Recently I’ve been thinking a lot about decisions.
Not because I enjoy making them.
Mostly because I suck at them.
I can spend weeks thinking about a decision that should probably take a few days.
Career decisions.
Project ideas.
Books to read.
What to learn next.
Sometimes I think so much that I end up doing nothing.
While going down a rabbit hole one day, I came across something called the Explore vs Exploit Problem.
For a concept that comes from computer science and reinforcement learning, it felt surprisingly personal.
The idea is simple.
Imagine you’re at your favorite restaurant.
You could order the dish you always order.
You know it’s good.
You know you won’t regret it.
Or you could try something new.
Maybe it’s better.
Maybe it’s terrible.
That’s exploration.
And that tiny decision turns out to be everywhere.
Should you stay in a job that is okay, or try something uncertain?
Should you keep using the skills you already have, or learn something completely new?
Should you continue doing what works, or risk looking stupid while trying something else?
That’s the Explore vs Exploit Problem.
Exploit means sticking with what already works.
Explore means taking a risk to learn something new.
At first, the answer seems obvious.
Just keep doing what works.
But that’s where it gets interesting.
People think exploration is risky.
And it is.
But exploitation has risks too.
They’re just harder to see.
If you keep ordering the same dish, you’ll never discover something better.
If you keep doing the same work, you’ll never know if you’re capable of more.
If you keep making the safe decision, you might wake up years later wondering whether it was actually the right one.
One of my favorite ways to think about exploration is this:
It’s basically a smarter version of “fuck around and find out.”
Not random chaos.
Not doing reckless things.
Just running experiments.
Trying things.
Collecting information.
Updating your beliefs.
Then trying again.
The people who seem to figure life out aren’t necessarily smarter.
They just gather more evidence.
Instead of spending six months wondering whether they’ll enjoy something, they spend a month actually trying it.
Instead of endlessly researching, they build.
Instead of guessing, they test.
I’ve realized that some questions can’t be answered by thinking.
You have to do the thing.
You can’t think your way into knowing whether you’ll enjoy building apps.
You build one.
You can’t think your way into knowing whether a career path is right for you.
You try it.
Reality gives better feedback than your imagination ever will.
So now when I’m stuck, I try asking a different question.
Not:
“What’s the safest option?”
But:
“Which option gives me the most information?”
Because information compounds.
A failed experiment can still be useful.
A successful one can completely change the direction of your life.
The biggest risk isn’t always making the wrong decision.
Sometimes it’s never exploring enough to find out what the right one was.
And maybe that’s what growth really is.
Explore.
Exploit.
Repeat.
And occasionally, fuck around and find out.
Bye !!