Iterate vs. Reinvent

Why you need to think differently (and constantly) about finding yourself in a crazy world.

If you can keep your head when all about you   
    Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,   
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
    But make allowance for their doubting too;   
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
    Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,
    And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you’re a guy in this present age, and you’re trying at all to do things right, odds are good you’re having a tough time.

Let’s clear the air first: it doesn’t matter whose fault it is.

Most of the discourse jumps right off the rails right here. It’s feminism’s fault, or it’s your parent’s fault, or it’s society’s fault, etc. It could even be your own dang fault.

Fact is, it doesn’t matter.

Why not? Because at the end of the day, you’re going to have to get up and get going. Think Jordan Peterson and his 12 steps - “make your bed!” - or think the Bible and its frequent commands to “struggle”, “fight”, and “strive.”

The point being that you’re not going to make it, you’re not going to find the success you want and need, until you get started.

But here’s the first real tricky part: starting is easy.

Everyone starts! The gym on January 2, packed with guys and gals perfectly resolved to get that flab under control. A week later, the majority are already done; a month gone by, and you’ll see only a fraction still working at it.

But those who start and keep going? Those are the ones who reap the benefits.

So why all the talk about iteration and reinvention?

Because those two ideas are the tools you’ll have to use while you’re slogging your way through life. Without them, you’ll get stuck in a rut - or worse yet, you’ll do fine until you hit a crisis. Then you’ll be lost without the right tools to work through your problem and make it out on the other side.

So let’s dive in.

Iteration

It’s a bit of a buzzword these days, particularly among the solopreneur and go-getter crowd. Fail at your first startup? Iterate and launch a new one. Initial product flop miserably? Iterate, baby, iterate.

Iterate means “to repeat a process,” and brother, you better embrace repetition. Crucially, however, to iterate often has the idea of making improvements, and then repeating the process. That’s the idea you’ll need to embrace.

Here are three examples, all drawn from everyday routines.

Weightlifting. The king of iterative, masculine processes (no offense to any gym gals reading this). What’s more iterative than lifting a large plate of iron, setting it down, lifting it again, setting it down, lifting it . . . . you get the idea.

But why do we lift? Because that iterative process tears down your muscles - and builds stronger ones. Despite all the science behind it, the process itself is simple.

And yet, the weightlifting process, over several years, can result in massive transformation. Gains, in the language of gym-bros everywhere. The gains don’t appear overnight; they may be uneven, with steady increases, regular plateaus, and even the occasional regression. But they do come, as long as you follow the process steadily.

Or - as long as you iterate.

Iteration is the you, a man, improve yourself. Not by doing something radically new or different, not by chasing the latest fad - but by developing a tried, tested method. A proven routine, which you then iterate again and again. Iterate. Improve. Tweak the process. Iterate again.

Iteration is your friend.

If you can dream—and not make dreams your master;   
    If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim;   
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
    And treat those two impostors just the same;   
If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
    Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
    And stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools:

Reinvention

Reinvention is your saviour.

I don’t mean that literally. There is only one Saviour, and He brooks no comparison. But in the storms of life, occasionally a wave so big comes along that iteration, alone, won’t sail you through. In fact, your ability to iterate might collapse completely. A job loss, a failed test, a major mistake, a relationship in crisis.

Something big enough comes along, and your routine fails. Your very self-identity can start to fracture. Your future? Can’t think that far ahead - too hard to get through today.

Iteration will be your friend again, eventually. But for now, you need reinvention.

Put down the pen of academia, and learn a trade. Set aside the trade, and join the military. Find yourself amidst the shattered remnants of the dreams you thought you had - and make new ones.

Most men may never have to reinvent themselves. I envy those for whom iteration is enough; long may your success continue!

But for any brothers who have endured the crisis and embraced reinvention, you know the value there. It is a skill learned in fire and flame, and it leaves its own scar.

But reinvention, too, is a friend.

Iterate. Reinvent, if necessary. Then build the habits to iterate and constantly improve.

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
    And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
    And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
    To serve your turn long after they are gone,   
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
    Except the Will which says to them: ‘Hold on!’

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,   
    Or walk with Kings—nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
    If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
    With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,   
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,   
    And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!

Follow of the Week

In keeping with the gym theme, let’s look at the GOAT - Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Not as surprising as it should be, but Arnie has a newsletter.

Somewhat surprisingly, it’s good.

I’m a writer by trade; I’ve even dabbled in newsletters before. And as near as I can tell, Arnold writes the opening section of each newsletter himself. The body of the message - links, health advice, news, etc - is pretty clearly a (good) ghostwriter.

But the intro is Arnold. And honestly? He’s got some good advice there! Give him a follow.

Enjoy what you’ve read? Hit me with some feedback. I’ll iterate, and get back to you. Better yet, let someone else know about it!

Catch you next time!