Your 30s are a time to go for it (or not)

There is always more work that could be done than I could possibly do in a lifetime. So I find it really important not to think of work as a todo list that I'm trying to get through - that's a crushing burden. Instead I just focus on the idea that my time is finite and that I want to spend it well each day.

In your life, there are going to be constant demands for your time and attention. How are you going to decide which of those demands gets resources? The trap many people fall into is to allocate their time to whoever screams loudest, and their talent to whatever offers them the fastest reward.

tedious tasks. But it’s a lie. You have to choose a few things, sacrifice everything else, and deal with the inevitable sense of loss that results.

“I’ll just give up two years of my life, then I’ll do what I really want” people tell themselves. This is incredibly risky because if you stay too long, you get lulled into accepting that the low-grade dissatisfaction associated with doing a job is not worth questioning; it's just proof that you’re human.