I agree with this partly. I think the missing part is that there's different kinds of enjoyment/fun. Some are shallow and restorative but not terribly fulfilli

I agree with this partly. I think the missing part is that there's different kinds of enjoyment/fun. Some are shallow and restorative but not terribly fulfilling (e.g., playing a game). Some are deeper and taxing but fulfilling (e.g., coding). The restorative/taxing difference is key. I have to make a conscious effort to "do nothing" (have shallow kinds of fun) so I don't overtax myself. A "varied fun diet" is important. (This even extends to games; too much of something like Factorio without enough of something like Red Dead Redemption isn't good for you.) Orthogonal to this, as you point out well, motivation matters a lot: am I doing this thing out of FOMO, strategically hoping it'll pay off or like I'm supposed to be doing it even if I don't want to? Or am I doing this actually because I find it fun? The things I tend to work on are really stupid and useless and have nearly zero strategic value for future employability, which is how I know I'm doing them for fun. ;p