Every once in a while I get comments from people being amazed by the level I reached and wishing they were "at my level" someday. There is always someone "at a higher level" than any of us in some way. But if such examples are inspirations to us at some point in our lives (and not a reason to think how lucky they were or what a bad life you have by comparison - which, by the way, may have been the other way around in reality), we first need to find out the reasons why we want to be "at that level". Having more money is not a good reason. Becoming financially independent could be a reason why. Improving the life quality of your family could be another. Making sure you won't be forced to work till you drop dead is another. For the ambitious ones, finding a niche where to change the status quo in the world could be another.
Of course, these are reasons why or dreams of regular people. Want to hear an audacious one? Elon Musk wants to colonize Mars within his lifetime (he is 52) and wants to die on Mars.
After you find your reason why, or maybe your dream or vision, if your reason why is big enough (for you) to name it like that, you need a plan to get there. Don't be afraid to plan for dozens of years, even if the big-picture plan may not be accurate or it's missing details. Then dive deeper and plan more accurately on shorter periods (years, months, weeks, days), that are easier to estimate starting from the current situation and the known future events. Always keep in mind the reasons why and plans should be made to get to where you want with as few detours as possible.
Speaking of Elon Musk and his Mars dream, he founded SpaceX 21 years ago (at 31), spoke about his dream publicly (from what I could find) for the first time in 2016, has the plan to launch a crewed Starship to Mars this year, land on Mars in 2026, and believes a million people could be living on Mars by mid-2060.
You could say Elon Musk is one and that you don't have such audacious dreams. And that is true, in most cases. Or in other cases, they remain some distant, never-followed dreams. Like an accountant who dreamt of being a pilot when he was a teenager. Funnily, with enough determination, this one can still be achieved by some even as they grow older.
But regardless of your reason why, you can learn something from the level of planning he put into realizing his dream, and that for me, is inspiring. Yes, let's not forget about his 100-hour workweek... I admit I rarely came close to that, but I did in my 20s, and it's a strange feeling to know nothing else but work, even when you enjoy it. I don't think I'd be able to sustain the same level of work as then... Not even close.
At my age, I started to become more careful about every step I take, more mindful about the future and how it will look like, and generally less inclined to experiment than my younger self (as much as being in crypto can be called "not experimenting", but at least I don't buy all the meme coins).
So, the secret formula is pretty simple:
Applying it is the hard part for many.
