A few months ago, I realized maybe it’s okay to be obsessed with Pokémon cards for a while. To hunt down as many items as I can on my “forever collection” list. Stuff I’d like to own forever, maybe pass down to my kids, perhaps sell in old age if, by then, people still want it. Sometimes, it’s nice to be dogged.
I couldn’t fully put my finger on why I thought it was okay to be obsessed as part of a phase. Determination, achieving goals, sure, there’s something to be said for it in the way of accomplishment. But I sensed it was more than that.
I think now I’m realizing that one other aspect is that obsession permits acceleration. When you fight the obsession with something that has a relatively clear end point—like a collection target that’s 80 or 90% complete—you might just be drawing out the inevitable. Why not throw more weekends at it sooner rather than later? Get to the state you want to reach, then move on and focus on another phase.
The trick, of course, is knowing when and where the obsession ends. If you keep moving the goalpost, being obsessed is a quick way to run out of money, energy, motivation, or all three. There has to be a stopping point, and it must feel somewhat natural to let go once you hit it. Can you determine that in advance? If so, I say have at it. Enjoy your retro video game flea market hunting, your excessive new stock of cooking equipment, or your daily garden walks on your perfectly green lawn.
If you know at which station your train’s supposed to make its final stop, it’s okay to get there as fast as you can.
