“A reflection: I worked too much” by Lucas Lewit-Mendes

Over the past 4-5 years, I have poured a lot of time and energy into "doing good", through a combination of community building, policy advocacy, and volunteering with EA charities. On reflection, I think I have worked too much, and I negelected other important parts of my life. I am writing this in the hope that this gives some people permission to reflect on their workload and consider cutting back.

I have been doing these projects while studying or working a chill 9-to-5 job, neither of which were really improving the world, so I always felt a pull towards potentially “impactful” side projects. It felt motivating to work on these side projects, instead of having to wait potentially 5-10 years until I could move into a job where I felt like I was making the world better.

Because I have mostly enjoyed these projects, and I’ve never felt [...]

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First published:

July 22nd, 2025

Source:

https://forum.effectivealtruism.org/posts/CGHwrEcEEKLSpnYY7/a-reflection-i-worked-too-much

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Narrated by TYPE III AUDIO.