Fox's tweet is excellent because it nicely describes a concept I was aware of, but didn't have a label for.

I've met many people who seem to "think small", despite being intelligent and capable. They just don't think very deeply about a topic, and often get fixated on process as a series of individual, unrelated steps that somehow turns into a result they want.

Speaking about coding specifically, I think it's the reason for people getting stuck in "tutorial hell". They can follow the steps to learn how to do the thing, then they can repeat the thing, but can't generalize that knowledge or modify the process later when a different context demands it.

Despite being an amateur with no credentials, I find success in this domain because I can learn how to use a tool now in the way the author intended, then apply it in other ways that support my goals.

I got my start building bots using a high level smart contract testing framework (Brownie). I mostly used it outside its domain so it was clunky at times, but it got me to a place where I could write more specialized tooling.

I still come across tools and ideas that help me do better and reach further. Many of my side quests don't bear fruit immediately, but sometimes two or three concepts come together in an unexpected way that feels divinely inspired.

I'm studying AI engineering now because I think it's a key unlock. Even basic AI allows me to explore and combine new ideas quickly, and learning about how to build and train AI will compound that knowledge and direct it more effectively.

Still no substitute for thinking, though.