Between Avatar, Discipline, and the Room to Fail
A few days ago, the internet was shaken. Not by a long-awaited official release, but by a massive data leak of the upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender (2026) movie. An entire 90-minute cut was leaked online, long before its global premiere.
As an IT Generalist, my first thought wasn’t about watching it early. It was: “What happened to the IT team?” Behind every leaked file or breached server, there is a sysadmin or a security engineer facing a nightmare—potential lawsuits, the end of a career, and the crushing weight of professional shame.
This case served as a wake-up call for me.
The “Conscientiousness” Gap
It reminded me of a well-known insight often discussed in Harvard professional studies: in the long run, conscientiousness (discipline and orderliness) is a far more significant predictor of success than raw IQ or technical talent alone.
In here, we have a specific word for this: “Apik.” It means being neat, organized, and meticulous.
For a long time, as a “Builder,” I fell into the trap of the “just make it work” mindset. I relied on my technical ability to “hack” a solution if things went south. I delayed changing default passwords, ignored messy commit histories, and left environment keys exposed, telling myself, “I’ll fix it later.”
The Digital Reality: No “Undo” Button
In IT, we don’t hold lives in our hands like doctors do, but we hold the “lives” of data, privacy, and reputation. Once a master file or a database is leaked, there is no undo button. You cannot pull it back from the internet.
I realized that my “I’ll do it later” habit is the exact same seed that leads to catastrophic leaks in multi-billion dollar industries.
The Price of Growth
I recently looked back at the multi million (IDR) I earned from my previous projects. While it felt significant at the time, I’ve come to realize that the money is nothing compared to the knowledge and experience my mentors have shared with me. You can’t put a price on the trust someone gives you when they allow you to build in their space.
For a long time, I operated with a dangerous arrogance: “If a fire starts, I’ll just put it out.” I relied on my speed and raw technical skill to fix the chaos I created by being messy.
The Price of Growth
My raw skills have been proven enough—I know I can build, I know I can render, and I know I can solve complex logic. But being a “Builder” isn’t just about the height of the tower; it’s about the integrity of the foundation. Now, my focus is entirely on building my professionalism. No more default passwords. No more “nanti aja.” No more arrogance.
I am trading the “firefighter” adrenaline for the peace of mind that comes with being Apik.
An Open Letter to My Mentors and Team
Through this reflection, I want to be honest: in my previous projects, I haven’t been “Apik.” I was given the best practices and guidance by world-class mentors, yet I often bypassed them with the ego of thinking I could just “handle it” if it broke.
To my mentors: I am sorry. I apologize for the times I chose convenience over the standards you set. I realize now that I failed to uphold the professional integrity you demonstrated.
But beyond the apology, I owe you a massive Thank You. Thank you for giving me the “room to fail.” Thank you for continuing to mention my name in professional circles and for trusting my capacity despite my lapses. The space you gave me to make mistakes didn’t make me complacent—it made me realize how expensive professional trust truly is.
A New Philosophy: Wash the Dishes After You Eat
From today on, I am adopting a new rule: It is better to wash the dishes immediately after eating than to wait for a VIP guest to arrive while you are busy building an “automated dishwasher” because you ran out of clean plates.
Prevention is always cheaper than recovery. I am starting small: banning git add ., cleaning up my commit messages, and ensuring every new instance I build is “clean” from the very first second.
Thank you to those who still believe in my growth. Let’s guard the digital gates a little better.
Ok.