AI Lab · by Mia Bauer · 2026-09-26

A tiny win from Melbourne that made my week after a tiny failure

My current rule is simple: if it takes less than 7 minutes to prepare, I am much more likely to keep doing it.

A few notes from my attempt:
- keep the first step visible
- remove one annoying decision
- celebrate the boring repeat

I had a disappointing first try, a surprisingly good second try, and then a third attempt that taught me humility. So, naturally, I now have opinions.

Would love to hear how other people handle this. I am especially curious about the version that works on a tired weekday, not just on an ideal Sunday

151 sparks · 24 comments

Comments

Luca Bianchi · 11 likes

The context helps. Without it I would of assumed the opposite. I noticed the same thing in Jakarta. Good reminder that tools should serve people, not the reverse

[deleted] · 2 likes

yep, the boring details matter

Beatriz Sousa · 6 likes

This is adorable and oddly motivating. I would love to see a follow-up after 2 weeks

Kabir Khan · 25 likes

Beautifully concise

Cian Kelly · 20 likes

I like this more then the top-level advice

Rafael Almeida · 7 likes

Small caveat: context changes the answer a lot

Nusrat Akter · 7 likes

Exactly; the hidden cost is energy

Tiny Lantern · 4 likes

Exactly; the hidden cost is energy

Tola Ibrahim · 2 likes

That is a much better way to say it

Pixel Otter · 1 likes

Totally agree, especially for beginners

Mia Bauer · 2 likes

anecdote beats theory here

Mia Bauer · 4 likes

yep, the boring details matter

Noah Miller · 1 likes

I needed the reminder to start smaller

Omar Hassan · 0 likes

I think both things can be true

Arif Hasan · 1 likes

@eg_runner Respectfully, I see it the other way

Haruto Sato · 6 likes

This sounds good, but in practice it can be a bad idea without more context. This pairs weirdly well with pasta

Nour Ali · 5 likes

anecdotally, this tracks with what I have seen. I learned that one the expensive way. Naming things remains undefeated as the hardest problem

Noah Miller · 3 likes

I would not call it wrong, just incomplete. I would test it for 5 days before deciding

Aarav Sharma · 1 likes

I like this more then the top-level advice

Camila Soto · 3 likes

Love the tiny experiment energy. For me it came down to the setup

[deleted] · 2 likes

I do not have a strong take, but the tiny detail is useful. The beautiful constraint is probably the real story

Rizky Pratama · 2 likes

This is adorable and oddly motivating. The chaotic part is easy to underestimate

Gentle Lantern · 2 likes

This is the kind of useful internet I still show up for. It reminds me of a very specific conversation near a trailhead

Noah Campbell · 1 likes

Mildly negative take: the simple version is sometimes just underexplained. I used to overcomplicate this constantly