Right.Attitude

I thought I was disciplined. Turns out I just didn’t know when to quit.

I just dropped two AI courses. Not failed—I just hit a point where I didn’t want to keep doing them. Revolutionary, I know.

I probably could’ve pushed through. Two years ago, that’s exactly what I would’ve done—no matter what it cost me. Mostly to prove a point no one was actually asking me to prove.

Now I’m questioning the sanity of that approach.

Not everything you start needs to be finished just because you started it. I’ve learned this the hard way—my time, energy, and attention are very much limited resources, despite my occasional delusion otherwise.

At this point, I care more about not burning myself out than collecting another credential I’ll mention twice and then forget about.

The courses will still be there (as long as you’re willing to pay, of course). Picking things back up later isn’t the issue.

Losing your sanity over it, on the other hand… questionable return on investment.

Something has changed.
Nothing visible. Nothing impressive.
I didn’t win the lottery (not yet, anyway)
I didn’t lose weight (might have gained some).
I wasn’t offered a CEO job at a bank (their loss, obvs).
But something about me is very different — and it’s real.
What surprised me most is that this feeling isn’t new.
I’ve had it before, back when life felt interesting instead of obligatory.
Somewhere along the way, I traded it in — for responsibility, status, and doing the “right” thing.
I tried to get it back the responsible way too.
Books. Discipline. Self-improvement.
None of that worked.
And now it’s back.
Not because I worked for it —
but because life took a sledgehammer to everything that didn’t fit me. (Thanks, but can we go a bit gentler next time?)
First, my marriage fell apart.
Then my job ended abruptly.
And suddenly here I am — still fat, older, unemployed —
waking up with a sense of wonder again.
All that energy and interest in life returned the moment I stopped negotiating myself out of it.
The moment other people’s needs stopped being the organizing principle of my existence.
When I stopped living around others, my own life finally started taking shape.
Putting yourself first sounds simple.
In reality, it’s probably one of the hardest things to do.
We all have families, jobs, children, commitments. Compromise is unavoidable.
But if getting out of bed every day feels like a battle,
it might be worth looking at where — and how — you compromised yourself out of the equation.