07-02-2026
Two years ago I returned from sabbatical and from my bicycling journey across America, feeling at once more grounded and more elevated. More grounded in notions of who I am and what I value and how I want to spend the next phase of my career and life. More elevated by experiencing from my saddle the varied beauties of this great country, and by the inspiration to do more by doing less.
I have studied and worked in universities for four decades. Many of my closest friends are retiring to leave behind work they find insufficiently fulfilling. I understand, but not really, because I find my work on faculty more rewarding now than ever before, my days longer and fuller. There are so many things to discover and write about! So many great ideas to bring into the classroom or into my Substack blog! So many promising students to mentor!
And every morning at 5 a.m. (a habit I’ve been unable to break since my ride), I wake to find the world has brought me a newly stocked buffet of problems and ideas I want to tackle. Focus is hard when there is so much fun to be had wrestling with it all.
So, I keep bringing myself back to a lesson the ride ingrained in me, a lesson I emphasize repeatedly with my students. We overestimate what we can accomplish in an hour or a day, and underestimate what we can accomplish in a year, or five, or a career, if we just put in the work every hour and every day.
It’s time to go. I have so much to learn today.
David Hummels is a Distinguished Professor of Economics, the Dean Emeritus of the Daniels School of Business, and a Research Associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research.
