Fast Food Learning: Why I Stopped Reading Documentation and Started Building

    I’ve spent exactly zero hours reading React documentation cover-to-cover. Zero hours on comprehensive Next.js courses. Zero hours memorizing Python’s standard library. Yet I’ve built multiple production applications, trained LLM models, and ran an EdTech startup that served thousands of students. How? Fast Food Learning. And before you judge me, hear me out. This isn’t about cutting corners. It’s about recognizing that in 2025, the way we learn needs to match the speed at which we need to build. ...

    November 21, 2025 · 9 min · Rafiul Alam

    The 7 Best Productivity Frameworks Ranked by Effectiveness (With Implementation Guide)

    After years of testing every productivity system imaginable—from complex analog systems to cutting-edge digital tools—I’ve identified the frameworks that actually move the needle. This isn’t theory; it’s battle-tested advice from someone who’s juggled multiple startups, LLM training projects, and a constant stream of side ventures. Let me save you years of trial and error by ranking the most effective productivity frameworks and showing you exactly how to implement them. 1. Getting Things Done (GTD) - The Foundation Layer Effectiveness Rating: 9.5/10 ...

    November 16, 2025 · 14 min · Rafiul Alam

    Are Personality Tests (Myers-Briggs, Enneagram) Scientific BS?

    “I’m an INTJ, so I prefer working alone. That’s just how my brain is wired.” I’ve heard variations of this hundreds of times. In job interviews. In team retrospectives. In dating profiles. In therapy sessions. Myers-Briggs (MBTI), Enneagram, DiSC, StrengthsFinder—personality tests are everywhere. Companies use them for hiring. Therapists use them for counseling. People use them to explain their behavior, predict compatibility, and justify their preferences. But here’s the uncomfortable truth I’ve discovered after diving deep into the research: ...

    June 15, 2024 · 16 min · Rafiul Alam

    The Dunning-Kruger Effect: Why Incompetent People Think They're Experts

    I once watched a junior developer with three months of React experience tell a senior architect with 15 years of experience that “Redux is dead and anyone still using it doesn’t understand modern development.” The senior architect smiled politely and continued the code review. That junior developer was me. And I was living proof of the Dunning-Kruger Effect. If you’ve ever wondered why the least knowledgeable people often have the strongest opinions, or why beginners sometimes appear more confident than experts, you’re about to understand one of the most fascinating cognitive biases in psychology. ...

    January 15, 2024 · 18 min · Rafiul Alam