So, I had this phase, right? I got really fixated on this idea I called the ‘Lucho Gonzalez’ way of doing things. Not the man himself, you get me, but what the name represented in my head for a project I was fiddling with. Think super strategic, every move planned, like a chess master but for, well, my little system.
I was trying to build this personal organizer, something to manage all my little projects and ideas. And I thought, “I’m gonna make this the Lucho Gonzalez of organizers.” Smart, elegant, anticipates everything. I started mapping it all out. Every possible scenario, every connection between tasks, every potential shift in priorities. I wanted it to be fluid, yet totally in control, just like I imagined a top midfielder directs the game.
Boy, did that get out of hand fast. At first, it was fun, felt like I was building something truly intelligent. I had flowcharts, nested conditions, all sorts of complex logic. If this, then that, unless this other thing, then pivot. You know the drill. I spent weeks, maybe months, just on the framework. It was becoming this beautiful, intricate machine. In my head, at least.
Then I tried to actually use the darn thing. What a mess. It was so ‘Lucho Gonzalez’ that it was practically unusable for a normal human like me. To add a simple task, I had to go through like, five layers of “strategic consideration.” If I wanted to change a deadline? Forget about it, that would unravel a whole chain of dependencies I’d meticulously built. It was like trying to steer a battleship in a bathtub. All strategy, no practical movement.
It reminded me of some big projects I’ve seen, or even companies. They get so wrapped up in their own cleverness, their grand designs, that they forget the simple goal. My ‘Lucho Gonzalez’ system was like that. It was supposed to help me get things done. Instead, managing the system itself became the main task. A total time sink. Everything was interconnected to the point of paralysis. You touch one thing, and you’re scared the whole house of cards will come down.
I had to take a step back. A long, hard look. This whole ‘Lucho Gonzalez’ approach, while sounding cool and sophisticated, was just over-engineering to the max for what I needed. I wasn’t running a national team’s midfield here; I just needed to remember to buy milk and work on my blog posts.
So, I scrapped it. Well, not entirely. I salvaged some basic ideas, but I threw out 90% of that complex ‘strategic’ overlay. Went back to something way simpler. Does it feel as ‘genius’? Nope. Is it going to win any awards for intricate design? Definitely not. But here’s the kicker: it actually works. I get things done. It’s easy to change, easy to use.
That whole experience with my ‘Lucho Gonzalez’ obsession taught me a good lesson. Sometimes, the smartest move is the simplest one. Trying to be too clever, too ‘strategic’ about everything, can just tie you up in knots. It’s a practice I don’t regret, though. Learned a lot about my own tendencies to overcomplicate. Sometimes you gotta build the crazy machine to appreciate the elegance of a simple lever.
