Lesson 2: It's about the journey, not the destination

I'm not sure about other jobs or industries, but as a software engineer working in tech, it was very results orientated. Everything was about performance, goals, numbers, metrics, growth etc. and those were the things that were celebrated and recognized. On the other hand, any failures or mistakes were met with sugar-coated corporate punishments like post-mortem reviews, performance-improvement plans, etc. and the process of getting there was silently acknowledged as "part of our jobs".

We spend most of our time at work, so it's not surprising that we are heavily influenced by that environment. If an environment only rewards outcomes and mistakes or failures are frowned upon, then we will naturally only focus on reaching the goal. In reflection, that's exactly why I was unable to be more aware of the journey (and the people in it) because I wanted to do a good job, be recognized, and be rewarded with that year-end bonus. All I wanted was to get to the end, as soon as I can, as best as I can. And this doctrine bled into my day-to-day life as well.

Before reaching FIRE, I saw it as a finish line because I was so wired to only think about the outcome. Now that I've reached FIRE, looking back there are definitely things that I regrettably neglected. As an example, I remember I used to get really annoyed by people on my team who weren't pulling their weights as I saw that as an obstacle to reaching the goal, slowing down the project. But in hindsight, that was a missed opportunity to be more human, to recognize another human being's struggles. I was too focused on the outcome and saw everything else as obstacle.

It's hard to break away from the doctrine this result-based society instilled in us. But let's not forget the ultimate destination is the same for everyone; death. It's not something we can predict or escape either. So remember to enjoy the ride while you can, be as human as possible, make mistakes, be silly, have fun, and be kind to one another. There's no need to rush, you'll get there eventually.