I was going to go into academia, however I sucked at it compared to private sector. Why? You have to hyper focus on one thing possible for years or decades to m

I was going to go into academia, however I sucked at it compared to private sector. Why? You have to hyper focus on one thing possible for years or decades to make an impact, this is either a strength or a weakness depending on the person. So how I see it, from someone that would love to really drill into every possible question into a subject: Conferences are a great way to network, still get work done yet feel like you are participating in a larger community. My professors largely were mostly hermits to a degree, sure there were meetings but mostly to secure funding to organize with their junior hermits with their hyper focuses. So actually getting a chance to breath and hear what others are doing can be fun, also showing off your work must be incredibly satisfying to just be DONE. Sabbatical, great way to refresh after hyper focusing on only a few topics, not getting much breathing room for other things. Largely I see this as a method for staying creative and staying up to date with what you otherwise would have missed.