[jcpst]

> And if I’m struggling, as someone who’s not burdened by having children to take care of or even not having the most demanding job or hours to make ends meet, I have no idea how others manage to have a curious mind and succeed the way they do.

Paradoxically, I _feel_ like I have more time after I had kids than before. This is of course, after YOB (year of baby- first 12mo).

You see, I experienced such small slices of free time during YOB, that I became way more efficient at a ton of stuff, and dropped things that were time wasters.

Because I reproduced, I needed more dough. After working 3 jobs, 90 hrs a week for long enough, I decided to study programming.

Went to a code boot camp and walked out with a job. But the grinding didn’t stop there. What followed that was years and years of grinding, and studying as much as possible outside of programming at work.

Until finally, I got where I was going. I climbed up the ladder until I got tired of climbing, and avoided more stressful and time-demanding roles like management. I get senior dev compensation, don’t work more than 40hr/week, and I don’t commute. This is the life I built.

For everything I pursue, there are others who can run circles around me. But I can still look down from that ladder and see how far I came.

Wait, what am I talking about? Ok, the whole point is I became efficient and middle-class because I have mini-mes that deserve it.

Also, you never know what’s on the other side of that wizard level person you see. Everything I said sounds nice, but I wasn’t taking care of myself. Last year I had a mental breakdown, and am just now getting out of it.

So yeah, you’re not alone, etc etc, you know. There’s probably more people that can relate than you think.

[xyzzy_plugh]

It's wild how much kids teach you about yourself and your time on this earth, let alone your time available each day.

It's hard work but I can't think of a better motivation to improve one's self. And the best part is you don't even necessarily realize that it's happening.