Half-Baked Is Better Than Raw

It's 2026 and I'm still kicking. But, y'all, I'm tired. I bet you are too.

Life is harder than ever. Even if we put the news cycle aside (which is pretty much impossible), everything is just difficult. Everything is more expensive, the planet is on fire, etc., etc. Being a person sometimes feels like a Sisyphean task: do the dishes, again. Do the laundry, again. Cook dinner, again. What do you mean, I have to do all of those things again tomorrow?

And, of course, we can't put the news cycle aside. And plenty of people are feeling the weight of trying to fight injustice while working two jobs, raising kids, trying to finish school, or any number of other challenges. How can we possibly do everything? How can we make a difference? How can we find the energy to do everything right when there's so much to do?

Here's an answer nobody likes: we don't.

Life is a juggling act of responsibilities - to yourself, to your family, to your job, and so on - but not all of the balls are the same. Some of them are plastic, and some of them are glass. If you drop a plastic ball, it might roll away, but it'll survive; if you drop a glass ball, it'll break. Sometimes, you have to prioritize based on the outcome. For example, if I call in sick at the last minute, it might affect my reputation at work or my relationship with my manager, but if I go in sick and don't take care of myself, I might get a lot worse, or I could get other people sick. It sure would be nice to never need a sick day, but I shouldn't sacrifice my health to keep a perfect streak.

We're all familiar with the concept of giving 100%, but it just doesn't math out. If I start at 100% and give all of it to my day job, that means I have nothing left to give to my chores at home or my relationships or my own health and happiness. And none of us wake up at 100% every day. We have to figure out ways to lighten the load.

A perfect example: I want to be better about this site. I want to be writing a full article at least every other week. But realistically, that's not going to happen, at least not right away. So instead, I'm writing this short, self-referential post, because it's better to have done something, even if it's far from perfect.

Eat ham and cheese straight off a plate instead of making a sandwich. Do one hurried, mixed load of laundry. Clean one part of your room. Read a few more pages of your abandoned book. Write a little blog post just to say, "Hello, I am here."

That buff guy at the gym didn't lift 200 pounds his first day. He lifted five or ten for a while, and then he added a little more when that got easy. It took time for him to get this far. It'll take time for you too.

Every day is the first day. Try again. Do little pieces if the big piece is overwhelming. That's the first step.

One step at a time.