Andy Schatz, the independent game creator of Monaco, said something at a GDC talk that really resonated with me along these lines

I'm paraphrasing but -

"Do the hard work that you need to do, but always give yourself an hour a day for the bullshit 'i don't have time for this but I want to do it' stuff.

It'll keep you happy, which will keep you productive through the slog... and those little touches will stand out and make SOME people happy"

For the unfamiliar (the man, not the talk): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andy_Schatz