This post resonates with me.
I had that talk with my old manager a long time ago. Basically, it boils down to “individual contributor vs management” tracks. I think both options are valid.
Personally, I have been in “lead” role before and my main gripe is how your performance is measured. When you are a lead, your performance is reliant on other people; when you are an individual contributor, your performance is reliant on yourself.
Best of luck.
If you have a scrum master or BA or Product Owner on your team, work with them to prioritize the work. There is finite amount of time so it’s impossible to do everything.
I’d spend some times every week or 2 week to re-prioritize. Maybe slot in some easy tasks between difficult tasks.