It Couldn't Be Done

Somebody said that it couldn’t be done
      But he with a chuckle replied
That “maybe it couldn’t,” but he would be one
      Who wouldn’t say so till he’d tried.
So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin
      On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
      That couldn’t be done, and he did it!

Somebody scoffed: “Oh, you’ll never do that;
      At least no one ever has done it;”
But he took off his coat and he took off his hat
      And the first thing we knew he’d begun it.
With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,
      Without any doubting or quiddit,
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
      That couldn’t be done, and he did it.

There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,
      There are thousands to prophesy failure,
There are thousands to point out to you one by one,
      The dangers that wait to assail you.
But just buckle in with a bit of a grin,
      Just take off your coat and go to it;
Just start in to sing as you tackle the thing
      That “cannot be done,” and you’ll do it.

— Edgar Albert Guest

It Couldn't Be Done

Somebody said that it couldn’t be done
      But he with a chuckle replied
That “maybe it couldn’t,” but he would be one
      Who wouldn’t say so till he’d tried.
So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin
      On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
      That couldn’t be done, and he did it!

Somebody scoffed: “Oh, you’ll never do that;
      At least no one ever has done it;”
But he took off his coat and he took off his hat
      And the first thing we knew he’d begun it.
With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,
      Without any doubting or quiddit,
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
      That couldn’t be done, and he did it.

There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,
      There are thousands to prophesy failure,
There are thousands to point out to you one by one,
      The dangers that wait to assail you.
But just buckle in with a bit of a grin,
      Just take off your coat and go to it;
Just start in to sing as you tackle the thing
      That “cannot be done,” and you’ll do it.

— Edgar Albert Guest

Portfolio

About Jack

Friendly full-stack developer, problem solver, and curious builder.

I am Jack Winfield, a Chicago-born and raised software developer with a B.S. in Psychology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. I like building useful, human-centered software across web apps, data visualization, AI, and product strategy.

My work has ranged from building a full-stack Next.js personality assessment platform with AWS, Auth0, DynamoDB, Docker, and real-time game updates, to contributing to web3 products, developer support, forecasting tools, and machine learning research. I enjoy looking for clear solutions to messy problems and helping others when it improves the way a team works together.

Outside of code, I produce music in Ableton Live, sometimes record short guitar melodies, watch anime, try new food, and keep learning new technologies and software. My favorite color is red.

You can reach me via email at[email protected]

My Github is also available athttps://github.com/platocrat

  • Chicago born and raised
  • UIUC Psychology
  • Full-stack software
  • AI and data visualization
  • Web3 product work
  • Ableton Live
  • Guitar melodies
  • Anime
  • New food
  • New tech

Experience