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October 13, 2021 11:09 pm GMT

Creating through a crisis

Youre a maker, right? Why dont you make something?

Theres a scene in Iron Man 3 where Tony Stark was having a panic attack from the work as a superhero, and he called Harley, the kid who sheltered him while he was hiding from his enemies. Harley goes console Stark, and said, Youre a mechanic, right? Why dont you build something?

That line really stuck with me. Floated around in my subconscious.

Then it appeared as a mini-epiphany. Im not sure when this happened, but theres a repeating pattern that I observed about how I cope with crisis. And its about building something.

First it was a chronic medical condition in 2018 (which I had since recovered from, thankfully). While I was seeking treatment, I wasnt taking on paid projects then, but I continued to work. In fact, it was that same time that I tried out the 12 startups in 12 months challenge. I called it #1mvp1month. I didnt end up making 12 products, but was close 8 products. That was a strange experience, because on one hand, I was going through a low period in terms of health and mental wellbeing. But yet I was creating like nobodys business.

Then in 2019, in a bid to get my health back, I turned to keto and intermittent fasting. Hard as f**k, trying to stop eating carbs. But I did. In the process of changing my diet and my health, I made a product called Keto List Singapore a directory of keto resources and links. That helped me in a big way, and now its a little side business.

Then, COVID-19 came. Complete topsy-turvy of life. Im safe at home, but also stuck at home. For someone who enjoys being outside, what can I do to cope? I create. I made products again - websites, apps, software to help people in the pandemic. Like a man possessed, I kept making. In the end I made a total of 11 products!

Some examples of the 11 products I made:

Dabao Dash - a self-help community board of offers and requests, matching hawkers and small F&Bs with delivery riders affected
Majulah Belanja - an offers/requests board for to help match donors with employers and migrant workers.
VisualAid - translated illustrations to help healthcare workers communicate better with migrant worker patients.
Grant Hunt - A chat bot to find grants for charities and non-profits in Singapore.

I realised that the intensity of my creating is directly proportional to how challenged I am in a crisis, or inversely proportional to how low I feel. I guess I needed something to balance it out. Creating always felt energizing and uplifting. It gives life, right when I need to feel more alive. Its like I can almost hear Harley say that to me over the phone (though Im under no illusions of being a superhero):

Youre a maker, right? Why dont you make something?

Damned hell I will.

Follow my daily writings on Lifelog, where I write about learning to code, goals, productivity, indie hacking and tech for good.


Original Link: https://dev.to/jasonleowsg/creating-through-a-crisis-228o

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