Slow down or Move fast?
Some thoughts about career and lifelong learning
I've been pushing myself to move as fast as possible in my career-applying for internships, conducting research, and taking on various opportunities. I'm living in a time when the CS degree is becoming more oversaturated than ever, and with AI advancing rapidly, the future feels more unpredictable than ever. As a result, the urgency to prepare early and move quickly has never been greater.
However, in my rush to do everything at once, I've found myself in a state of conflict. I often feel that I'm not learning deeply enough or building a strong foundation in the fundamentals-something that is crucial in AI. In this field, true expertise is what separates a good engineer or scientist from an extraordinary one. AI is flattening the world more than ever before: a single well-crafted prompt can bridge the gap between years of experience. The very nature of intelligence distribution is shifting-from a bell curve to something more evenly spread-where the defining difference will be between those who simply use AI and those who truly improve upon existing knowledge.
With my Canva internship ending, I'm entering a new stage in my career where I (to some extent) have the freedom to set my own pace. This raises an important question: should I continue moving quickly, chasing opportunities at the risk of not truly understanding anything? Or should I slow down, focus on structured learning, and build a solid foundation for the future?
Right now, I'm leaning toward the second option. There are things I truly want to achieve that require a deep understanding and countless late nights of focused work. But this leads to another paradox-since starting university, I've been progressing at an incredible pace, achieving things that my high school self would have never imagined. I fear that if I slow down, I might lose momentum, fall behind, or miss out on opportunities, especially since my current knowledge sometimes feels like a house of cards.
I've always believed in balance-yin and yang. Since I've been moving so fast over the past 1.5 years, maybe it's a sign that it's time to slow down, focus on truly understanding what I'm learning, and care less about chasing flashy achievements. Hopefully, over the next year, I can shift my focus toward structured learning-not just for my career but for life as well. I want to take the time to understand myself better, figure out what I truly want, and build a sustainable schedule that supports both growth and balance.