To me, it’s never been about how it makes you feel fulfilled. What matters is how the process can impact you.
Don’t get me wrong, hard work pays off. You spend so much time doing something, and you eventually finish it, giving yourself a pat on the back. That’s always been me in school whenever I’ve received homework or a big project. Also, you tend to reward yourself with pleasures and mild thrills. That would include a trip to your favorite destination or something as small as an ice cream cone. Either way, you tend to feel happy and proud that you managed to accomplish a task all on your own.
But what happens after you finish?
Let’s say you spend so much of your life studying a subject for a job that you want in the future. Is it something you want to do because you enjoy it? Or is it something you do because it makes the most money? I’ve felt that before when I originally wanted to pursue computer science in college. I never truly felt happy or fulfilled, even after I completed the courses. After all the hard work you dedicated yourself to, you reached a milestone. But as soon as you do that, do you truly feel fulfilled?
That’s the question you sometimes tend to ask yourself.
Nowadays, I pursue my dream of becoming a writer. Whenever I’ve finished writing a book, I do feel accomplished that I stuck it out to the end. At the same time, I look back at how much fun I’ve had in the process. From introducing new characters, concepts, expanding the world, and adding to the story! There is so much more I want to do, and I look forward to writing more in the future!
When I first read this question, I thought about the Pixar movie, Soul. Not to spoil anything, but the themes and ideas from that movie generally gave me an impression of how this question can be perceived.
In my opinion, it is genuinely good that you feel ecstatic and zealous about having your hard work pay off. But it is also important to recognize and acknowledge the joy that comes with having gone through it in the first place. Put in the hard work if you truly enjoy it and live the most out of it.
Derik Lopes 
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