I am a casual player too. I posted here to question players how they manage to play the game "casually". Of course some answers are dumb(replied by assholes), some are really really helpful. But in the end, if you want to play the game, choose your pace and you have to decide what you gonna do and stick to it. I also started the Zodiac Quest months ago, but for this month I had to stop it because it will be too grindy for me because I work a lot in weekdays and only have a chance to play with 1-2 hours.
My advice my friend is, don't pressure yourself too much. The definition of "game" itself is to have fun and kill the free time(fill the void of boredom). If you really want to be on hardcore content, manage it according to your lifestyle.
On the bright side, with this subscription system, it filters away those people who aren't worth playing it. I mean, look at people who play FREE TO PLAY games. Most are ill-mannered, imagine Dota 2(SEA server). FFXIV has a friendly community than any other games I played with.
Happy gaming pal!