> There has been nothing more awkward in my life than achieving all of my lifelong goals. This is why I lament the realities of the path of some who achieved s

> There has been nothing more awkward in my life than achieving all of my lifelong goals. This is why I lament the realities of the path of some who achieved success at too early an age, especially if they delayed coming of age in order to do so. Its not uncommon to hear about the teenage bitcoin millionaire or a really young founder that got lucky on his first shot, but when one of those kids enter your life you're shocked at how miserable and depressed they are. They seem to lack purpose entirely and seem to get in the way of what you would think would be 'happiness.' Peaking so early in life has to be less about awkwardness and more about the fear knowing it will likely all just be downhill from that high and you're just filling the void until death; many would think (myself included) that you'd enjoy the luxuries it affords all while still having your youth and the excitement that creates but the reality is most just languish in that situation and are aimless if they never saw anything worth pursuing beside those goals from an early age. I'm guilty of sacrificing far too much to achieve my goals: youth, social life, relationships, stability, money, (mental and physical) health etc... but it took me until my mid 30s to see why that tired cliche about it being 'more about ride than the destination' to realize why its true. I learned so much about myself from all of the painful mistakes, the struggle and the resilience you create to cope with it and came to value the relationships I made along the way that made any of it possible more than what a 'fat exit' from a startup ever could. I only recently realized I came out a better person: I'm far from perfect, but I noticed I'm a much more compassionate, empathetic, and genuinely kind person, one that people actually enjoy being around and spending time with even with all my 'baggage.' Whereas my younger self idealized a cunning, scheming, cut-throat opportunist who could thrive in any situation whatever the cost. Essentially it made be re-evaluate the value of People, Community and Humanity in general; instead of just succumbing to the nihilist, reductionist that feels that the height of one's existence could somehow elevate them to a fabricated position and even allow them to take pleasure in seeing the World burn from an ivory tower because at least 'I made it.'