Being at MIT is kind of like subjecting yourself to a daily ritual of personal inadequacy. "You didn't know that?" or "Of course you read XYZ ..." or "See how that obviously follows?" Overachievers are an aggressive lot. Survival of the fittest governs that the person that can pull three-allnighters in a row shall one day rule the world. Well, we thankfully know in the real world this is not the case. Overachievers and underachievers share the global stage. Overachievers often burn out or become bitter and then underachieve; underachievers accidentally seize the day to sometimes grow into overachievers.
It is why in a society of overachievers, I look for opportunities to teach the merits of underachievement. This is not easy, and I don't expect to have the answers here for at least a few more decades.
We know that working hard does not always equate to working well. I read somewhere that your reaction time improves by 89% after you've returned from a *real* (unplugged) vacation. I could certainly use that extra 89% right now, but in order to get it I need to commit to temporarily underachieve by taking time off my work. Ah. It sort of makes sense.
Overworking compared with your peers is often depressing. "Why am *I* working so hard, when others aren't?" Greater disenchantment by the overworker occurs when even though they have been pulling the weight of the team, another person gets to take all the credit. Ouch! That can really hurt. For some reason, these situations occur often when you are younger. Perhaps they occur because you begin to underachieve with age as a defensive mechanism. Or more probably you just develop thicker skin.
In summary, to work hard is good. To take a rest once in a while is crucial. That with age, all things get better (aside from medical thingies). And having a thicker skin ensures that on the average, you can make it through your day with a smile.
Posted by maeda at January 22, 2007 09:02 AM