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Ikuo Hiraishi's avatar

You are very philosophical and do not shy away from deep contemplation. When I was your age, I was extremely anxious about the future. What should I do for a living? What could I do? Would I find myself in financial difficulty? I was extremely worried.

As Steve Jobs said in his Stanford commencement speech, Keep looking. Don't settle. I'm sure you will find what you put yourself to achieve.

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Risa Kazui's avatar

Thank you Ikuo for your advice. The uncertainty of my 20s can definitely feel overwhelming sometimes, but knowing that this phase is simply supposed to be this way definitely helps.

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Kenneth Jeng's avatar

Very honest reflections - kudos to you for putting it out there.

Echoing what Ikuo says here about anxiety in your twenties: I threw myself in a tizzy with personal pressure (supplemented by internalized social expectations) to have everything figured out *definitely by 30* and it just made me miserable even as I checked off boxes on the list.

My sense here is that duck syndrome (peacefully gliding on the surface while frantically paddling underwater) is 100% true, especially in the sort of ambitious circles that you're exposing yourself to. No one has everything figured out - and the convincing narratives that make for great soundbites more often than not are temporary and require a ton of work before they match up with reality.

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Risa Kazui's avatar

I love the term duck syndrome. And yes this very true, it’s easy to forget that others have duck syndrome too!

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