# Don't be lazy, don't be stupid

> Do it right, now; or do it again, later.

[^alex]: Sorry Alex. But it still reads well?

I just wrote a blog post and messed it up by not following my own checklist – lazy and stupid – and then tested out a new code idea, and messed it up by just not reading the documentation. Lazy! And! Stupid!

## Lazy is default

Of course it is. Evolution and stuff. But when dealing with the complexity of the modern world, **it is no longer an advantage**.

Because being lazy _now_ just means that I have to do it again _later_. That's not efficient, and it's frustrating, and it leads to a worse state of mind, and poorer quality work.

## Checklists

When I write a blog post, I have a checklist. It's kinda boring: do this, do that. It's more work than just banging out a tweet. But hey, that's what it is. To ignore that fact is to be childish.

So I just published a couple of blog posts and totally ignored my checklist, and now I have to spend more time fixing them than I would have had I just done it right.

Lazy. Stupid.

### Tend to your checklists

Checklists are a superpower. Read [Atul Gawande's 'The Checklist Manifesto](https://atulgawande.com/book/the-checklist-manifesto/)'.

But they _must_ be kept up to date. Because every step is a chore, and superfluous steps will lead you to resent and ultimately reject the whole list.

**Every time you touch your checklist, fix what's broken**. You need to _want_ to use your checklists. They need to be a relief, not a burden.

## Documentation

Then I was messing about with this [Astro feature](https://docs.astro.build/en/guides/actions/) and it wasn't working and _arrrgh whyyyyy_ and eventually I ask their AI support bot on Discord and it tells me about this one line I need to add ... which is just right there in the documentation. Clear as day.

So had I just taken the time to read it, it would have worked, and I wouldn't have been frustrated, and I wouldn't have had to open Discord which is now a distraction, and it would have been working half an hour ago, and all the rest.

Don't be lazy. Don't be stupid.[^alex]