July 14, 2026

Good decision, bad outcome

It’s possible to make a good decision but have a bad outcome. It’s also possible to make a bad decision and have a good outcome.

Perhaps I decide, after careful and high-quality analysis, to leave my day job and try to make it as a full-time illustrator. Before doing so, I run the numbers (so I know I can afford it), I lead with my values (so I know it was aligned with my emotional needs), and I talked it over with friends and peers who had recently done a similar thing to understand the qualitative difference it would make to my life (and I liked what I heard).

But, what if 9 months in, I discover that things aren’t working out the way I had planned. Maybe I didn’t make as much money as I thought I would because cost-of-materials suddenly shot up. Or a contract I thought was a sure thing was unexpectedly cancelled. Or I thought I’d enjoy spending long swathes of time alone but I didn’t and I realised I needed people to collaborate with more than I realised. To make ends meet, I had to agree to do work I that didn’t align with my values.

The common thing to do would be to conclude I made a bad decision. That a bad outcome was because of a bad decision. But, the outcome was mostly influenced by luck and things that could not be foreseen until experienced. So, the decision itself, given all the information I had at the time, was a good one. I suspect this happens more often than we realise.

Other observations
September 29, 2026

I feel like drawing flowers

When you feel like drawing flowers, but someone will pay you to draw monkeys, what comes first?

September 8, 2026

No shortcuts

You may be able to find a tool or technique to make a process or drawing more efficient. A digital camera show the photographer the result of their work quicker than a film camera, but it doesn’t make the photo better or the photographer more competent. One still needs to understand tone, colour and composition… Continue reading No shortcuts

View all