It's a tricky balance to strike. I used to think that you should just work if it's available to you, but now I'm much more inclined to work so you can afford to not work in the near-term rather than only at the hypothetical end. If you can afford to be laid off or quit and just willingly chill and do whatever for a while, that's a good option to take.
Absolutely. I’m painfully aware that I didn’t offer any solution either, because it is a balance that everyone must find for themselves. The main thing I was trying to get across is that sacrificing now for a reward in the possibly distant (relatively speaking) future is too risky for me since I don’t know what the future holds (and given how many people I know who have died young makes me reluctant to take for granted that I would reach retirement age (even early))
> I generally take the higher paying gigs but mostly so I can accelerate retirement
My problem with this outlook is that sacrificing my current well-being for increased future well-being is risky. I don't know how long I will live or what my health will be like. I have to make the best of the time I have now (without sacrificing too much future well-being, of course!)
Not that I don't do the same, just, it feels risky, on its own. I think the rest of your comment is super important for this reason.