Thank you!

. Contributions are inspirational. Well, my general approach towards life's observations is seeking a balance so I don't fall into either extremes of any given situation. I support moderation. And yes I possess self-discipline by nature but I don't call myself intelligent (thank you though!), I consider intelligence a relative expression.
Endurance is a very critical issue in my opinion, having pushed myself roughly for a long time I must say that there's a moment when one have to listen to his inner exhaustion otherwise he would crush himself (as you pointed out), submitting to this moment is not weakness, on the contrary it's insight. Knowing when to hit the brakes is life-saving, in my case I didn't hit the brakes until my body involuntary did (my immune system crashed and subsequently I developed a life-threatening illness as I mentioned here before). Fighting should be accompanied by resilience. And one should have mercy on himself.
As for " 'how could I have been so stupid?' (often inherent to becoming aware) ", I've grown to learn that I couldn't possibly reach my destination unless I've walked the distance, so I no more undervalue my past deeds whatsoever or shy away from them or beat myself up for them because simply that's useless and harmful. Instead I embrace them and build on them. The slightest things could teach you the most valuable lessons. And valuable could be simple, it doesn't have to be a "hidden treasure" (metaphorically) or so. But escaping won't be of benefit. Again there's a fine balance here that's important if one ever wants to learn.
Now, seriously the last sentence of yours is striking! this "aligning" thing you described. That's actually what I'm working on nowadays. It would take sometime though, focus is my current weapon. I've read some of your posts, I think you have a judicious intellect and what's more important is being the considerate person that you are, I respect that.