Well, sure. Mastery is definitely my end goal, and it's worthwhile one. But my goal isn't to make money or receive acclaim.

I guess the most important part is not caring about how it will "reflect" on you or what others will think: that is, trying to reduce the amount of ego goes into it. It's a subtle distinction.

But in my experience once ego takes over, the more subtle enjoyment can fade away and it can become tied to your self-worth, which can be miserable.

I mean, yeah, goals are still important, but you still have to respect the journey.

I knew a guy who achieved I think a 3 dan status in Go having started somewhere north of 45 yo, which the common wisdom says can’t be done.

It’s always a matter of finding internal motivation. We get better at talking ourselves out of it as we get older.

I think you just get less hungry for learning/skill acquisition when you're older. When you're in school it feels vitally important to learn/get good at X. But as an adult it's much easier to take it or leave it.