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I may be barking completely up the wrong tree here, but the first thing that came to my mind here was the situation described by Alain de Botton in Status Anxiety: namely spending a lifetime pursuing goals and values belonging to OTHER people (e.g. parents, society, etc), rather than your own. Then you achieve all these goals only to realise, what now.

Great book, well worth a read.

As an aside (same caveat about barking and trees), perhaps you just need a sabbatical. If you can afford it financially, there's nothing wrong with it, and can help you refocus.



Excellent book indeed. Was monumentally influential in changing my perspective on the world.


That is high praise. Could you elaborate a bit?


the book was made into a documentary as well, if you want something easier, though the book itself is highly recommended.

the main thing I remember changing my way of thinking was the notion that many of our goals in life are simply conventions passed down uncritically (e.g. by parents , society, etc), which if you examine you might realise you are trying to conform to, but don't actually align with your core values, and may even be making you unhappy for no good reason.

e.g. in some cultures it's the whole "you should be a doctor or a lawyer", which has led to people who would have been happy artists becoming miserable doctors and lawyers instead.




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