i think we get success backwards

I’ve been thinking a lot about how success actually works, and I keep coming back to the same idea.

I wonder if we give too much credit to the opportunity itself, when most of the work has already happened long before it arrives.

A few years ago, before I had a software engineering job, I spent six to eight hours a day writing code. Pre-AI era, btw. :) There was no salary, no deadlines and no one expecting me to show up. I was just building projects because I wanted to get better.

Then, when I eventually landed a role that required me to code for roughly six hours every day, the adjustment wasn’t difficult. Looking back, I think it was because I’d already been living that routine for months.

It makes me wonder if that’s what preparation really is. Maybe it’s not about getting ready for an opportunity. Maybe it’s about quietly building the habits that make the opportunity feel familiar when it finally comes.

I think the same idea shows up everywhere. Whether it’s a career, a skill, a relationship or anything else, the pattern seems to be the same. The life you want usually starts with the habits and decisions of the person you want to become.

Maybe success isn’t something you step into overnight. Maybe, by the time it arrives, you’ve already been living close to it for a while.

“Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become.”

James Clear - Atomic Habits