I feel like I've been in a constantly resurfacing burnout since I was in 7th grade... (I'm 18 now). Though in line with what other people said I wish he had offered more insight on what exactly got him out of his burnout.
Part 2: How I dealt with a burnout
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Re: Part 2: How I dealt with a burnout
#22I found this account interesting. At some points in my life I would spend eight hours a day programming at my day job, then spend most of the evening programming on my own projects. It seems like I've never had a problem with burnout.
However, I've also noticed that I can have a lazy streak. I've been in positions where I'm working on an open source project with an upcoming release deadline. I know there's a bunch of stuff I should really be doing to make the deadline, but my inner self rebels and I watch a movie or read HN instead.
This has made me wonder if my "lazy streak" is actually functioning as an effective protection against burnout. I've seen this laziness in other areas of my life as well, such as school and even at work. I used to feel guilty about it, but I don't really think that way any more. Now I feel that it actually helps keep my longer term productivity up.
Now all of this is based on very subjective feelings. It would be pretty hard to prove anything conclusive either way. I don't know what makes me be this way or if/how it could be learned by someone else who is prone to burnout. But I do believe it's worth thinking about.
Re: Part 2: How I dealt with a burnout
#23The most notable part of this post for me was this quote: > I went through a major transformation during my burnout: I now see programming as a means, not an end. People, which is more typically a fallacy of youth, waste a lot of time arguing about pointless crap like Python vs Ruby (which are so similar technically that it's basically an argument about idioms). Part of this I can understand: people often argue about…
> go get a non-programming job if you've never had one I would add: go get a non-programming job demanding physical labor where (one way or another) you are building something or tear something down. It can be incredibly satisfying to just do some simple but physically demanding work and see actual results at the end of the day, results you can actually touch. And it will also show you how much worse things could be…
There's also always Zen and the Art of Motorcycle maintenance by Robert Pirsig, which at least i still find quite amazing.
I also totally agree on the thing with working with your hands – it turns out we at least partially think with our bodies. Howard Gardner also made an interesting case for that in his book the Seven Intelligences, but okay – the source much matter who wrote about it: I've experienced it first-hand.
Doing yoga when I've been strained about something often results in what can only be described as a stream of insight and ideas. The same thing with running. We (i) have so much to learn.
Re: Part 2: How I dealt with a burnout
#24I feel like I've been in a constantly resurfacing burnout since I was in 7th grade... (I'm 18 now). Though in line with what other people said I wish he had offered more insight on what exactly got him out of his burnout.
My sympathies, I was there, too. The key to me was finding what I was really passionate about and doing it. Detaching from outcome.
Re: Part 2: How I dealt with a burnout
#25I found this account interesting. At some points in my life I would spend eight hours a day programming at my day job, then spend most of the evening programming on my own projects. It seems like I've never had a problem with burnout. However, I've also noticed that I can have a lazy streak. I've been in positions where I'm working on an open source project with an upcoming release deadline. I know there's a bunch of…
Sounds to me like you are in contact with your 'being'. That's rather good actually. The way I've come to think of it, when people get too anxious they start to make violence on themselves - and think they should be something they are not. But changing oneself based on rejecting what one is doesn't work.