I was taking a walk one day when I looked down at my feet and realized how important steps are in a journey. Specifically, how important a step is when it is followed by another and another on the way to a destination. Each step I take brings me further along the path, whether that's a walk to the corner market or a trip to the mountains of Thailand. A "Hello, World" program or a finished software product.

Ultimately we're talking about change. Journeying in travel is changing location. Journeying in software is changing bits (or changing how computers & users should change bits).

You can't effect change without taking steps. You must keep walking to get to the corner market. Likewise, you must continue coding software to build a product.

It might seem like the best way to take a journey is to make the biggest change in the smallest amount of time. Try it on a trip to the corner market. Try taking only leaps. I would be surprised if I could make it a block...and my knees would be shot.

Leaps are exhausting. They are not sustainable.

The same limitation applies to software. Try coding the "next big thing" in as few sessions as possible. If you don't burn out you'll miss the mark.

Everyone starts out unable to walk. You have to first build the strength to lift your head. Then you learn to sit up. Then, finally, you're crawling. This works well for a while.

At some point, you decided to pull yourself up to your feet. You wobbled. You fell back down. You cried. But you stood up again. Then you took a step and fell again. Undeterred, you kept at it, through frustration and failure.

After some time, you gained enough skills and confidence to run and leap. Like a five-year-old with boundless energy, you ran everywhere. It felt good! You were having fun. Occasionally you ran into things and it hurt. But you didn't stop.

Eventually, though, you pushed yourself to the limit. You got frustrated by constantly tripping and running into things. You threw a tantrum and needed a nap.

I bet a similar pattern happened when you started learning to build software. Maybe you found a "Hello, world" example and ran it. It probably took a while to even figure out the steps for that.

Then you downloaded the compiler, fiddled with opening a command-line interface, copy/pasted an example...voilà!

If you're lucky, your language maker was thoughtful enough to include

to help you get started.

You solved a problem and it pressed a dopamine button in your brain. Then you spent hours at the keyboard, coding away, eyes bleeding, fingers numb. But you didn't stop.

You pushed the envelope of the human mind and body. You

. You took leaps, but remember: Leaps are not sustainable.

Like the runner who just finished a race, a software developer with fatigue needs rest. A nice break resets perspective. It prepares the body and mind for the next journey. You can take time to consider which way to go.

Then start back with baby steps. Work your way up to a comfortable pace. Occasionally leap over puddles if necessary. But find your rhythm. Come back to baby steps when you're losing steam. Rest regularly. Keep that rhythm. Make it a habit.

Occasionally you'll want to stop, rest, and review your progress. Are you still heading where you want to go? Is the corner market closed? Is there a pandemic preventing you from entering Thailand? Do your users like the feature?

Steps start with the decision to go somewhere, and they compound when you turn them into a habit. Now you're on a journey.

When the words fail, chart the course.