Makers, founders, marketers... how do you make sure you're not lowering your standards?

Absolutely true, Nika! Things are changing very, very quickly.

As for me, it's simple: I dedicate at least 5 hours a week to learning. Sometimes I even go overboard. But I always test out tools, watch YouTube videos on how to use a given tool, and I get inspired by threads on Twitter.

But honestly, you just can't do without setting aside hours in your calendar for learning. Otherwise, you never find the time, and new things just keep popping up.

having a rough thesis in mind for where the world(market, tech) is headed and how my product fits helps me. without that anchor, each new information, model release, splashy headline can make the ground feel shaky.

I still stay curious: read, listen, chat, and learn to stay on top, but I try to be honest with myself on each new signal comes through: is this actually useful for my product or just a shiny distraction? If it bends the arc of where I believe the market is going, I dig in. If the answer is “no” I let it pass and stay on course.

I’ve over-indexed both ways: chasing every shiny object and, at other times, tuning out so long until i can notice the lag, and quality feel short. a simple filter between new signal and action helps me hone quality without driving me crazy.

if i come across something really exciting and decide to act on it, may be its a slice of a product or a GTM motion that i want to tighten, i focus just on one area each week and ship.

As a marketer, I think there are two key things that help me stay sharp:

1. Motivation to grow and break through limits

I constantly avoid staying too comfortable or safe for too long. I intentionally push myself into a bit of anxiety or stress. That kind of discomfort helps me break out of my comfort zone and keeps me growing.

2. When I start to feel overwhelmed, I dig into the root cause

• Books help me build long-term mindset shifts and deeper understanding

• I ask AI, read articles, or look for tips and tricks to solve short-term, tactical issues

• Platforms like Product Hunt or other startup communities let me observe how others succeed and fail, and sometimes help me discover tools that solve problems quickly

Trend Scaling

To keep up with trends, I mostly read articles and try out new technologies within my field (software engineering, predominantly Frontend web engineering). For me, scaling has involved delving into backend and app development, then expanding into AI/ML.

I do it in bits, between a semi-full schedule, and a pseudo-planned life, I just do it.

Imposter Syndrome

The thing about imposter syndrome is...

• Comes when you just did a big thing

• When you are not living up to your standards

For me, I perform an analysis of my life, reflecting on the things I have done, all hurdles, and what it has taken me to get to where I am.

When it becomes overwhelming, I reach out to friends to hang out with them. The talking usually gets my mind of things, and as we talk and drift through topics, sharing ups and downs, I calm and steel myself towards the future.

The execution mindset, you may call it, because I've started to focus on executions of recent 😅

One of the hardest lessons I’ve learned is that standards without prioritization are just anxiety in disguise.

You can’t hold everything to a 10. So we define where a 10 is non-negotiable, like as concerns user trust, compliance, performance, and allow a 7 or 8 in other areas if it means we ship on time. I dont see it as lowering the bar. It’s about making sure you’re sweating the right stuff.

Yes, it sure is hard to keep up with the fast changing tech world!

Certainly one has to be learning "almost constantly". I think the most important "trick" here is to focus on the things that really matter for what you're doing, and systematically find out and learn what is needed for your projects. While it is clearly also important to follow all the major developments in the tech world / your area, one has to be very careful not to loose time with things that are not really important.

To learn things, I always prefer textbooks over courses, workshops, tutorials etc., that way I can learn systematically, at my own speed, and leave things out that I don't need.

I think that being adaptable and responsive to change is more key than keeping any one part of my perspective static, standards included. But I also think that most people in our space want to produce good work and make an impact in whatever they're doing.

So as long as I am paying attention to any gaps between intent and impact — what I think I am doing, versus what I am actually doing — and try to keep that gap as small as possible, I think I'll be okay. I think most suboptimal outcomes result in teams not measuring/understanding the effects of their choices until it is too late.

It's okay to be wrong. How quickly you notice that you're wrong, how high you let the stakes get before that point, and how quickly you course correct will determine whether you're ultimately successful.

Kinda abstract speaking in these terms, but hopefully someone understands what I am saying.

@busmark_w_nika This resonates so much. The pace of tech evolution is both inspiring and exhausting at times and yes, that feeling of “what I just did is already outdated” hits hard.

I’ve been through the same loop where self-impostor syndrome pushes me to constantly keep going learning, improving, building but leaves little room to actually feel proud of wins.

What’s helped me a bit is building reflection time into my routine, even if it’s 10 minutes to note what went well. It sounds small, but it makes a difference.

Also, I love that you’re active on Product Hunt I do the same! It’s like a radar for what’s next :)

Question for you: How do you decide when to stop tweaking something and say “It’s good enough to launch”?

As a marketer and designer, I’ve felt my own standards — or perfectionist tendencies — creep up the more I use AI.

There’s so much AI creative slop and half‑baked tooling out there right now that I want to slow down and reconnect with my own bar for quality. .... But the more I slow down, the more anxious I get that all the fast‑changing tech will pass me by. It’s a double‑edged sword.