I Love Instructions
I’ve always been an instruction-follower.
I never questioned the adage that “the people who made it know the best way to use it,” so I of course read the instructions to every birthday toy, school assignment, and LEGO kit I owned while growing up. As a kid, my favorite websites were always the ones full of “how-to” and “do-it-yourself” articles.
Good instructions made me feel as if I could do anything. Sure, I didn’t know how to build a computer a few years ago, but with articles from How-To Geek and Tom’s Hardware at my side, I could learn which parts to look for and how to assemble them. Yes, I had no idea how to program a computer when I was a twelve-year-old, but with the DarkBASIC programming language manual in hand I could learn to get input from the keyboard, draw shapes on the screen, and make decisions based on variables. Sure, I didn’t know how to drive a car when I was 15, but with a driver’s handbook in front of me, I could learn all the laws and techniques I needed in order to pass a road test. You get the idea.
My point is this: Having actual step-by-step guides to follow enables you to confidently try new things.
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