But exhaustion is not proof of excellence. It is often proof of misalignment. Somewhere along the way, we began to equate quality with pace and commitment with depletion. We glorify late nights, celebrate burnout recovery stories as badges of honour, and quietly admire those who seem to operate at unsustainable speeds. Yet exhaustion erodes the very thing excellence requires: clarity.

Fulfilment was never meant to be a finish line. Real life does not operate in peaks. It unfolds in ordinary days.