Morning Markers

Wrapping up the fourth day of the week, I wanted to summarize four powerful concepts that have shaped my professional life and have been particularly relevant to me lately.

One of the principles I stand by—and every time I fail to follow it, I regret it—is program to interfaces, not implementations. There’s nothing like having to refactor dozens of classes to extract an interface and replace its usage across hundreds of files (I love you, PHPStorm) to make you realize how much easier life would be if you had just defined an interface early on.

Planning my goals each morning is one of the best ways I’ve found to navigate the day with a clear horizon. I don’t expect to get everything done, much less in a strict predefined order, but the focus it gives me and the energy it generates are invaluable.

No matter how much I try to plan ahead, I’m well aware that most plans are doomed to change. Being adaptable and shifting direction easily is one of my strongest traits. While other skills I’ve had to develop over time and through practice, this flexibility comes naturally to me—I can tolerate sudden changes with barely any discomfort.

They say if you can be anything in life, be kind. If there’s one thing I never regret, it’s putting this idea into practice consistently. Anger, frustration, disappointment… these are all fleeting states of mind. Responding with kindness not only improves the general atmosphere and brings positivity back to you, it’s also the best way to feel good about yourself.

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