Choose Things You Enjoy Over What's Efficient

If you usually choose to do things just because they're efficient, you're going to have a bad time.

It's easy to burn out when you stop doing things simply because you feel like doing them. And if you force yourself to do things you hate, it's going to be even worse.

I've made the mistake of making decisions based solely on what I was good at, leaving enjoyment completely out of the equation. After visiting a psychologist a couple of times because I landed in jobs that were "good for my career" and "paid well," I realized this wasn't sustainable.

Doing things you actually like helps you stick with them for the long haul. And long-term games are the best games because everything compounds: the joy, the relationships, the growth.

This is the real hack top performers use. It's not grit, nor discipline—it's following your heart and staying loyal to that principle. There's simply no other way to put so much time and effort into something that is inherently hard.

Those self-help gurus aren't entirely wrong; it's just that productivity comes after joy. That order of operations just isn't widely communicated (or accepted).