# Bias for Action The ability to just do things is rare, especially with all the distractions surrounding us in the digital age. Avoiding the work that needs to be done and substituting it with small dopamine hits is normal now. The constant scrolling on Instagram or Twitter to squeeze out one more second of stimulation keeps us hooked. I keep coming back to the idea that if something is free, you are probably the consumer. I found myself in that rut after I joined my full-time job at the end of 2023. The struggle and hard work during grad school was replaced by something more mundane and stable at work. I started substituting hard things with easier things that gave me quick dopamine hits. After a few months, even reading a moderately difficult technical wiki became painful. The things that actually needed to get done kept getting pushed to the back burner. At that point I realized I needed to develop a bias for action, or put simply: I needed to get better at doing things. ## Do The Small Things Immediately If something takes less than 15 minutes, do it now. This includes boring tasks like ordering something you need, filling out a document, applying for a driver's license, or handling a small admin task. These are the kinds of things we procrastinate even though they can be finished in one small block of time. ## Start With High-Consequences Work Then I started prioritizing things that would have real consequences if ignored for a long time. Examples: - Work tasks assigned to me. - Filing taxes. - Paying bills. - Handling important documents. - Keeping commitments. These things need to get done regardless. They require more focus, so they should not live at the bottom of the list. ## Make Low-Risk Decisions Faster For decisions that do not have long-term consequences, I started moving faster. Not sure what table to order? Pick the top two options and choose one. You can return it later if needed. Want to write a new blog? Write it as if no one is reading. You can refine it later. Some decisions are hard because they genuinely need evidence. Many are hard only because there are too many options. ## Gather Data For The Decisions That Need It For decisions that need more evidence, I put them on my todo list and write down the data points I need. Then I work through those data points until I either make the decision or understand what is still missing. ## What To Remember Bias for action does not mean being reckless. It means reducing the amount of time you spend stuck between intention and execution. ## Related - [[Articles/Reading Code Is as Important as Writing Code]] - [[Topics/Production Engineering]]