Reflecting on what I'd have done differently about pacing myself

On the other side of this now, and the thing I keep coming back to isn't a specific tactical lesson, it's about pacing — I alternated between intense multi-week sprints and complete stalls for almost as long, and a steadier, more moderate pace throughout would have gotten me to the same result with a lot less stress. The sprints happened when I felt behind and tried to compensate all at once; the stalls happened afterward, when I was burned out from the sprint and needed real recovery time before engaging again. Looking back, the total amount of actual work probably wasn't that different from what a steady weekly cadence would have required — I just distributed it in an exhausting, uneven way instead. If I were coaching my earlier self: pick a sustainable weekly commitment you can actually maintain for months, even if it feels slower than you'd like in the moment. The steady version gets you to the same filing date with a much better experience along the way, and probably a better final product too, since exhausted, rushed work isn't usually your best work.