I'm struggling to find the balance between the life I'd like to lead eventually without over-compromising the life I'm leading now. Delayed gratification is one

I'm struggling to find the balance between the life I'd like to lead eventually without over-compromising the life I'm leading now. Delayed gratification is one thing if there's a near guarantee of the goal in sight. (eg. college now, travel in a year or two). I think that's why you hear a lot of stories about people who regret trading passions for some unreached goal. Or maybe those are just more compelling/comforting stories we need to tell ourselves.