<p>No, no, no. Don’t listen to the conventional wisdom unless you want to go insane. (And trust me you will–74% of MIT students have a psych. disorder that interferes with daily life.)</p>
<p>Work smarter, not harder. If you aren’t getting enough sleep, sleep more. If you’re going to have a nervous breakdown, talk to someone. You don’t want to get to college as a nervous wreck.</p>
<p>If you have extra-curriculars like you, pursue those. If you don’t, try new things. Study efficiently for school. Don’t just sit at a desk for a long time listening to music and not learning anything, and then feel stressed out because you’re “trying so hard.” (You’d be amazed at how many people do that at MIT.)</p>
<p>There are two theories on how to find work that you love. One is that you try lots of things until you find something like you and then stick to that. For example, if you love programming, just write a lot of programs, read books, and major in computer science.</p>
<p>The other theory is that you have to work really hard at something and once you’re good you’ll come to love it. Most people who “like” classical music are like this–their parents forced them (against their will) to practice the violin as a kid. Now they’re good so they love it.</p>
<p>So I don’t have any great advice on finding things you love. But if you want to avoid a breakdown, do things you enjoy doing.</p>