One of the highest values in this world is devotion. When devoted to a project, relationship, or craft, you are engaging with it for the right reasons.
Instead of getting caught in a superficial cycle of pursuit and reward—where motives spring from external perceptions—you can do things out of genuine interest. You do them for their own sake. These are atelic activities, and that is what devotion is.
But there’s more to devotion than simply a motivation rooted in the thing itself. It also demands discipline and self-mastery. If you are devoted, you acknowledge the need to master yourself in order to show up and engage fully. Devotion isn’t free—it requires you to overcome yourself, day in and day out. It recognizes the inherent struggle of doing anything worthwhile. Sometimes it feels easy; sometimes it feels hard. Yet you must overcome yourself to remain devoted. You exchange simple pleasure for deeper meaning. Without struggle, there is no meaning. You cannot be devoted without struggle.
Struggle itself isn’t inherently bad. Your perception creates your reality of it. Sometimes it may feel impossible; other times it flows freely. Regardless, struggle always involves overcoming yourself.
The highest virtue to live by is devotion. Your human task, right now, is to find something worth being devoted to. That’s how you evolve beyond an endless “go-getting” cycle that robs you of the present moment. In devotion, you find harmony, stillness, and meaning. Most of your perceived problems will fade once you discover something truly worthy of your devotion. Look for it.