This is extremely interesting, and something that I have wondered about myself. Although I am not, by any stretch of the definition, an "elite scientist", my pr

This is extremely interesting, and something that I have wondered about myself. Although I am not, by any stretch of the definition, an "elite scientist", my professional life is all about algorithms, distributed systems, race conditions, memory leaks, linear algebra, binary arithmetic... but in my free time I write (novels, screenplays) and do some acting. Something like 10 years ago I wouldn't have hired someone who didn't write code as their main/only hobby, for not considering them "vocational enough". I think many people here can relate to that feeling. But to my surprise, I have now become that person. Not that I don't love what I do, but my programming cravings are satisfied enough by my job, so I enjoy my free time becoming a richer, better-rounded human. Part of this was getting over the feeling that every single minute of my existence had to be "productive". Now I can enjoy baking some cookies without considering the equation that says it would be "better" to buy them and do something more "productive" with that time. I enjoy writing novels that only a handful of people will read and screenplays that will almost certainly never be produced. Ironically, "unplugging" from my job is probably the best vaccine against burnout and thus making me more productive on the long term... not to mention generally happier :)