Unleashing Your Inner Cloud Engineer: Mastering the 5-Second Countdown in IT Cloud and DevOps

Let's kickstart with a quote :

"The first step is to establish that something is possible; then probability will occur." - Elon Musk

Hi, and welcome to the Mindset Code, a newsletter that helps you use your mind to change your life. In this edition, we will learn how a simple trick can help you do things that scare you or make you nervous. This trick is called the 5-second countdown, and it is based on the idea that you have only five seconds to act on your ideas before your mind stops you with doubts and excuses. By counting backwards from five to one, you can stop your bad habits and start your good ones.

The 5-second countdown is not a magic trick or a motivational tool. It is a way of thinking about your own thinking. By using the 5-second countdown, you are changing your mind so that you can use the part of your brain that helps you plan, decide, and control yourself. You are also making yourself more alert and focused by creating a sense of urgency and importance.

The 5-second countdown can be used in any situation where you need to do something but feel afraid or lazy to do so. For example, you can use it to:

●?????Speak up in a meeting or a presentation

●?????Ask for help or feedback

●?????Start a hard conversation

●?????Share your opinion or idea

●?????Make a phone call or send an email

●?????Apply for a job or a promotion

●?????Start a new project or task

●?????Exercise or eat healthy

●?????Wake up early or go to bed on time

●?????Say no or set a limit

To show you how the 5-second countdown can help you in different situations, let's look at some examples from the IT cloud and DevOps field.

Imagine that you are Ali, a cloud engineer who has just joined Microsoft. You are working with a team that has to move their services from their own computers to the cloud. You have some experience with cloud computing, but you don't know the specific tools and methods that Microsoft uses. You feel nervous and unsure about your skills, and you worry that you will mess up or let down your team.

One day, your team leader asks you to show your progress report in front of the senior managers. You feel scared and want to avoid this task. You think of reasons to delay or pass it on. You doubt that you have anything good to say, and you fear that you will be judged or rejected.

This is where the 5-second countdown comes in handy. Instead of letting your fear stop you, you decide to use the 5-second countdown to take action. You count backwards from five to one in your head, and then you do one of the following:

●?????You agree to the task and start preparing your presentation

●?????You ask your team leader for help and support

●?????You talk to your colleagues for feedback and advice

●?????You practice your presentation skills and rehearse your speech

●?????You look for the best tips and examples for effective presentations

By using the 5-second countdown, you are breaking the cycle of fear and laziness, and taking steps towards your goal. You are also building your confidence and courage by facing your challenge directly. You are showing yourself and others that you are able and skilled.

Another example is Jenny, a junior DevOps engineer who has recently joined AWS. She is working with a team that is in charge of making, testing, and delivering software applications on the cloud. She loves her work, but she also has problems with perfectionism and self-doubt. She spends hours fixing her code, checking for errors, and solving bugs. She is afraid to share her work with others, thinking that it is not good enough or that it will be turned down.

One day, her team leader asks her to deliver her code to production as part of a new feature release. She feels anxious and stressed about this task. She worries that her code will not work well, that it will cause issues for the users or the system, or that it will damage the reputation of her team.

This is where the 5-second countdown can help her overcome her perfectionism and self-doubt. Instead of letting her anxiety stop her from taking action, she decides to use the 5-second countdown to move forward. She counts backwards from five to one in her head, and then she does one of the following:

●?????She sends her code to the repository and pushes it to production

●?????She asks her team leader for confirmation and approval

●?????She asks for a code review from her peers or mentors

●?????She runs automated tests and checks for quality assurance

●?????She watches the performance and feedback of her code

By using the 5-second countdown, she is overcoming her perfectionism and self-doubt, and taking action towards her goal. She is also improving her skills and knowledge by learning from her experience and feedback. She is showing herself and others that she is reliable and trustworthy.

The 5-second countdown is a simple but powerful trick that can help you do things in any situation where you feel afraid or lazy to do so. By counting backwards from five to one, you can stop your negative thoughts and feelings, and start your positive ones. You can also create a sense of urgency and importance that helps you stop wasting time and start doing things. You can use the 5-second countdown to improve your health, work, communication, relationships, and happiness. You can use it to achieve your goals with more confidence and courage.

The 5-second countdown is not a magic trick or a motivational tool. It is a way of thinking about your own thinking. By using the 5-second countdown, you are changing your mind so that you can use the part of your brain that helps you plan, decide, and control yourself. You are also making yourself more alert and focused by creating a sense of urgency and importance.

The 5-second countdown can help you change your life for the better, one action at a time. All you need to do is count backwards from five to one, and then go for it.

Thank you for reading this edition of the Mindset Code. I hope you enjoyed it and learned something new. If you have any questions, comments, or feedback, please feel free to contact me. I would love to hear from you.

Until next time, remember: You have the power to change your life with your mind. You just need to count backwards from five to one, and then do it. 5…4…3…2…1 – go!