Key Points
The quick version, for readers short on time.
I had a software engineering degree, then a fashion design degree, and neither one gave me permission to start the thing I actually wanted to do. I kept waiting for a credential, a mentor, a sign — something external that would make it official.
Nobody was going to hand me that. In 2016 I opened a laptop and posted something imperfect, and that was the whole unlock. Not a course, not a certificate — just doing the thing publicly before I felt ready.
The lesson took years to actually sink in: readiness is a feeling, not a prerequisite. It shows up after you start, not before. Every platform I've built since has followed the same order — act first, feel confident second.
If you're waiting for permission, this is it. Post the thing.