Strongly agree with the motivation bit. On top of it I'd say don't just start working on something, but start on something small. A ridiculous number of invent

Strongly agree with the motivation bit. On top of it I'd say don't just start working on something, but start on something small. A ridiculous number of inventions, science, and companies started out as solving some small problem or looking into one issue. If you start out trying to solve a Big Problem (TM), you will get overwhelmed. Don't be fooled by revisionists histories where people try to pretend like they had some grand mission from the start. A lot of young people have this feeling that they need to do something important, but they feel overwhelmed. Then they end up doing lame stuff like getting tattoos, funky haircuts, or weird clothes in an attempt to be unique. Hint: If you can buy it or pay someone to do it, it is neither unique nor a true expression of yourself. There is no shortcut. Start working on something (anything!) to delight yourself. Then try to delight one other person. Grow from there.