The Pleasure X Effort Matrix
If I sternly tell myself to do something, I will refuse myself within a few days. This has advantages and disadvantages. The disadvantage is that I spent a lot of time flaking out of jobs, not doing particularly well at school, and, generally, underachieving. The advantage is that, through spontaneously following my excitement, I’ve gradually shift... See more
Sasha Chapin • What Maximum Productivity Looks Like for Me
Although doing great work takes less discipline than people think — because the way to do great work is to find something you like so much that you don't have to force yourself to do it — finding work you love does usually require discipline. Some people are lucky enough to know what they want to do when they're 12, and just glide along as if they ... See more
paulgraham.com • How to Do What You Love
The hardest thing about this was that I loved the work. And I wanted to work hard. But doing something you love on a schedule you can’t control can feel the same as doing something you hate.
Morgan Housel • The Psychology of Money: Timeless lessons on wealth, greed, and happiness
The Buddhist teacher Susan Piver points out that it can be surprisingly radical and discomfiting, for many of us, to ask how we’d enjoy spending our time.9 But at the very least, you shouldn’t rule out the possibility that the answer to that question is an indication of how you might use your time best.