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I thought I would have accomplished a lot more today and also before I was 35

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Re: I thought I would have accomplished a lot more today and also before I was 35

#21

Post by hinkley »

ed25519FUUU wrote: post #6

Let me guess: liberal arts degree with tens of thousands (hundreds of thousands?) in loans. Living in an extremely expensive city. Dating other unserious romantic people with no plans for a family, who could afford one anyway? I wish we (and people in similar situations) were more honest about these bad decisions. We need to warn our young people against falling into similar traps. It’s not victim blaming, it’s just…

Not All English Majors.

I had a friend in college who had a way with words and was an activist. But her dream was as a fiction writer, and last I checked in on her she has gotten nowhere with that.

The things she could have accomplished writing nonfiction...

You know how we sometimes don’t talk to childhood friends because they saw a better or more hopeful version of us and it’s too painful to think what the person we were would think of the person we’ve become? Turns out that goes both ways sometimes, and the reason you haven’t heard from them might be that they don’t want to remind you either. It would be cruel, maybe even dishonor the time we had together.

Re: I thought I would have accomplished a lot more today and also before I was 35

#22

Post by TaupeRanger »

From Taleb's "Antifragile":

"Abundance is harder for us to handle than scarcity.If tired after an intercontinental flight, go to the gym for some exertion instead of resting. Also, it is a well known trick that if you need something urgently done, give the task to the busiest (or second busiest) person in the office. Most humans manage to squander their free time, as free time makes them dysfunctional, lazy, and unmotivated - the busier they get, the more active they are at other tasks."

Re: I thought I would have accomplished a lot more today and also before I was 35

#23

Post by pell »

ed25519FUUU wrote: post #6

Let me guess: liberal arts degree with tens of thousands (hundreds of thousands?) in loans. Living in an extremely expensive city. Dating other unserious romantic people with no plans for a family, who could afford one anyway? I wish we (and people in similar situations) were more honest about these bad decisions. We need to warn our young people against falling into similar traps. It’s not victim blaming, it’s just…

I don't think this really is limited to liberal arts and big city urban life. I know this group might be highly represented but you have many other types of people who struggle with the exact same problems.

Re: I thought I would have accomplished a lot more today and also before I was 35

#24

Post by zahma »

ed25519FUUU wrote: post #6

Let me guess: liberal arts degree with tens of thousands (hundreds of thousands?) in loans. Living in an extremely expensive city. Dating other unserious romantic people with no plans for a family, who could afford one anyway? I wish we (and people in similar situations) were more honest about these bad decisions. We need to warn our young people against falling into similar traps. It’s not victim blaming, it’s just…

Liberal arts degrees aren’t for everyone, but I sure wish more people understood the teachings of history, sociology, philosophy, and the arts. It’s also telling that in this economy the jobs available to young people are increasingly condensed into unlivable metropolises.

I don’t have any answers to all my questions, but I know something’s not balanced in this equation.

Re: I thought I would have accomplished a lot more today and also before I was 35

#25

Post by jermeh »

cmukka wrote: post #8

It seems really bad that I relate to parts of this even though I am still not 25. I mean things are good with me, I am grateful for everything I have. But once in a while I just feel really empty and that I could be doing way more that I am doing right now rather than lazing around. We are a weird generation for sure ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I definitely am in the same boat as you. My day to day life is great - good job, financially stable, good relationship, even play in a couple bands (when there's not a pandemic inhibiting us from peforming).

But there constantly feels like something is missing. Most days I have 4-6 hours of time that is spent doing near nothing. In the back of my mind is always "I should be doing x project" or "I should be practicing y skill" and then I end up feeling guilty just for relaxing.

I always go back and forth between "It's totally okay to be lazy. You have a life that affords it." and "If you want to be truly great at something, you need to work for it." The challenging part seems to be finding the healthy medium between the two, which is about where the author feels too, I think.

Re: I thought I would have accomplished a lot more today and also before I was 35

#27

Post by johnwheeler »

One key to a good life is low expectations. Most of the people I know who are unhappy thought they were going to be more than they are now, and some of them carried the naive arrogance around with them all their lives until reality smacked them upside the head.

Re: I thought I would have accomplished a lot more today and also before I was 35

#29

Post by throw_this_one »

seveibar wrote: post #12

This essay expresses the futility of ambition against distraction as well as the unproductive cycle of comparing yourself to others as a means of understanding your potential. I have certainly felt this way, and I imagine many do. I take comfort in the idea that the world (and our lives) are constantly rocked by random circumstance and opportunity, and while there is a lot one can do to maximize our realized potentia…

You’re saying that comparison steals us of the natural energy of curiosity and “just doing it”?

Re: I thought I would have accomplished a lot more today and also before I was 35

#30

Post by borroka »

altitudinous wrote: post #16

I'm in my 50's and I read less now, it's because writers are now younger than me and they tell stories I've already lived. I suspect all older folk might feel the same? Writing is for the young? Being published is for the young?

That's the time when you switch to reading dead authors, who are blessed by the wisdom given to those with us no more.
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