What To Pursue,
and Why

If you're anything like me, the logical conclusion that you must have come to by now is that there are too few hours in a day, not enough days in a week, the number of weeks in a year is not sufficient, and the years one lives - even if one's lucky enough to become old - are by far not nearly enough to learn, do, and pursue everything that you want to. This realization is devastating at first. There are too many things that you're passionate about. Too many opportunities to go after. Just. Too. Many.

However, understanding that you can't do everything can also be a powerful filter. Having a limited amount of time on our hands makes our time valuable in the first place. After we understand that, deciding what to do becomes much easier.

Passion and impact are the two key ingredients to finding what's worthwhile to pursue. If you don't have a personal drive to work toward a goal, every step toward it will feel like a chore you'd rather not do. Your personal drive is the foundation on which to build. Just like when building a house, you need a strong foundation. Equally important is impact. Impact can come in all shapes and sizes. It's not necessarily the infamous Silicon Valley startup saying, "We make the world a better place." It can be just that. But it doesn't have to. However, you need to be able to feel the impact your actions can have.

An additional point to consider is to understand your abilities. Playing on your strengths is not necessary, but it can be tremendously helpful. Starting from a point of advantage helps you get ahead quicker. If you want to make a dent, focusing on what you're good at will increase your chances of making it happen. I don't regard this point crucial in finding what to pursue. On the contrary, sometimes, I pick an area where I know I have a weakness I want to work on. Nevertheless, it might still be beneficial to consider your strengths in the equation.

To see the impact you're longing for, don't jump from one activity to the next. If you pursue something, give it time. Not seeing results immediately can be frustrating, but you'll see them if you stick to your goal. If you start seeing progress, you can then use that initial progression as additional fuel to stick to your goal.

However, you'll only see real progress if you stick to what you set out to do for a long time. The trick is to decide on what to focus on. When thinking about how many things one can and should focus on, I like to return to an image that Greg McKeown shared in his book "Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less": if you embark on too many endeavors, you'll make very little progress in every single one.

Illustration originally by Greg McKeown in "Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less", redrawn

To stick to something long enough, you need a clear goal and a distinct vision of what achieving the goals entails. In his book "Be Useful" Arnold Schwarzenegger suggests that one should either start broad and zoom in or start with a concrete goal and expand on that."I want to be a successful entrepreneur" is a broad goal. Nonetheless, it's a good start. You can work from there and start zooming in. Conversely, you might have a specific goal, like "This year, I want to finish a marathon." Also great! Time to expand. I like this framework as it clarifies what you want to achieve.

Of course, I can't tell you what to pursue. If you started reading, hoping I'd tell you, I must disappoint you. However, I encourage you to think about what you're passionate about and what impact you'd like to have. Reflect on your goals and what you'd like to achieve.

So, what am I pursuing?

I take deliberate time to think about what I want to focus on a couple of times per year. You can imagine that what I pursue changes. Not that frequently, but it does change.

Education and helping myself and others to improve is a recurring theme, not least because I founded an education startup and still love to work on our vision to make coding accessible many years after we started.

Another area that I dedicate a lot of time toward is health and sports. What I do changes based on what I'm passionate about currently, but my vision of a healthy and fit person is crystal clear and is my guiding light.

I love to compete and test my limits. Sports are great for that, but I also enjoy esports for the same reason. When it comes to esports, it's similar to traditional sports. I'm not among the very best, but I love to push myself, improve, and see how much I can achieve.

And last but not least, there are family and friends. You can't track your relationships like workouts, exercises, or lessons, but I like to remind myself that I want to invest in them. Be there for others when they need me. Support my loved ones when they pursue their dreams and goals. Appreciate them.