I think about this a lot. I truly enjoy coding, it's definitely a fun activity. What I don't enjoy the most is the belief that your work experience is secondary. If you can't pass a coding interview, you don't have an active Github account, and you don't blog regularly, some companies won't take a second look at you, even if you have a proven record of success.
I personally admire what jwz did, turning his technically skills into something that supported a venue he really enjoys (DNAPizza and DNALounge).
Ask HN: Have you ever thought of leaving programming for something else?
391–400 of 570 posts
Re: Ask HN: Have you ever thought of leaving programming for something else?
#392Re: Ask HN: Have you ever thought of leaving programming for something else?
#393I started off as a software engineer for 2 years but began to explore the business side of things. I moved into designing/building systems for business analysis (i.e. data warehousing, reporting, analytics, etc.), did strategy consulting for insurance and financial services as well as studied for my MBA. I'm now in charge of leading the analytics initiatives for our credit card business.
I'm still in touch with my programming side through my side projects but the experience I gained through my software development years have been extremely helpful both in dealing with business & technical audiences as well as in solving problems logically.
The main point is that the programming skills you've learned can be useful in another setting. Starting off as a programmer doesn't mean that you will have to do it for the rest of your life. You have many different choices and it's up to you to shape your career the way you want it.
Re: Ask HN: Have you ever thought of leaving programming for something else?
#394Teaching. But the money difference is so ridiculous that I would have to go back in time and make every financial decision differently for the past ten years including having less children in order to afford it. Instead I have taken second jobs coaching at a gym, volunteered for hour of code and other programs at my local library and started teaching Sunday school at my church.
If you are willing to teach and relocate a few years there are international schools which pay 80k - $90k (Asia, Middle East, certain rich islands). Don't underestimate how demanding it is though. I've done both and coding is a breeze compared to teaching.
Re: Ask HN: Have you ever thought of leaving programming for something else?
#395I bought a small commercial fishing boat and occasionally do that on the side. I make no money but love every minute of it. I'm working on getting my charter license so I can take folks out fishing and hope to do that p/t when I retire in 20 years.
Re: Ask HN: Have you ever thought of leaving programming for something else?
#396Earlier quoted context omitted.
Programming involves very little creativity compared to actual art, so to call it a "creative art" is a gross exaggeration. A programmer is given a very specific set of tasks (eg. send data from A to B, fix bug, implement X), and his problems are mostly technical. This doesn't even compare to the creativity involved in a real artistic endeavor like designing your own videogame, writing your own screenplay, or composi…
Perhaps I've just been lucky with jobs, but my daily work hasn't been "send data from A to B, fix bug" since my first job before college (except for ramp-up time when I was just starting at Google, and even then my manager was like "Do you really want to just be fixing unit tests?". It was "Give quants a development environment where they can quickly write algorithms that will run on our parallel-processing cluster",…
>when I was just starting at Google
If you're working / have worked at the Big 5, your experience is vastly different than the rest of the profession toiling away at CRUD apps and web sites 9 to 5. Lucky doesn't begin to describe it.
Re: Ask HN: Have you ever thought of leaving programming for something else?
#397Earlier quoted context omitted.
Programming involves very little creativity compared to actual art, so to call it a "creative art" is a gross exaggeration. A programmer is given a very specific set of tasks (eg. send data from A to B, fix bug, implement X), and his problems are mostly technical. This doesn't even compare to the creativity involved in a real artistic endeavor like designing your own videogame, writing your own screenplay, or composi…
Perhaps I've just been lucky with jobs, but my daily work hasn't been "send data from A to B, fix bug" since my first job before college (except for ramp-up time when I was just starting at Google, and even then my manager was like "Do you really want to just be fixing unit tests?". It was "Give quants a development environment where they can quickly write algorithms that will run on our parallel-processing cluster",…
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Re: Ask HN: Have you ever thought of leaving programming for something else?
#398I think about leaving programming every day. I love programming, but I'm not sure I enjoy software development as a career. I enjoy coding and understanding how computer systems work, but I don't care for the constant changes in tools and techniques in certain domains of development. I'd rather practise with and improve my existing knowledge of a subject, instead of constantly playing catch-up with someone else's too…
You might consider digging deeper into other professions where programming experience/systems knowledge would be essential.
You might also dig deeper into discovering what you like and don't like about the programming profession: Do you prefer going to meetings? Do you like solving new problems constantly? What drives your satisfaction? What do you not like about programming? What do you like about programming?
What one person considers to be a lucky profession may not be the same view shared by another :)
Re: Ask HN: Have you ever thought of leaving programming for something else?
#399Earlier quoted context omitted.
> It's an Asperger profession; smart but artless. Sorry, but I would have to disagree with you on this. I've been programming now for over 35 years, and really cannot see myself doing anything else. I find I can channel my creativity into programming in many ways, and writing a good piece of code gives me the same satisfaction as writing or recording apiece of music. Yes, I am a musician too, and while they are very…
remark on a tangent - before siting down to a bunch of tasks I ask myself how I can make this funny/creative, how is it hilarious and how interesting can this be made. suddenly perspective changes.
Or, if you need a reminder of your capabilities, look at your current project and think of how much havoc you could wreak if you decided to go the nefarious route.
i.e. the sysadmin bringing down the company from within. The Web Developer commandeering his own botnet. The backend developer who makes a fortune mining doge coins. And so forth.
Re: Ask HN: Have you ever thought of leaving programming for something else?
#400Every. Day.