My self confidence arises from sufficient preparation. I maintain a checklist of daily essential activites that align with my long-term goals. I accomplish these early in the morning before leaving for work. They take two to three hours to complete. After completing these I feel accomplished and confident. Even if the rest of the day is unproductive due to meetings at work, at least I have the inner satisfaction of knowing that I still made progress in the things that matter the most to me.
At first, I identified my writing as the skill I needed to improve the most. I started off writing prompts of a few hundred words. My skills progressed until I researched and wrote articles of a thousand words each morning. I did this for approximately eight months.
Once satisfied with my writing, I transitioned to learning a foreign language. Every morning, I read new concepts in a textbook, listened to audio recordings online, and practiced activities on language apps (Duolingo, Memrise, and Rosetta Stone). Over a period of fourteen months, my proficiency with the language improved substantially.
These days, I dedicate my mornings to programming projects. I've been working on my current project for about three months. I dedicate each morning to improving one component of the project. I would say that around half of the time is spent researching concepts, a quarter of the time is spent implementing the learned concepts, and the final quarter developing my own code.
I allocate approximately two hours to learning new concepts each morning. In the evening I review old concepts for an hour. I understand that this is difficult for those who work long hours or who have families, however, I have found this strategy to be effective in maintaining my self-confidence.
Hawaii wouldn't be ideal based on your criteria. Living costs aren't low and there isn't a thriving intellectual community. Fair Hawaiian weather and vibrant outdoor living, however, have attracted intellectuals ranging from Garrett Lisi to Joseph Campbell.
