This jibes with my experience. Throwaway because reasons and personal. I was doing work for <large, billion dollar tech company everyone knows> as an hourly c

This jibes with my experience. Throwaway because reasons and personal. I was doing work for <large, billion dollar tech company everyone knows> as an hourly contractor. I left to do some "sharing economy" stuff that, although is not the same as doing rideshares for Uber, it's something that's very, very similar. It involves driving. The changes that it brought were: - Not having to do work that, at the end of the day, is the opposite of fulfilling - Not having to answer for dumb, avoidable mistakes when the responsibility inevitably diffuses throughout the whole team - Not having to deal with the workplace sociopaths who cause them - Not being subjected to the whims of a mercurial, micromanaging supervisor - Not having the stress of all these things creep into my life outside work The downside to leaving and opting for what I'm doing now is basically this: big pay cut. I'm not a SV rockstar and have no nest egg, but this is paying for groceries and rent for the time being. I can say unequivocally that in regards to all these factors that people pretend to care about, I'm far more well off than I would have been at my former workplace, and yet if I had stayed, no one would have batted an eye and feigned to sympathize with the plight that resulted from those circumstances, because it was a "real" job. I honestly could not give a relatable damn about the "I have my own schedule" aspects. I'm very big on planning, and the truth is that I'm able to make plans that stick even better than when I was at <the company>. By far the most important part is that when I'm not driving, I'm able to do things in my offtime that keep me sharp. Before leaving, the idea that I could, say, build up my skills in my time off until something better comes along, was totally out of the question. I'd compare trying to stave off the braindamage of dealing with daily workplace nonsense to be similar to trying to maintain a healthy physique so that you're fit enough to enjoy your daily jog, all while your paycheck somehow relies on subjecting your body to junk food, soda, and cigarettes. Now, I've got side projects and interesting avenues of research to explore.