I ignore my impending death and remember that I regard any day I didn't learn something new/do something interesting as a wasted day.

Sometimes you just have to live in the now and let the future (and past) take care of themselves.

Do what brings you joy, discard what doesn’t. Stay curious, keep learning.

I grapple with the exact same issue. I'd say def ignore toomuchtodo's comment on only doing things that brings you joy! it's a trap. stay open to exploring new things. sure, sometimes it goes nowhere but the experience is absolute joy, teach you a lot, gives you insight and prepare you for making hard decisions (did you say more alphas?). it's always good to wander: not all who wander are lost!

sometimes just doing nothing - i mean really absolutely nothing (while staying awake ;-)) - for 2 hrs. is exactly what needs to be done. There is a significant chance that you will know what topic to pick up afterwards... at least you tried s.th. new by doing nothing for 2 hrs. which can be beneficial and therefore isn't wasted time.