrinsic drive and happiness exist.

If only we had done better planning when the project started we wouldn't be in this position right now.

If only we had known the requirements better; if only we had the right resources; if only we would have worked harder; if only I would have studied harder when the year started.

There are two things you can do about If-Only based introspection.

1. Work hard to avoid them in advance.
2. Be aware that you cannot eliminate them and understand they in spite of how hard you work these scenarios will always exist.

There'll always be one open "if only" scenario in your product, project or what ever it is that you ship. You'll always start working in the wrong time; you'll always be short of resources;  you'll always be short of time while shipping.

The only value if-only based evaluation provides is educational; so that you don't make the same mistakes again; the next time. For now,  this time, you'll just have to befriend those "if only" thoughts, embrace them and move forward anyways.

There are three reasons why you would do something that someone wanted you to do:

1. Fear: You are scared of the person ordering you or the repercussions of not following the order.
2. Respect: You respect the person requesting you and you want to make him happy.
3. Likeability: You like the person inspiring you and you genuinely want to do it.

Notice how you move from Order, to Request to Inspiration when you move from Fear, to respect, to likability.

And then you've genuinely inspired someone, you realize that the only way to make smart people do something is by making them genuinely "want" to do it.

Orders loaded with fear of repercussions work, but only for a short term and often with devastating side effects that leave deep scars.The Take-away?

If you want to become likeable, start inspiring someone; If you genuinely want to inspire someone, start by becoming likeable. Jerks not allowed; acting like one won't help either.

When do you feel sleepy, tired and low?

When do you feel fresh, vibrant and strong?

Minus the six to seven hours of basic sleep, how you feel on any given day, depends on how much value you ship to the people around you and the world at large; not by how many leaves you took last week, or by how many sitcoms you watched on television last night.

Probably one of the reasons why the hardest working people seem to be the happiest, fresh and the most vibrant of the lot.

Sleepy? Tired?

Although it might not always be the case, maybe (and more often than not) the problem lies in the fact that you aren’t working hard enough.

Or even more importantly, you aren’t spending enough time working on what you should be working on and the weight of "knowing" but not "doing" is taking it’s toll on you.

Just a little something to think about (and act on).

Constraints:

1. Encourage innovation.
2. Push you to work harder.
3. Limit your choices there-by simplifying the paradox of choice and making you happier.
4. Help you focus on your real priorities rather than unimportant noise, bells and whistles.
5. Make you that much more brighter and stronger.
6. Make you that much more happier when the end result is just as good or better than it would have been had you worked unconstrained.

This is not just about embracing constraints or learning to work in a world of constraints. It's about seeing constraints as opportunities for innovation. And making the most of them? Nothing but pure geek awesomeness.