11–20 of 82 posts
Heres the problem I have with this entire discussion -- and this post does address it a bit -- but programming IS a creative role and needs to be treated as such. Many organizations hire programmers as technical roles, but they are generally creatives. A lot of them are night owls, who ebb and flow between long productive stints and proverbial 'writers block'. Many of the best developers I know have a creative desire…
I hate being treated as a code monkey.
Heres the problem I have with this entire discussion -- and this post does address it a bit -- but programming IS a creative role and needs to be treated as such. Many organizations hire programmers as technical roles, but they are generally creatives. A lot of them are night owls, who ebb and flow between long productive stints and proverbial 'writers block'. Many of the best developers I know have a creative desire…
This will never, ever, ever happen. There is too much money, for both sides, in pretending this isn't true. The business side has been entrusted with a lot of money, its own or someone else's. Success has already been achieved . As such, it approaches things from a mindset of risk reduction. And the absolute worst thing possible, from a risk-reduction standpoint, is creative work. It's unpredictable, you don't know w…
I still find the pressure to work on side projects in your free time difficult to come to terms with. There's often discussion about how if you don't like what you're doing, then you should find a new job - and easily, if you're in the bay area. I know a lot of really talented devs that don't work on side projects because they are completely consumed by, and love, their work and can't imagine doing anything else. Wha…
The fact of the matter is that I have a job where I work on different things and am encouraged to learn. It's not a dream job, I don't "love" what I do, but I like it. The fact of the matter when I get home from my 8 (ok, often 7) hour day, I really don't feel like programming anymore. I feel like curling up on the couch with my girlfriend and watching a movie. Or hanging out with friends, or going for a motorcycle ride. You know, those things that keep you from burning out?
So, at this point I've decided that if someone doesn't want to hire me because my Github profile isn't cool enough, well OK. That tells me that the culture there values work over work/life balance, and I don't want to work there anyway.
I work on side projects when I have to urge to, and rarely does anything worthwhile to anyone but me come out of it. But I'm done feeling guilty about it.
I still find the pressure to work on side projects in your free time difficult to come to terms with. There's often discussion about how if you don't like what you're doing, then you should find a new job - and easily, if you're in the bay area. I know a lot of really talented devs that don't work on side projects because they are completely consumed by, and love, their work and can't imagine doing anything else. Wha…
If I ask for decent private office and 3x32" screens I just get blank faces and bullshit excuses. Since I started working for myself remotely, I can sustain 10 hours of uninterrupted concentration. Before in office it was more like 30 minutes of concentration per day.
I still find the pressure to work on side projects in your free time difficult to come to terms with. There's often discussion about how if you don't like what you're doing, then you should find a new job - and easily, if you're in the bay area. I know a lot of really talented devs that don't work on side projects because they are completely consumed by, and love, their work and can't imagine doing anything else. Wha…
Then pursue it with a passion.
"I find it difficult to go hard at work and put 100% in and then come home and work on side projects."
Then don't.
"Usually, I'd rather spend time with friends and family."
Then do.
"This seems to disqualify me from a lot of job postings."
If getting the job requires a large time commitment to side-projects, then they're not side-projects. If you're only doing something to count towards some job or other, then that is a cost of that job. If you work X hours per week in an office and Y hours a week at home on side-projects you don't want to do, then you're working an (X+Y) hour week. If that's too much, then screw the job because it's clearly not worth it.
With that said, my hobby is programming. I have a few programming side-projects, but they exist for me because I really enjoy them. When I'm not programming I'm usually reading CompSci papers. That's what I get off on. The moment any of this becomes a chore, I leave it to rot. There are a number of dead projects in my wake, but they fulfilled their purpose; I enjoyed creating them and learned from the experience.
I still find the pressure to work on side projects in your free time difficult to come to terms with. There's often discussion about how if you don't like what you're doing, then you should find a new job - and easily, if you're in the bay area. I know a lot of really talented devs that don't work on side projects because they are completely consumed by, and love, their work and can't imagine doing anything else. Wha…
Personally I find it insane to go home and work on a side project after work, if it's not something you hope to make money from.
Pro tip: many people work on side-projects for exactly those reasons. They just cut out the middle man (money).
I think problem are working conditions. Modern programmer is expected to work in coffee shop on tiny laptop, practically worst conditions imaginable. If I ask for decent private office and 3x32" screens I just get blank faces and bullshit excuses. Since I started working for myself remotely, I can sustain 10 hours of uninterrupted concentration. Before in office it was more like 30 minutes of concentration per day.
Point 2 is complete and utter bullshit, especially when the company also fosters a culture of interruption. If client services has an emergency, it is now everyone in developement's problem. They have 3-4 emergencies a day...
A lack of walls, or ability to control interruption seriously degrades the working environment and makes the actual development work extremely frustrating and often not full-filling.
One day, in 50 years, people will look back at the current crop of MBA inspired management theories and will just shake their heads that we were trying to run software businesses like this.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Personally I find it insane to go home and work on a side project after work, if it's not something you hope to make money from.
If a side-project did make any money, what would you spend it on? Perhaps you'd spend some on entertainment, or to further your education, or to finally fix those minor annoyances that you come across day to day. Maybe you'd invest some in a project that you think has great potential to change the world? Pro tip: many people work on side-projects for exactly those reasons. They just cut out the middle man (money).