Complacency is indeed the biggest enemy of progress. I accomplished something that I was very proud of, that I thought put me way ahead of my peers, and that was the beginning of it.

Much as I want to deny it, it is a real thing. When I got accepted as an intern at a top tech company last December, I was so proud of myself. I got congratulatory calls from friends and people that know me well. I could see their admiration, or maybe their jealousy. There were moments when I thought I had everything and life would so much smoother and easier from then on. I was so proud, but that was the downfall of everything.

I was reminded of this fact almost daily, by my friends who made casual jokes of my intern salary, or by the eagerness of strangers who hurried to ask for advice on how to get in big tech companies. And sometimes I took those compliments in, believing that I was indeed the genius that they claimed.

Giving it a careful thought, I do realize that these few months since December have indeed been marked by complacency. True that I have embarked on a long term projects worthy of commitments, but my latest forays were still old stuff I have always been fiddling with, and learning of new cool technology has been stalled. I may see progress of moving forward, but most of them are illusions from empty self satisfaction. Sometimes I spent too much time dreaming about what could happen in the future, that I lose touch with reality.

Yes, much as I didn't want to admit it, I was affected by complacency. And this is a good time to throw away all the burdens and start anew.