{
  "id": 6755542,
  "title": "Work-life balance is a luxury. Buy it later.",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/work-life-balance-is-a-luxury-buy-it-later",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-09-11T12:03:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Fortune",
    "slug": "fortune",
    "url": "https://fortune.com/2026/09/11/work-life-balance-is-a-luxury-buy-it-later/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "At 23 years old, I have become a multi-millionaire and have founded two companies valued at $20 million each. I have chosen to disregard the concept of work-life balance. During my twenties, I believe this is the most opportune time to invest heavily in my future. The prevailing advice from career advisors, HR departments, and the majority of the internet is to safeguard your work-life balance at any cost. However, I argue that this perspective is misguided. Every hour spent protecting a comfortable life is an hour that could have been dedicated to building something entirely different. In college, I began my career by founding a seven-figure social media marketing agency in my dorm room by the age of 18, which later merged with another online marketing agency. At 19, I adopted a philosophy considered radical by many: say no to the majority of opportunities now to be able to say yes to anything later. This strategy only works if you are young, as your twenties are the only decade where you possess both physical and cognitive peak performance, with minimal responsibilities such as a spouse's career, children's education, or aging parents who may need your proximity. By making sacrifices now, I am building the foundation for a better future. For instance, turning down an internship that paid $5,000 a month was a wise decision as the hours invested in my own business were far more valuable in the long run. I also limited my social outings and sleep to 3.5 hours a night, sacrificing short-term health for the sake of business growth. This strategy may have negatively impacted my health in the short-term, but I recognize its long-term benefits. I aim to achieve a $100 million outcome, rather than a mere $1 million, as hitting 10% of a larger goal is more advantageous than fully realizing a smaller one. Gen Z is being instructed to reject traditional employment and build their own ventures, yet also to protect their well-being and avoid overworking. These conflicting instructions can lead to a paradox - wanting the title and power of executive positions without the associated hard work. Many Gen Z individuals are hesitant about burnout and thus forgo leadership roles altogether, even though most still desire executive positions. It is crucial to recognize that neither path leads to true success. The majority of my generation desires executive titles and power, but they are unwilling to endure the rigorous path to achieve them. Conformity is not the key to outstanding results - those are typically found in outliers. Schools and mainstream media promote balance as the safe advice for 20-year-olds, but it also perpetuates economic inequality. Comfort is a real risk, especially with the rapid advancements in AI technology. Building a business that cannot be terminated by an algorithm is the only reliable form of job security available to our generation. To succeed, we must treat our capacity as capital, investing it wisely and eliminating anything that drains it. Sacrificing comfort for what truly matters is the only way to secure a prosperous future.",
  "summary": "Your twenties are the one decade where you're at your physical and cognitive peak at the exact moment you have the fewest people depending on you.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}