Ambitious people still need hobbies that don’t make money. Some things are for joy, not for the résumé.

When everything you do has to count for something, you lose the only activities that actually restore you. A hobby that earns nothing and goes on no application is the part of the week where you are not being assessed. People who turn every interest into an output tend to burn out while looking extremely productive.

Find something you are happy to be mediocre at and protect a slot for it. Draw, swim, cook, fish, read something nobody assigned. If you catch yourself wondering how it would look on a form, that is a sign you need it more, not less.