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Ask HN: How to deal with losing interest in your passion?

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Re: Ask HN: How to deal with losing interest in your passion?

#41

Post by steve8918 »

pav3l wrote: post #38
steve8918 wrote: post #32

After graduating from college, I completely immersed myself in computers, programming, networking, system administration, etc. I taught myself how to program, got a job programming, learned just about everything I needed to learn. I would work, and then when I came home, I would sit in front of the computer learning. It got to the point where if I didn't spend time learning, I would feel guilty. This helped me immens…

Do you mean you now use algorithmic trading to make money, or just interested in different approaches, algorithms, etc?

Yes, trading using algorithms to try to make money. Emphasis on the word "try".

I love it, regardless of my level of success in it. My friend is a day trader, and he gave me one of his setups for trading. I didn't believe him, so I downloaded the data, wrote the code to simulate it across a few years, and then all of a sudden, this became a computer problem that I could try to solve through programming. I've been hooked ever since. There are a lot of much smarter people doing a lot more successful ventures than me, but for a hobby, I really do love it, and it completely reinvigorated my interests in programming.

Re: Ask HN: How to deal with losing interest in your passion?

#42

Post by patrickk »

pav3l wrote: post #38
steve8918 wrote: post #32

After graduating from college, I completely immersed myself in computers, programming, networking, system administration, etc. I taught myself how to program, got a job programming, learned just about everything I needed to learn. I would work, and then when I came home, I would sit in front of the computer learning. It got to the point where if I didn't spend time learning, I would feel guilty. This helped me immens…

Do you mean you now use algorithmic trading to make money, or just interested in different approaches, algorithms, etc?

I'm not the guy you asked the question of, but "algorithmic trading" is most likely trading the financial markets using technical indicators. Here's a book I read recently that provides a nice intro into the subject, with plenty of code examples sprinkled throughout:

http://www.amazon.com/Quantitative-Trading-Build-Algorithmic...

and that authors blog:

http://epchan.blogspot.ie/

Re: Ask HN: How to deal with losing interest in your passion?

#43

Post by 6ren »

peteforde wrote: post #33

I went through the same thing you're describing, and I came to a very simple conclusion (in hindsite) that the other commenters haven't touched upon. I quietly suspect that I'm right, and it makes me sad that it feels like such a dirty secret. When I was a kid, I loved coding. From the ages of 6-19 I didn't really want to do anything as much as hack on cool projects. The only thing that would make my life perfect — o…

"Get paid for your hobby, and you no longer have a hobby". If you have to do some task, you should do it, it stops being play; it stops being fun.

One thing I find undermining about HN is the focus on finding a market, getting users, meeting their needs. That's great for getting rich. For personal fulfilment, eagerness and passion, it's better to create something that you value, to improve or fix something that you feel is wrong, in your bones, that annoys you, drives you up the wall. You'll get cool ideas (and frustrations) just by interacting in the world, doing any new activity. And disregard whether anybody shares your opinion or not. (There likely are people with the same itch, since you have it, but disregard that). This is liberating, because you regain captaincy of your soul. If people follow you, it's because they share your vision, not because you worked at convincing them to follow you (which would mean you are controlled by their opinions, instead of your opinion of what is valuable). If people don't follow, you've still done something you value. (It's helpful to pick doable goals, or to divide your project up into doable goals, so you get the feedback/satisfaction of seeing your idea become real.)

But take this with a grain of salt. I've been having trouble with passion too and though I'm starting to get glimmers of it back through this approach, I can't yet claim I have "come back with a bang".

PS: Just in case you are literally "feeling tired of everything.", you might want to check in on basic health stuff - food/sleep/exercise - get a check-up from a doctor for any illness, and also see if you are suffering from depression. But I've assumed you just meant tired of everything, in programming.

Re: Ask HN: How to deal with losing interest in your passion?

#44

Post by Kurtz79 »

Make programming a mean, not the end.

There are countless fields where what you have learned over the last 5 years can be of use, and feel fresh again.

Let's say you have spent the last years learning programming for web applications. Find a job (or star a personal project) where programming is applied to embedded systems, or medical devices, or videogames, or finance, or whatever.

And do not think that because you have been learning about "programming" you have to be a "programmer" if you don't want to. Try to have an experience in sales, management, design. You might lack specific knowledge in the role, but will have much more knowledge in the technical details than other people with specific experience in the role.

If you have been working just on private projects (say, a start-up), find a job as an employee in a good-sized company. Or the other way around, if you have some savings.

You are so young there is plenty of time for finding where you want to set, do not feel constrained by what is expected of you.

Re: Ask HN: How to deal with losing interest in your passion?

#45

Post by pav3l »

steve8918 wrote: post #41
pav3l wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you mean you now use algorithmic trading to make money, or just interested in different approaches, algorithms, etc?

Yes, trading using algorithms to try to make money. Emphasis on the word "try". I love it, regardless of my level of success in it. My friend is a day trader, and he gave me one of his setups for trading. I didn't believe him, so I downloaded the data, wrote the code to simulate it across a few years, and then all of a sudden, this became a computer problem that I could try to solve through programming. I've been hoo…

Yes, I always thought I could use my math/CS skills to try to make some extra cash on the side, but not even sure where to start (working in healthcare now). I was always under the impression you have to be "close to the market" to be able to trade effectively, i.e. pay a lot of money to have direct access to the latest information, trading API's etc.

Re: Ask HN: How to deal with losing interest in your passion?

#46

Post by peacemaker »

reverend_gonzo wrote: post #7

Take a break. I had the same thing when I was 25. I ended up quitting my job and buying a one-way ticket to Europe. I didn't think I would ever write code again. I spent about three months backpacking Europe, then came back and spent a few more hanging around and doing odd jobs around town. Eventually, I started code in my free time again, and about a year later, came back into the profession refreshed. Now I know wh…

This is the best advice here. I got incredibly fed up with my programming career after about 5 years or so. I went off and traveled around the world for a year, met my wife, opened a coffee shop, spent a winter at a ski resort and freelanced in Tanzania (on Zanzibar).

After all that I found I missed programming, and realized what things I didn't like about my career choice, such as long meetings, boring projects and so on. This helped me direct my programming career back to what I enjoyed and has made me much happier and more productive.

So, get out there and do something different! You've got your education and experience now and there will always be a job somewhere for you.

Re: Ask HN: How to deal with losing interest in your passion?

#48

Post by mooreds »

reverend_gonzo wrote: post #7

Take a break. I had the same thing when I was 25. I ended up quitting my job and buying a one-way ticket to Europe. I didn't think I would ever write code again. I spent about three months backpacking Europe, then came back and spent a few more hanging around and doing odd jobs around town. Eventually, I started code in my free time again, and about a year later, came back into the profession refreshed. Now I know wh…

I did the same thing, but it was a ticket to Australia and a work visa.

One benefit of taking this kind of time off is that it lets you know what you truly love. After a few months of kicking around, reading books in parks, seeing sites and meeting some cool folks, I found myself reading web tech articles. That was an eye opener to me--"hey, I really like this career path!"

Re: Ask HN: How to deal with losing interest in your passion?

#49

Post by gdonelli »

Short answer: Take time off (a few months) and then work on your project.

Long answer: I worked for 4 years at Apple as a software engineer and I exactly felt like you. When I quit to find my passion again, I could not touch a computer for more than 3 months. It was really hard. I loved engineering and design so much. It felt like I lost the most important thing in life.

I was seriously burned out. I spent time with family, travelled and started appreciating life again. After 5 months off, I was eager to get back in technology. I am now working on my own thing (http://beta.shoeboxify.com) and love my life again.

Re: Ask HN: How to deal with losing interest in your passion?

#50

Post by hluska »

TL;DR - Aging is weird, but it beats the alternative.

Other commenters are giving you excellent advice about burnout. I agree with what they say, but want to toss in a different perspective.

When I was in Grade 9, there was a hip hop group called Kris Kross. At the time, I thought they were great. So great, that I went out and bought their CD, put it on repeat and listened to it for weekend long BBS marathon.

Today, I'm a little embarrassed to admit I was that passionate about the wack emcees who wore their clothes backwards. I haven't listened to them in years. Yet other bands that I worshipped in Grade 9 (ie - Bad Religion, NOFX and the Dead Kennedys) are still extremely important to me.

I'm 35 now and my passions have ebbed and flowed through the years. They are more fixed now, but they went a little wild between my teens and mid 20s. Heck, in high school, I was a straight edge post punk who wouldn't be friends with people who dared to smoke pot near me. By my third year of university, I was conducting pharmaceutical experiments on myself at raves.

We ebb and we flow. We change just as constantly as the landscapes that surround us. We fall in and out of love with new ideas, people, sounds and pursuits.

Take a deep hard look at whether or not you may be burned out. Try new things, immerse yourself in whatever seems exciting, and read new books. Learn to climb. Scare yourself half to death. Write a book. Get tattooed. Your passion for programming will likely come back. Or, it may be gone forever. Embrace the changes, my friend, you're going to learn an awful lot about yourself over the next few months!

Best of luck and remember that smooth seas never made a skilled skipper.

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