151–160 of 190 posts
One hard issue I've been coping with is the fact that coding was my hobby before it was my profession. I think that's a fairly normal thing for developers. I mean, who wouldn't take a job doing what they were already doing for enjoyment. It's not that I want an unbalanced life, but when your hobby merges into your career it becomes hard to diversify. I'm fortunate that I have a wife and kids to help balance me out; w…
Generally, this is an easy stance for young, unmarried, and otherwise unattached people to approach their career. A warning to those that think this will enhance their opportunities later in life. It won't. Sure there are a few great employers out there that will reward you with loyalty (or massive sums of money) but that is the exception. After a life of nothing but work, no matter how much you love it at the time,…
Go to war. You will have lot of experience and memories. It is easiest way to escape the cycle.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Go to war. You will have lot of experience and memories. It is easiest way to escape the cycle.
You'll also realize that civvies have it pretty easy and that you can put up with almost any amount of bullsh*t.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I distinctly remember sitting in yet another dull sprint retrospective and thinking, "Boy, I wish I were a firefighter." Granted, that line of work comes with its own drawbacks and I would certainly get bored of it the same way I get bored of software (or else worn out from the demanding physical aspect), but some days I'm surprised to find myself wishing I could "dig ditches out in the sunshine" or something of the…
I have had a literal ditch digging job, and I hated that even more. But I still find myself longing for such a thing. Maybe if I could just have 3-4 days per year? xD
I've had physical labor jobs (refinishing airliners, sanding gym floors, bussing tables), and playing music is about as physical of an occupation as I'd like.
IMO, 40 hours a week for a single thing is a bad job. I get plenty of work done in 30, I have a lower pay and live in the sticks, but I like it a lot.
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Don't they have the right? I mean, a developer that's talented enough to attract attention from Google then surely they'd be smart enough to know what constitutes working 'too much.' I don't think Google exploits its workers anymore than they exploit themselves. If you think you've worked too much, then go home? If they ask you "hey, do you want to pull a 80-hour week this week?" why should you say anything other tha…
> I mean, a developer that's talented enough to attract attention from Google then surely they'd be smart enough to know what constitutes working 'too much.' Of course not, not at all. We all have different skillsets, and good coding ability does not mean you're good in everything else.
A developer does a lot more than just write code, but let me clarify: Anybody that's smart enough to hold a job should know when they are being asked to work too much.
Generally, this is an easy stance for young, unmarried, and otherwise unattached people to approach their career. A warning to those that think this will enhance their opportunities later in life. It won't. Sure there are a few great employers out there that will reward you with loyalty (or massive sums of money) but that is the exception. After a life of nothing but work, no matter how much you love it at the time,…
For monetary gain/prestige to retire earlier? Sure. Unless we get very unlucky with the tech industry in the next 20 years.
Digging ditches is great until you ruin your bones/joints.
Generally, this is an easy stance for young, unmarried, and otherwise unattached people to approach their career. A warning to those that think this will enhance their opportunities later in life. It won't. Sure there are a few great employers out there that will reward you with loyalty (or massive sums of money) but that is the exception. After a life of nothing but work, no matter how much you love it at the time,…
Go to war. You will have lot of experience and memories. It is easiest way to escape the cycle.
Generally, this is an easy stance for young, unmarried, and otherwise unattached people to approach their career. A warning to those that think this will enhance their opportunities later in life. It won't. Sure there are a few great employers out there that will reward you with loyalty (or massive sums of money) but that is the exception. After a life of nothing but work, no matter how much you love it at the time,…
Never before have the tools to turn ideas into code into money been so easily at our disposal.
So while coding for the love of coding may lead to dissatisfaction after X years, coding a service/business has a good upside if at the end of it you've turned an idea into something with a revenue stream.
That said, a path fraught with failure and an easier choice for those who are either young or have few responsibilities.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Luckily you get time to do the fun part of this. Imagine if you had to do company-approved products in your spare time or if you didn't have that time to be able to work on such things? I understand - I tried to go to college for graphic design, thinking it would leave my more "fine-arts" type of projects as a hobby and enjoyment.
>Imagine if you had to do company-approved products in your spare time What company does that? That's thee worst company ever (and if they don't compensate you for your 'spare' time, then there's probably a lawsuit there)
And yes, I'd agree, that does make for bad companies, but some of the places exist.
Generally, this is an easy stance for young, unmarried, and otherwise unattached people to approach their career. A warning to those that think this will enhance their opportunities later in life. It won't. Sure there are a few great employers out there that will reward you with loyalty (or massive sums of money) but that is the exception. After a life of nothing but work, no matter how much you love it at the time,…
I think the issue here is when people take that viewpoint as a career. I code for a career. I also code for a hobby. I code for fun. They're different. You can eat. sleep. code. repeat. without it being eat. sleep. work. repeat. And you can mean it lightheartedly/halfheartedly as well. "Eat, sleep, game, repeat." can be the same thing. Obviously taking it literally is unhealthy, but I don't think anyone is proposing…
I get that some marketing person thought it would be funny, but work/life balance is and should be a serious subject for developers. This is "real life shit" that decides what relationships you have with your friends, family and colleagues, where you end up living in the future, if you have kids, keep your health, are happy, don't die alone etc.