f*ck balance

I met a friend recently.
He’s 21.

Honestly, I thought he was older.
He’s already running a business. Building a really strong community around his brand. Doing a damn good job.

I met him in a café. Weekend afternoon.
And instead of chilling, he was behind his laptop, grinding.

He told me:

“Tino, I wanted to ask you something.
Whenever I try to relax, my head just explodes with ideas. I can’t stop. I grab my computer and keep working. Is that very bad?”

I think he expected me to say:
“You should chill more. Balance. Regeneration. Yoga. Sunsets.”

Instead, I stayed quiet for a moment.

And then said:
“If I were you? I wouldn’t fight it. Go all in.”

Because here’s the thing:
At 21, your body and brain are wired for madness.

Energy on tap. No back pain. You can run on a few hours of sleep and still rap in the studio at night, study in the morning, and crush your job during the day.

I know because I did it.

At 21, I was at Red Bull full-time.
Studying at university.
Having a rap career.
And yes... Partying like crazy.

If I could go back? I’d push even harder.
Not less.

Sure, I’d tweak the sleep and fitness a bit.
But the truth is: those years are rocket fuel.
Your body and brain won’t give you that combination again.

So this my advice if you’re young:

Don’t optimize for “balance.”
Don’t worry about benefits or comfort first.
Use the years when you’re naturally unstoppable.

The same goes when you’re starting a new project or business.
In the beginning, you’re high on momentum and motivation.

So fuck the balance. If you don’t have to, don’t slow down.

Go harder. Go faster.
Because later, you’ll realize that’s when you could actually afford to.

Tino