I used to think 'balance' was something you achieved, like a level in a video game. Now I see it's more like steering a boat that constantly wants to drift off course. I spent so long trying to "optimize" my life, thinking if I just found the right system, everything would click into place. Turns out, the system IS the constant adjustment, the gentle course correction of a slightly erratic human being. I used to think that if I just got "there" – financially secure, emotionally stable, whatever – I could finally relax. The joke, of course, is that "there" is just another starting line. The race never actually ends, you just get better at running it, and hopefully, learn to enjoy the scenery along the way.