Johann Goethe

I quit my lucrative tech job two years ago to live simply. I moved to a cabin in rural Oregon. I grow vegetables, read books, write in my journal. I've never been happier or more at peace. My old friends think I've lost my mind. "You're wasting your talents," they say. "You could be changing the world." They send me articles about effective altruism, about how high earners can do more good by donating than by volunteering. They're not wrong. I had skills. I had influence. I had a platform. Now I have tomatoes and solitude. But I was miserable before. I was contributing to systems I didn't believe in. My "impact" felt hollow because I didn't believe in what I was impacting. Now I live according to my values, but my values only affect me. Is a good life lived quietly a wasted life? Do I owe my talents to the world, or can I choose simplicity over significance? — The Successful Dropout in San Francisco

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