I turned 30 today, and I've find myself with a followed trail of crap. I spent 8 years while in high-school/college/grad school working on a game engine that I threw away. I spent a year working endlessly during graduate studies on a computer algebra system for college algebra students to provide step by step instructions. I spent a couple of years in a mathematics graduate program only to drop out and do a start-up. I was homeless for about a year while studying math (living in the CS department). When the start-up turned profitable, I got bored and left.
Now, I look back at all the crap I've made, and I look forward to the things I'm going to make. The things I make each year get better. They get faster, more scalable, better, more beautiful.
The key (I hope) is that no matter what, you don't give up on what you want to do. As I age, I'm getting more comfortable with that.
* 8 years experience designing and producing a game engine, accruing knowledge of dos/donts
> {homeless for a year...}
* Practical experience living/working with extreme resource constraints
> {Developed startup, quit}
* Have produced profitable ventures from nothing -> profit, and in the process realized what really motivates me.
Please don't sell yourself short (not just @mathgladiator, but anybody reading this). The expression "It's the journey, not the destination" can be applicable to both the past and the future.
I was a GTA, and I lived in one of the small compute labs at k-state. Sometimes in my car. Sometimes, I'd go out to fields (deer can be pricks btw) and just sleep under the stars. Or, I'd go up the roof (usually locked, but not always).
Now, I look back at all the crap I've made, and I look forward to the things I'm going to make. The things I make each year get better. They get faster, more scalable, better, more beautiful.
The key (I hope) is that no matter what, you don't give up on what you want to do. As I age, I'm getting more comfortable with that.