We take action for different reasons.
Some for money, whether for food or fun.
Some for love, whether emotional or physical.
Some for health, whether for others or for ourselves.
I did RealSocial for all of the above. I spent countless hours coding, tweaking, researching, and persuading. I didn't secure funding. I didn't get a girlfriend. And I sure as hell didn't lose weight or gain muscle.
But I did get clarity.
Society warps us as we grow older. Kids are very direct and unfiltered. As we age, we cognitively think about what we should say instead of just saying it. Afraid of making a "mistake" this way? Is it really a mistake if you learn from it? Tired of the lame boss, co-worker, client you may have? Maybe you aren't really enjoying that job. Oh, you need money, right? Maybe you aren't really enjoying your own spending habits.
The rabbit hole doesn't end there. Friendships and relationships fail often due to expectations (or the lack there of) not being communicated and understood. Our minds stop us from taking a chance to be accepted or rejected, despite the fact that getting neither is a far worse fate.
It's hard, I know. I'm a programmer/computer scientist. Reality here is made up of 0's and 1's, true or false, if or else (switch statements don't count, asshole) . It's scary to venture out into something that isn't set in stone. There's no Javadoc for how to find friends or ask someone out/make a move. It makes us vulnerable.
And that's ok.
“But that which issues from the heart alone, Will bend the hearts of others to your own.” - Goethe's Faust, Pt 1.
A mobile app cannot make you authentic. It may help, but this is a journey we'll all have to take on our own.
I'm done now. Agree/disagree with me, rip me open, or say nothing.
I'll learn from it.