“Comparison is the thief of joy.”

Do the math because you enjoy doing the math and if you do it long enough you may well do something of value to someone else. Same goes for most intellectual and artistic pursuits I think.

I’ve learned for myself that as soon as enjoyment is based on some future achievement or ranking my work against others the day to day satisfaction dries up.

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r_lee 5 hours ago | parent [-]

and so how exactly are you supposed to provide for your family in this scenario?

	▲	jebarker 5 hours ago \| parent \| next [-]
		By having a job. If that job is the same as your intellectual/artistic pursuit then you have to balance the needs of satisfying your employer and what keeps your motivation going over the long term. All I’m saying is that worrying too much about future achievement or “great contributions” are a recipe for burnout and disappointment.
	▲	codechicago277 5 hours ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		Could work in a patent office or something.