I’ve written on this blog quite a bit about this topic in past years and still struggle with this question on a daily basis. I found this article today that discussed some important ideas about success, parenting, and intrinsic vs extrinsic motivation.
“What is success?” Someone who spent his life working 80 hour weeks, living in hotels, and fighting his way up the corporate ladder to become VP of toilet paper marketing would probably consider himself more successful than a sandwich shop owner who spends his nights and weekends playing with his kids and working on hobby projects, but maybe the sandwich shop owner would be happier and healthier. Ultimately, it is up to each person to decide what success means to them, but I think it’s important that everyone be mindful of the decision they are making.
It’s often said that people become entrepreneurs because they can’t handle a regular job. Perhaps these people are simply too “defective” to fit into any mold, or maybe they lack the extrinsic motivation necessary to care about bosses, performance reviews, and other things which are so important for success in the corporate environment. However, what they do have is the creativity and natural sense of direction necessary to run their own business. I doubt that this is a coincidence.
http://paulbuchheit.blogspot.com/2011/02/two-paths-to-success.html
People that ‘do a lot’ don’t need to tell people that they’re doing a lot. They’re already doing it. People that tell you how busy they are usually aren’t that busy, at least not so busy that they don’t have time to tell you how busy they are.
Something to think about mr. I-do-a-lot.
I appreciate the comment Dave but I disagree with your premise completely. I’m assuming you’re referring to the intro text on the landing page to kendrickdisch.com. That text is the very first impression that many people get of me, so my intention is to introduce myself as someone who has a variety of interests and projects. It’s an important part of my personality and I felt it was important to deliver that message.
What I’m not doing is trolling the web leaving comments on random blogs telling everyone how busy I am. I’m definitely way too busy for that.