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Ask HN: What should I do when I'm bored with my career?

I really like programming but I quickly get bored at work. I often work on personal projects during work hours because they're more interesting. The success or failure of a business, even one I depend on for income, does not motivate me. None of my personal projects are monetizable. They're just things I do to learn. It's the experience of learning that excites me. I have a little experience teaching (after-school program) and writing about what I learn. I enjoy that too. My ideal life would be one where I am free to explore things that interest me and share that knowledge with others. Unfortunately, I can't afford not to work. So I need a career of some kind and am looking for a career that's more aligned with what naturally motivates me. I've contemplated going back to school but am not convinced this is a good idea. I have a degree from an art school, no formal computer science education, and no math since highschool. I also don't have much money. If I wanted to study computer science, I'd have to start at the undergraduate level and borrow a lot of money. School as an investment makes sense to me but I'm not sure what I would be investing in. I don't think a career in academia would appeal to me, and borrowing that much money because I'm bored at work sounds like a bad idea. Does anyone have a suggestion for what I can/should do to improve my circumstances?

InGodsName 8y ago
Exploring and making money can be one and the same thing too. I was exactly feeling like this before i started budiness then i found friends to take over the boring parts.
rajeshmr 8y ago
Save up a bit for say 6 months and take a break. Explore your interests and see if any of your exploratory projects can be monetized.
setquk 8y ago
Accept it or change it. Accepting it is transitioning from the realisation that you’re doing it because it’s interesting to doing it because it pays the bills and funds other interests. Changing it is transitioning something else into the place that is currently occupied by work. Both of these require finding something that interests you so start there. But remember, life is long, interests wax and wane so this is perfectly normal and don’t sweat it as some failure or worry about it being a wrong attitude. Edit: Just to add I’ve been through this twice. First I changed it (electrical engineering to software engineering). Now I accept it because my interests will never pay the bills I have :)
joubert 8y ago
> I really like programming What about programming do you like?
charizard15 8y ago
Freelance. Seriously, freelance remotely. You will be able to find work you love. If not, you will be able to easily switch projects and find something you will love doing. You will have the flexibility to work when you need money and the flexibility to work on your own projects when you have some savings in your pockets. Or better, you can do part-time projects for clients and part-time in your own projects. You can tailor your working habits.
- mancerayder 8y ago
  It's hard to find freelance work - the contract roles are guarded jealously by recruiters and agencies (who take 30-40% of the revenue prior to giving it to you), and anything else is extreme luck or extremely good networking. If the latter (networking), remote is very very hard for someone who isn't already well-known.
  - fecak 8y ago
    Based on my knowledge of the market for freelance software gigs, I think you are grossly overestimating the difficulty of finding good work. "Extreme luck" is not necessary, nor is "extremely good networking". 30-40% is also probably a bit of a stretch for the recruiter's take (former recruiter here). Those numbers and higher are certainly possible, but 20% is a bit more likely. Also, if you are getting a competitive rate for your work, it really doesn't matter what the recruiter is taking, does it? If they are able to negotiate a huge finder's fee on top of your competitive rate, that's their skill being rewarded.
    - excitednumber 8y ago
      how would you recommend finding work?
      - fecak 8y ago
        There are probably too many ways to respond to this question without making a full post, but a few examples: 1 - Reach out to other freelancers - many freelancers actually have too much work and will refer some leads along to others they trust. 2 - Recruiters - find an agency recruiter who you can trust and tell them to keep an eye out for you. Recruiters love placing contractors, as it is basically an annuity revenue stream. 3 - General outreach - just reach out to people. Founders, meetup leaders, CTOs. Do a little research and send short messages declaring your availability and interest. 4 - Let the work find you - make sure you have a discoverable presence on LinkedIn and elsewhere.
iyogeshjoshi 8y ago
There is this very popular place earlier known as Hacker School and now known as Recurse Center at NYC, so if you can manage to arrange some place to live in NYC I suggest you to go and check out this place. It's community driven and ask for no fee though is very good and worth giving a try. Here is the link to the same https://www.recurse.com https://www.recurse.com
- mdgrech23 8y ago
  This is nonsense, unless the OP lives in or around NYC this advice is useless.
  - dewey 8y ago
    They are just adding an option? Usually if someone asks for advice there are other people with similar problems reading the threads and it can be useful to them.
  - throwaway12JpuG 8y ago
    Lots of people who live outside New York participate. Don't be so needlessly harsh.
  - dang 8y ago
    This comment breaks the site guidelines. Could you please review them and follow them from now on? https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html The idea here is: if you have a substantive point to make, make it thoughtfully; if you don't, please don't comment until you do. Edit: you've done this repeatedly and we've already had to warn you repeatedly. If you don't stop doing this we're going to have to ban you, so please stop doing this!
- throwaway12JpuG 8y ago
  Yeah! I need to save a bit more money but I would like to participate in a Recurse Center batch. Would like to make my daily reality more like what time at the Recurse Center sounds like.
langitbiru 8y ago
You said you like to explore things and share that knowledge with others. The things that you can do is becoming a tech blogger. You can explore the latest JS frameworks, Robotics, AI, blockchain, mobile apps and put your exploration in a blog. You can monetize it by creating an ebook and sell it in your blog. But writing is hard. So you must be patient. For now stick to your job and do the blogging part-time.
excitednumber 8y ago
What do you work on in terms of passion projects?
mongol 8y ago
I thought I liked programming as day job but realized I never was happy doing it. So I transitioned, first to self employment and then to requirement analysis, which gave me plenty of other interesting opportunities. It depends on where you work, but the fact is that much of the programming that pays is boring. Interesting, challenging programming of course happens at the companies that are technology leaders and is a different thing so I am not so much speaking of that. In any case, my advice, don't take for granted that programming as an occupation is the right thing just because you like it when you can choose exactly what to do.
bgdam 8y ago
I found myself in a similar situation about a year ago. Started developing https://mocktastic.com https://mocktastic.com (REST API mocking electron app, with team collaboration) on the side. It's kept me going through periods of mind numbing boredom in office, even though the user growth has been rather slow (but steady). I'd say find an area of interest – one that doesn't have anything to do with programming. Then learn as much as you can about it. Next, identify things you can change with your programming skill. Once, you've identified 3/4 things, find some people who make a living dependent on those things. Go talk to them about how you would improve things. If they light up, it's time to start coding. Else find something else to change. The combination of learning about a new industry you know not much about and trying to build a solution for that industry, should keep you busy outside office. Leverage that, and use your office time as your down time.
- rboyd 8y ago
  great name!
fecak 8y ago
I do career consulting (and resume writing) mostly for clients from tech. I think some arrangement where you had multiple forms of income (or potential income) might be a good solution for you. What might that look like? - Freelance software development - This would give you some control over what types of projects you work on, and you could focus on areas that really interest you. Maybe it would be projects that enable you to learn a new language. You also can typically work from home, and you will be able to balance your time between different work. - Freelance writing - If your writing is good you can certainly pick up some $$ here and there by writing articles for tech sites. I've done that for tech sites as a writer on career topics, and many of these sites are always seeking new content. The amount of money may not be a game changer, but if you enjoy the work you can probably make this 10% of your overall income. Personal projects - Perhaps some of them can be monetized and you just haven't come up with the correct concept. Or perhaps you can come up with some ideas for projects that are both interesting and able to be monetized. Working for yourself is quite motivating. I've done it for several years, and when failure isn't an option you will find ways to stay motivated. I spent 20 years in recruiting before transitioning fully to my current job (resume writing, content writing, career consulting, other freelance writing projects), and I've really enjoyed the change. Some people aren't cut out for a 9-5. I certainly am not, and it doesn't sound like you are either.
- smoqadam 8y ago
  interesting about writing, could you please mention some of the tech sites that pay money for content?
  - westonplatter0 8y ago
    digitalocean.com, and other nich tech websites. it usually helps to have a couple example essays/posts before asking to be paid for content.
  - Insanity 8y ago
    Auth0 at least used to pay for blog content. I am not sure if they still do that though - last time I did that was about 2 years ago. I wrote about their tech and how to integrate it in a different stack. I believe they paid about 200 USD for it. I'd look it up but I am on mobile atm so it's not convenient. Might be worth to look up their website if it interests you.
ajani 8y ago
Improve one thing. Begin there. Improve another thing. And repeat. Fix a broken latch in your home. Improve your code a few lines at a time. It adds up.
LeanderK 8y ago
I always advise to really reflect your current situation and think what changes might be possible. Work is a big part of your life. It depends a bit how willing you are to do more risky stuff, but the great thing is that skilled programmers are in demand. You can always go back to a boring job. Freelancing is an option, but you probaly need to aquire the gigs yourself. Might be an option. But you have total control over what you're working on. You can also work part-time and persue more finanically unrewarding in the remaining time, like teaching. A friend of mine is working 80% and painting the remaining 20%. Are there part-time study options? I would not recommend an online-degree. Have you contemplated working in a startup? It's risky, but there are a lot of different challenges and you can branch out of your technical role.
mapcars 8y ago
Boredom is caused by a lack of attention. You can change your activity as much as you want but after some time it will become boring again. The only solution is to realize the scale of this Grand Happening which we call as life or existence. That every day comes fresh and new, not a single atom is the same as it was a moment ago. But if you don't have this much attention it feels "the same", "boring". And it's not about the job only, friends, family, movie you name it. If you realize this you can swipe a floor for the lifetime and it will never be boring.
- SheinhardtWigCo 8y ago
  > That every day comes fresh and new, not a single atom is the same as it was a moment ago. So what? What difference does that make to OP?
  - mapcars 8y ago
    It should show him that the world is alright and he should focus on developing his sense of attention, not changing the activity (which is just temporary "workaround").
- dagoat 8y ago
  Not sure if trolling. But unless you elaborate, very few people are going to read this and comprehend what you are on about
  - cheez 8y ago
    I get what he's saying. If you feel at one with what is going on around you, it isn't boring.
  - mapcars 8y ago
    He asked a question, I gave my best answer. Whether it will work for him or anybody is not in my control. If you have any specific questions - ask.
    - 8y ago
scandox 8y ago
The main thing to learn in a work environment is how to finish things - or what it takes to finish things. I suspect (happy to be wrong) when you say you like learning you mean you like everything about programming except the tedious task of drawing everything into a coherent whole and polishing it. I think if you conceive of learning in a broader sense you may enjoy work more by finding insights in the process and in the people.
phkahler 8y ago
You may want to change your attitude toward work. There's a reason it's called "work" and not playtime. There's a reason they pay you to do it. I like to think about the guy stuck in a shit town, working in a coal mine. Maybe they all drink themselves to oblivion and I'm delusional, but I envision at least some of them this way: Guy goes down there and busts his ass all day in the dark, getting dirty as fuck, probably doing long term damage to his lungs and such. But it's his job and at the end of the day he goes home to his wife, kids, and dog, and realizes that work is just something he has to do to support the parts of his life he cares about. >> Does anyone have a suggestion for what I can/should do to improve my circumstances? Yeah, quit acting like an entitled little child. Be grateful that you have a job that often requires more education than you have. Stop thinking you can just monetize some personal interests and retire. Life requires effort, give it some. Once you get over that hump you may be able to consider which alternative you're willing to put actual effort toward.
- GuiA 8y ago
  While it might feel good to admonish people and tell them that they have to get tough and suck it up and pull themselves by their bootstraps, it typically does not do anything to help them; particularly if they are taking the initiative to ask for help in the first place. OP more likely than not realizes that they are in a situation of privilege compared to someone working in the mines to sustain their family; if they are posting here, then clearly that insight alone has not sufficed to help them deal with what they are feeling. All we know from OP is 3 paragraphs of text they wrote, asking for help; telling them to stop “acting like an entitled little child” is downright rude and not what HN is about.
  - phkahler 8y ago
    I realize my response may not be helpful and is not in the normal spirit of HN. But OP said this "My ideal life would be one where I am free to explore things that interest me and share that knowledge with others." Look, not everyone can be an Instagram model or a YouTube star. Sometimes a good smack in the face is what's needed to spark a little motivation. Sometimes not, but I think it's worth putting out there. For some less harsh motivation I'll offer this: https://www.ted.com/talks/mel_robbins_how_to_stop_screwing_yourself_over?language=en https://www.ted.com/talks/mel_robbins_how_to_stop_screwing_y...
lettergram 8y ago
I personally attempt to rotate what I do and am always trying to optimize (it keeps me interested). An example: when I was 14 - 18 I worked in a medical billing office scanning old documents (and new documents as they came in). There were 3 of us working 15 - 20 hours a week. Most boring job imaginable (I'd do it Saturday and Sunday, 10 hours each). I found I could listen to audio books so I smashed through several hundred over the years of doing this (as well as the Teaching Company and other lectures). I also started to look for ways to improve the process. I spent a little time exploring databases and OCR over my mandatory unpaid lunch and breaks. Eventually, I realized I could rather eaisly automatically change filenames, add to an SQL database, add a few tags, etc. I then could setup a scanning job, which used to require manual data entry after each page, to then do one massive scanning job and only edit a few "failures" after the fact. This let me scanning 10x over the other two employees. It looked good for me, so I got moved into network admin (more fun), which further kept my attention. My point, it's up to you to find the motivation. But if you're curious and interested in self improvement, money, moving up the company ladder, etc. Then you can find the motivation to push yourself to at least try to change your situation. I did it via audio books and experimenting on breaks, what you do is unique to you.
naringas 8y ago
reflect that on how that is a privelge for a lucky few. practice feeling grateful about it. or go on a party binge so your job becomes harder to do, more challenging due to tiredness.
swsieber 8y ago
Do you get enough sleep? I know sleep makes a world of difference to me when it comes to working on less than exciting things.
- justwalt 8y ago
  This is really true for me, great point. There have been days where I had less than 6 hours of sleep and it’s made me very easily bored and disenchanted with the work that I had previously enjoyed. When I’m very well rested, I could probably enjoy most things for a little while.
- MartinCron 8y ago
  To second this... If there is any chance you have obstructive sleep apnea (big neck? snore a lot? have trouble staying awake during movies?) get a sleep study ASAP. Treating that can be life changing.
sigi45 8y ago
Stop coding at work for non work and start coding at work for work. Why not write something useful to help your daily work? I can't imagine a project where i would not love to have enough time to actually cleanup/fix/extend/create x for our project we are working on.
pasta 8y ago
What helped me is to focus on the end user. Those are the people that you are working for! Once I realised that I quit my job and started working for a company with real end users...
andersonmvd 8y ago
People used to say that opportunity is everywhere, you just need to pay attention. Fun is the same thing. Some things that make every day fun - trying to know for who you are building your software for, talk to this end user, get to know how useful (or useless) your construction is actually solving something or not. I'm 100% sure that if you see many people using and feeling thankful from what you made, that would make you feel great. Nothing less! - improving the environment of your company. Look, everyone has a big problem. They are also coming to work with some problem on the back of their heads. If we could just light this a bit, it is immensely rewarding. We're going to die anyway, so why not make our existence a noble one? :D - find a topic that you like and present it to your boss, try to find together a way to combine both. He may have some idea, or the boss of your boss. Everyone wins when you are motivated - plan your big escape: if your goal is to only study, consider making some money, moving to a cheap place (Thailand?), and with a leeway for a few years, you can try to experiment some ideas. Why not put some courses on udemy for example? Teach all you could, in the best way possible and learn how to promote what you do Have fun!
deepaksurti 8y ago
Most of us , whether we realise it or agree or not, work for income which in turn allows us to work on more interesting things. Some may save up some money which lasts for a duration and go do the interesting things. You are doing it right! However what will help is doing it differently. Can you do time blocking? I assume that while you are doing interesting things at work, no one notices or cares. That is a great job! So why not block your 1st half to do the necessary boring work, and the second half the interesting work. Win Win! I agree this may need some discipline but think of it as a daily ritual! Btw, many greats [1] have had rituals like this, so who knows? :-) The other aspect you might be missing is 'when interesting things turn boring'. Usually that happens when you want to ship the product and you hit the long tail of shipping. Try replacing 'doing interesting' vs 'doing interesting and shipping'. But we don't want to give up the idea of doing only interesting? That happens when you can work through the boring parts of shipping an interesting piece of work. Keep trying and you will find it, then find a job in that domain or do your startup in that domain and you are set. I realised 3D graphics was my calling the same way, so I am saying from experience. [1] : https://www.amazon.com/Daily-Rituals-How-Artists-Work/dp/0307273601 https://www.amazon.com/Daily-Rituals-How-Artists-Work/dp/030...
martin-adams 8y ago
What I would do in your situation is start with reading books. If you’re not into reading, try Audible. What you mention feels in line with the book Start with Why by Simon Sinek.
paraditedc 8y ago
Work or hobby, you can only choose one for each type of activity. You need to decide if you want to do programming as work, or hobby. If you decide to do programming as work, go find another hobby that keeps you interested and treat programming solely as revenue source and don't devote too much into it. Otherwise, you get to enjoy programming a hobby, and you need to find a source of income. This can be from the hobby, but it kills the fun of it.
eabraham 8y ago
I felt the way you did a few years ago. There are a couple ways to navigate around this type of block. First, try to connect with the customers/end-users of your code. Receiving positive or negative feedback is a great way to become more engaged with your work. Knowing that you make someone's life better can imbue your work with more meaning. Second, if you are interested in a profitable side business approach your side projects with monetization in mind. Learning something outside programming but tangentially related has helped me stay interested in my day job. Researching the depth and breath of the space (competitors, CPC for popular keywords, payment processing) can be very stimulating. Two years ago I started https://www.delayforreddit.com https://www.delayforreddit.com and its been a great way for me to explore a side business and work towards fulltime self-employment.
dwaltrip 8y ago
Discover what is meaningful to you. It may take some years. Once you have ideas about what is meaningful, try to make your work more connected to these things. If not directly, then indirectly. For example, your work could support your free-time hobbies that you love. Or, of course, the classic of supporting your family and community through a job that you may not love but can tolerate. Try to cultivate a sense of pragmatism in your life. It is fun to hide in the clouds -- I've done it before as well -- but unfortunately you can't stay up there forever. People (and yourself) will very much enjoy what your pragmatism can accomplish, and it is nice to see that. I once heard a quote that happiness isn't what people want. It is meaning that we want. This idea rings true to me.
- schizoidboy 8y ago
  I think this gets to the heart of it. Some places to start: Meaning in Work TED talk by a researcher in the field: https://youtu.be/RLFVoEF2RI0?t=177 https://youtu.be/RLFVoEF2RI0?t=177 Happiness vs Meaning: https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2013.830764 https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2013.830764 My favorite survey of the field: https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2015.1137623 https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2015.1137623
agentultra 8y ago
Maybe you're focusing on the wrong problem. Without knowing what "naturally motivates you," one thing that does motivate most people is helping others and feeling important. Look up from your monitor at the business around you. Your job isn't simply to sling code all day: you're a problem solver. If you can write a little script that removes a small inefficiency in the sales teams' process you'll be their hero. If you start adding some code to ship usage metrics that help your team adopt a feature that improves your users' workflow -- you'll be a champion. Follow this path and you'll come across interesting problems to solve.
salamanderman 8y ago
I highly recommend some bootcamps if a proper degree is too much time or money investment right now. They have a real impact on skills, and how your resume is perceived. Also, as far as career advancement is concerned, if you're bored at work and you can't get them to give you more, or at least more interesting, work then it is time to move to another company. Apply for something higher than your current role; there's a good shot you'll get it. Some companies promote, eventually, but the fastest ladder climbers I've seen promote themselves by going somewhere that needs them as soon as their current job isn't rewarding them, financially, intellectually, emotionally, etc., enough.
blackSnake 8y ago
Learn to live conservatively. In other words, lower your expenses as much as you can. It will allow you to be more flexible because you can work a part-time gig and use the rest of the time to explore. Some posters are right that you should appreciate that you have a well paying job, or even a job to that. I would say, though, life is short and you were fortunate enough to be born as a human being! One of the most conscious beings on the planet. Human potential has not been tapped. Explore it because one day, not too far from now, you will be old(if you make it) and wonder why you spent your energy the way you did, in a cubicle inside for half your life. In my opinion, the risks are worth the reward. You can always go back to the programming.
TheRealWatson 8y ago
This is just my experience and of some I observe around me. I see a lot of very talented and passionate developers wanting to come up with personal projects that can make them money but, because they're so deeply interested in software engineering, the only ideas they have are related to (surprise!) software engineering problems. Yes, you can make money selling products or services for software development but to really come up with something that reaches more people or businesses you need to invest in other interests, you need to be around more non-techies, you need to try more concrete world things. Use your acute problem analysis and solving skills to identify and model problems in the world "out there." Model and remodel the problem to exhaustion, fall in love with it; think, design, experiment solutions and a why people would pay for it. It's possible there's a lot of stuff to learn in this whole process. And you can do this over and over, with different problem spaces, if you become good at it.
tcrow 8y ago
I've been there my friend. I've done as you have done. I even managed to convince my wife to let me go part-time for 6 months to pursue my "dream" and find meaning, you know, attempting the ideal. I eventually came to the conclusion that taking on more responsibility in my life gave me more of what I have been looking for than pursing only what I found interesting (remember interest fades!). Do not cheat your employer (if you owned the company, would you appreciate your employees doing this?). Perhaps search for better ways to accomplish your work duties, take on responsibility, or move on to another endeavor where you would be more inclined to be an actual steward or leader. Best of luck, don't be afraid to do some reflection, perhaps you will surprise yourself in regards to what exactly you are looking for, I know I have! -T
dnlsrl 8y ago
I don't have a college degree and yet I just got a junior developer position at a company. I'm probably not the best to give you this advice or am misunderstanding what you're trying to achieve but as somebody who has changed between professions, I can say it's feasible. I went from tech support to translation and now to programming. Being self-taught shouldn't stop you from trying to get a job in a field you're interested in. Sure, a degree might be something a lot of employers look for in a person, but if you can prove you can do the job, then go ahead for it. Best of luck.
ConfusedDog 8y ago
The problem is that you don't feel like fulfilled at your current workplace. I can guarantee everyone had that feeling at one point or another. I have a PhD in engineering and I'm still not fulfilled. It's not about degrees, how many certs, how many side projects, etc. It's about life. You already answered your own question - you'd be happier to be free to explore things and share the knowledge. The keywords are "to be free", "to explore," "to share knowledge." How to make them into something sustainable is the question. And I suspect they are not the only things you want. The modifier is to be GREAT at them.
orasis 8y ago
“Just keep doing what you’re doing, but weirder.”
- colinwilyb 8y ago
  I'm replying to this comment in the hopes of getting your attention. Hackernews has no DM system – could you shoot me an email if you have a moment? cbol###ton242#@gmail#.com
werber 8y ago
Maybe try to pivot into a less technical role, like a developer advocate where you need to be technologically current, but also have a social teaching-esque component to your role.
hackermailman 8y ago
Look around your local university's external job listings to get attached to a team as a research programmer. Often they are just looking for somebody to build and maintain a UI the scientists can use more easily, but you'll have lot's of opportunities to start rewriting algorithms to make them more efficient, and you're working with post-doc researchers and grad students so everyday is interesting not to mention some come with benefits, such as free tuition credits so you can P/T take courses at the school. Some resources here for teaching yourself these topics https://functionalcs.github.io/curriculum/ https://functionalcs.github.io/curriculum/ You will also collect letters of recommendations from the PhDs you work with, guaranteeing future employment on more research grant teams or for use to apply to a grad school program. Most students and developers pass up these opportunities because they don't pay near the same salary as industry does but if you can live with a hit in income you'll never be bored again. Sometimes you'll be the 'CTO', your job is to design whatever you think is the best way to sort/access/display research data which leads into Knuth territory generating all permutations, creating graphs, building a DSL, creating the user interfaces for it, best way to host an interface online for remote access, ect.
gdubs 8y ago
There’s an old zen expression: “Before enlightenment chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.” One benefit I’ve found from meditating is that it makes me less judgemental of tasks and more willing to approach everything in life with a desire to do the task well. I’d recommend reading one of Phil Jackson’s books (the NBA coach). He’s got some great thoughts on Zen, and it’s interesting to see how he used meditation to help superstar athletes with big egos to focus on tasks that others might find “boring”. My naive impression of why this is effective is that meditation helps your brain realize that labels like “fun”, or “boring”, tend to fall apart upon scrutiny.
davidscolgan 8y ago
In short, part time remote freelance web development. Do it for 10-20 hours a week depending on how much money you need/want. Do whatever you want with the rest of your time. I've been doing this for 8 years (the entirety of my professional career). I've had times when I worked about 10 hours a week and nomaded around Europe. I've had times when I wanted to build a thing, so I spent 30 hours a week working on the project and 10 hours a week on freelance. The thing didn't work out but it didn't matter because I had "safer" money coming in from freelancing. I've had times when I wanted more money, so I worked about 30 hours a week on freelance to build up some savings. I absolutely love this lifestyle and have basically complete control of my time now other than the time I put into freelance. I currently work about 3-4 hours in the morning in my home office and then do whatever in the afternoons. Currently my afternoon project is a website for helping other developers switch from full time employment to this part time lifestyle (www.lessboring.com). If you can succeed at full time development employment, you can succeed in freelance, you just have to learn some social skills and some business skills depending on how much you know about those areas. The people I see who are struggling as freelancers seem to basically think they can operate exactly as an employee and succeed independently. OP, I'd be happy to talk with you specifically over email or the phone about your situation. My email's in my profile. I've basically determined that my life goal is to help people get better jobs they actually enjoy, and as a developer you have way more options than most people since development is such a valuable skill right now.
gumby 8y ago
I have chosen to steer my career in a “suboptimal” way: I have changed from field to field (literally having been a software developer, pharmaceutical chemist, machinist...). I have pals who’ve stuck to being a lawyer, banker, programmer, etc and they are also happy, but that would not have worked for me. Over the decades they have risen higher in their fields, and almost certainly earn more salary than I, but I am happy, looking backwards, regardless. So it’s possible you don’t need a “career” if you can be happy regardless. I don’t know about art school but a humanities education can be more powerful than an engineering education in some domains — both teach you a mode of thinking in addition to a domain specific skill set. As it happens I always put “programmer” on visa forms and the like as that is how I think of myself.
almightysilence 8y ago
Watch this video, it might help you: https://www.ted.com/talks/emilie_wapnick_why_some_of_us_don_t_have_one_true_calling?utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare https://www.ted.com/talks/emilie_wapnick_why_some_of_us_don_...
Tempest1981 8y ago
There is a big push to pursue your passion, which could become a trap. Mike Rowe has a different angle: "Don't Pursue Your Passion. Chase Opportunity." https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NT1i26RbrhM https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NT1i26RbrhM Not sure I fully agree, but I appreciate the different perspective
sys_64738 8y ago
I recommend you tell your immediate boss that you are bored with work and not motivated. They'll quickly help you out.
downrightmike 8y ago
I had a guitar teacher who put it like: When you're learning to play a song, eventually you'll hate playing it, but you need to keep practicing to get better and get back to liking the song again.
sky_projektor 8y ago
Wish I had an answer to your question. But, you can try living alone in a jungle & do the necessary things for basic survival, cultivate, hunt, cook, tailor, etc. Those activities can help you get a new interest in regular things & after a period of such stay, mundane things would appear interesting to live for.

InGodsName 8y ago

Exploring and making money can be one and the same thing too. I was exactly feeling like this before i started budiness then i found friends to take over the boring parts.

rajeshmr 8y ago

Save up a bit for say 6 months and take a break. Explore your interests and see if any of your exploratory projects can be monetized.

setquk 8y ago

Accept it or change it. Accepting it is transitioning from the realisation that you’re doing it because it’s interesting to doing it because it pays the bills and funds other interests. Changing it is transitioning something else into the place that is currently occupied by work. Both of these require finding something that interests you so start there. But remember, life is long, interests wax and wane so this is perfectly normal and don’t sweat it as some failure or worry about it being a wrong attitude. Edit: Just to add I’ve been through this twice. First I changed it (electrical engineering to software engineering). Now I accept it because my interests will never pay the bills I have :)

joubert 8y ago

> I really like programming What about programming do you like?

charizard15 8y ago

Freelance. Seriously, freelance remotely. You will be able to find work you love. If not, you will be able to easily switch projects and find something you will love doing. You will have the flexibility to work when you need money and the flexibility to work on your own projects when you have some savings in your pockets. Or better, you can do part-time projects for clients and part-time in your own projects. You can tailor your working habits.

mancerayder 8y ago
It's hard to find freelance work - the contract roles are guarded jealously by recruiters and agencies (who take 30-40% of the revenue prior to giving it to you), and anything else is extreme luck or extremely good networking. If the latter (networking), remote is very very hard for someone who isn't already well-known.
- fecak 8y ago
  Based on my knowledge of the market for freelance software gigs, I think you are grossly overestimating the difficulty of finding good work. "Extreme luck" is not necessary, nor is "extremely good networking". 30-40% is also probably a bit of a stretch for the recruiter's take (former recruiter here). Those numbers and higher are certainly possible, but 20% is a bit more likely. Also, if you are getting a competitive rate for your work, it really doesn't matter what the recruiter is taking, does it? If they are able to negotiate a huge finder's fee on top of your competitive rate, that's their skill being rewarded.
  - excitednumber 8y ago
    how would you recommend finding work?
    - fecak 8y ago
      There are probably too many ways to respond to this question without making a full post, but a few examples: 1 - Reach out to other freelancers - many freelancers actually have too much work and will refer some leads along to others they trust. 2 - Recruiters - find an agency recruiter who you can trust and tell them to keep an eye out for you. Recruiters love placing contractors, as it is basically an annuity revenue stream. 3 - General outreach - just reach out to people. Founders, meetup leaders, CTOs. Do a little research and send short messages declaring your availability and interest. 4 - Let the work find you - make sure you have a discoverable presence on LinkedIn and elsewhere.

iyogeshjoshi 8y ago

There is this very popular place earlier known as Hacker School and now known as Recurse Center at NYC, so if you can manage to arrange some place to live in NYC I suggest you to go and check out this place. It's community driven and ask for no fee though is very good and worth giving a try. Here is the link to the same https://www.recurse.com https://www.recurse.com

mdgrech23 8y ago
This is nonsense, unless the OP lives in or around NYC this advice is useless.
- dewey 8y ago
  They are just adding an option? Usually if someone asks for advice there are other people with similar problems reading the threads and it can be useful to them.
- throwaway12JpuG 8y ago
  Lots of people who live outside New York participate. Don't be so needlessly harsh.
- dang 8y ago
  This comment breaks the site guidelines. Could you please review them and follow them from now on? https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html The idea here is: if you have a substantive point to make, make it thoughtfully; if you don't, please don't comment until you do. Edit: you've done this repeatedly and we've already had to warn you repeatedly. If you don't stop doing this we're going to have to ban you, so please stop doing this!
throwaway12JpuG 8y ago
Yeah! I need to save a bit more money but I would like to participate in a Recurse Center batch. Would like to make my daily reality more like what time at the Recurse Center sounds like.

langitbiru 8y ago

You said you like to explore things and share that knowledge with others. The things that you can do is becoming a tech blogger. You can explore the latest JS frameworks, Robotics, AI, blockchain, mobile apps and put your exploration in a blog. You can monetize it by creating an ebook and sell it in your blog. But writing is hard. So you must be patient. For now stick to your job and do the blogging part-time.

excitednumber 8y ago

What do you work on in terms of passion projects?

mongol 8y ago

I thought I liked programming as day job but realized I never was happy doing it. So I transitioned, first to self employment and then to requirement analysis, which gave me plenty of other interesting opportunities. It depends on where you work, but the fact is that much of the programming that pays is boring. Interesting, challenging programming of course happens at the companies that are technology leaders and is a different thing so I am not so much speaking of that. In any case, my advice, don't take for granted that programming as an occupation is the right thing just because you like it when you can choose exactly what to do.

bgdam 8y ago

I found myself in a similar situation about a year ago. Started developing https://mocktastic.com https://mocktastic.com (REST API mocking electron app, with team collaboration) on the side. It's kept me going through periods of mind numbing boredom in office, even though the user growth has been rather slow (but steady). I'd say find an area of interest – one that doesn't have anything to do with programming. Then learn as much as you can about it. Next, identify things you can change with your programming skill. Once, you've identified 3/4 things, find some people who make a living dependent on those things. Go talk to them about how you would improve things. If they light up, it's time to start coding. Else find something else to change. The combination of learning about a new industry you know not much about and trying to build a solution for that industry, should keep you busy outside office. Leverage that, and use your office time as your down time.

rboyd 8y ago
great name!

fecak 8y ago

I do career consulting (and resume writing) mostly for clients from tech. I think some arrangement where you had multiple forms of income (or potential income) might be a good solution for you. What might that look like? - Freelance software development - This would give you some control over what types of projects you work on, and you could focus on areas that really interest you. Maybe it would be projects that enable you to learn a new language. You also can typically work from home, and you will be able to balance your time between different work. - Freelance writing - If your writing is good you can certainly pick up some $$ here and there by writing articles for tech sites. I've done that for tech sites as a writer on career topics, and many of these sites are always seeking new content. The amount of money may not be a game changer, but if you enjoy the work you can probably make this 10% of your overall income. Personal projects - Perhaps some of them can be monetized and you just haven't come up with the correct concept. Or perhaps you can come up with some ideas for projects that are both interesting and able to be monetized. Working for yourself is quite motivating. I've done it for several years, and when failure isn't an option you will find ways to stay motivated. I spent 20 years in recruiting before transitioning fully to my current job (resume writing, content writing, career consulting, other freelance writing projects), and I've really enjoyed the change. Some people aren't cut out for a 9-5. I certainly am not, and it doesn't sound like you are either.

smoqadam 8y ago
interesting about writing, could you please mention some of the tech sites that pay money for content?
- westonplatter0 8y ago
  digitalocean.com, and other nich tech websites. it usually helps to have a couple example essays/posts before asking to be paid for content.
- Insanity 8y ago
  Auth0 at least used to pay for blog content. I am not sure if they still do that though - last time I did that was about 2 years ago. I wrote about their tech and how to integrate it in a different stack. I believe they paid about 200 USD for it. I'd look it up but I am on mobile atm so it's not convenient. Might be worth to look up their website if it interests you.

ajani 8y ago

Improve one thing. Begin there. Improve another thing. And repeat. Fix a broken latch in your home. Improve your code a few lines at a time. It adds up.

LeanderK 8y ago

I always advise to really reflect your current situation and think what changes might be possible. Work is a big part of your life. It depends a bit how willing you are to do more risky stuff, but the great thing is that skilled programmers are in demand. You can always go back to a boring job. Freelancing is an option, but you probaly need to aquire the gigs yourself. Might be an option. But you have total control over what you're working on. You can also work part-time and persue more finanically unrewarding in the remaining time, like teaching. A friend of mine is working 80% and painting the remaining 20%. Are there part-time study options? I would not recommend an online-degree. Have you contemplated working in a startup? It's risky, but there are a lot of different challenges and you can branch out of your technical role.

mapcars 8y ago

Boredom is caused by a lack of attention. You can change your activity as much as you want but after some time it will become boring again. The only solution is to realize the scale of this Grand Happening which we call as life or existence. That every day comes fresh and new, not a single atom is the same as it was a moment ago. But if you don't have this much attention it feels "the same", "boring". And it's not about the job only, friends, family, movie you name it. If you realize this you can swipe a floor for the lifetime and it will never be boring.

SheinhardtWigCo 8y ago
> That every day comes fresh and new, not a single atom is the same as it was a moment ago. So what? What difference does that make to OP?
- mapcars 8y ago
  It should show him that the world is alright and he should focus on developing his sense of attention, not changing the activity (which is just temporary "workaround").
dagoat 8y ago
Not sure if trolling. But unless you elaborate, very few people are going to read this and comprehend what you are on about
- cheez 8y ago
  I get what he's saying. If you feel at one with what is going on around you, it isn't boring.
- mapcars 8y ago
  He asked a question, I gave my best answer. Whether it will work for him or anybody is not in my control. If you have any specific questions - ask.
  - 8y ago

scandox 8y ago

The main thing to learn in a work environment is how to finish things - or what it takes to finish things. I suspect (happy to be wrong) when you say you like learning you mean you like everything about programming except the tedious task of drawing everything into a coherent whole and polishing it. I think if you conceive of learning in a broader sense you may enjoy work more by finding insights in the process and in the people.

phkahler 8y ago

You may want to change your attitude toward work. There's a reason it's called "work" and not playtime. There's a reason they pay you to do it. I like to think about the guy stuck in a shit town, working in a coal mine. Maybe they all drink themselves to oblivion and I'm delusional, but I envision at least some of them this way: Guy goes down there and busts his ass all day in the dark, getting dirty as fuck, probably doing long term damage to his lungs and such. But it's his job and at the end of the day he goes home to his wife, kids, and dog, and realizes that work is just something he has to do to support the parts of his life he cares about. >> Does anyone have a suggestion for what I can/should do to improve my circumstances? Yeah, quit acting like an entitled little child. Be grateful that you have a job that often requires more education than you have. Stop thinking you can just monetize some personal interests and retire. Life requires effort, give it some. Once you get over that hump you may be able to consider which alternative you're willing to put actual effort toward.

GuiA 8y ago
While it might feel good to admonish people and tell them that they have to get tough and suck it up and pull themselves by their bootstraps, it typically does not do anything to help them; particularly if they are taking the initiative to ask for help in the first place. OP more likely than not realizes that they are in a situation of privilege compared to someone working in the mines to sustain their family; if they are posting here, then clearly that insight alone has not sufficed to help them deal with what they are feeling. All we know from OP is 3 paragraphs of text they wrote, asking for help; telling them to stop “acting like an entitled little child” is downright rude and not what HN is about.
- phkahler 8y ago
  I realize my response may not be helpful and is not in the normal spirit of HN. But OP said this "My ideal life would be one where I am free to explore things that interest me and share that knowledge with others." Look, not everyone can be an Instagram model or a YouTube star. Sometimes a good smack in the face is what's needed to spark a little motivation. Sometimes not, but I think it's worth putting out there. For some less harsh motivation I'll offer this: https://www.ted.com/talks/mel_robbins_how_to_stop_screwing_yourself_over?language=en https://www.ted.com/talks/mel_robbins_how_to_stop_screwing_y...

lettergram 8y ago

I personally attempt to rotate what I do and am always trying to optimize (it keeps me interested). An example: when I was 14 - 18 I worked in a medical billing office scanning old documents (and new documents as they came in). There were 3 of us working 15 - 20 hours a week. Most boring job imaginable (I'd do it Saturday and Sunday, 10 hours each). I found I could listen to audio books so I smashed through several hundred over the years of doing this (as well as the Teaching Company and other lectures). I also started to look for ways to improve the process. I spent a little time exploring databases and OCR over my mandatory unpaid lunch and breaks. Eventually, I realized I could rather eaisly automatically change filenames, add to an SQL database, add a few tags, etc. I then could setup a scanning job, which used to require manual data entry after each page, to then do one massive scanning job and only edit a few "failures" after the fact. This let me scanning 10x over the other two employees. It looked good for me, so I got moved into network admin (more fun), which further kept my attention. My point, it's up to you to find the motivation. But if you're curious and interested in self improvement, money, moving up the company ladder, etc. Then you can find the motivation to push yourself to at least try to change your situation. I did it via audio books and experimenting on breaks, what you do is unique to you.

naringas 8y ago

reflect that on how that is a privelge for a lucky few. practice feeling grateful about it. or go on a party binge so your job becomes harder to do, more challenging due to tiredness.

swsieber 8y ago

Do you get enough sleep? I know sleep makes a world of difference to me when it comes to working on less than exciting things.

justwalt 8y ago
This is really true for me, great point. There have been days where I had less than 6 hours of sleep and it’s made me very easily bored and disenchanted with the work that I had previously enjoyed. When I’m very well rested, I could probably enjoy most things for a little while.
MartinCron 8y ago
To second this... If there is any chance you have obstructive sleep apnea (big neck? snore a lot? have trouble staying awake during movies?) get a sleep study ASAP. Treating that can be life changing.

sigi45 8y ago

Stop coding at work for non work and start coding at work for work. Why not write something useful to help your daily work? I can't imagine a project where i would not love to have enough time to actually cleanup/fix/extend/create x for our project we are working on.

pasta 8y ago

What helped me is to focus on the end user. Those are the people that you are working for! Once I realised that I quit my job and started working for a company with real end users...

andersonmvd 8y ago

People used to say that opportunity is everywhere, you just need to pay attention. Fun is the same thing. Some things that make every day fun - trying to know for who you are building your software for, talk to this end user, get to know how useful (or useless) your construction is actually solving something or not. I'm 100% sure that if you see many people using and feeling thankful from what you made, that would make you feel great. Nothing less! - improving the environment of your company. Look, everyone has a big problem. They are also coming to work with some problem on the back of their heads. If we could just light this a bit, it is immensely rewarding. We're going to die anyway, so why not make our existence a noble one? :D - find a topic that you like and present it to your boss, try to find together a way to combine both. He may have some idea, or the boss of your boss. Everyone wins when you are motivated - plan your big escape: if your goal is to only study, consider making some money, moving to a cheap place (Thailand?), and with a leeway for a few years, you can try to experiment some ideas. Why not put some courses on udemy for example? Teach all you could, in the best way possible and learn how to promote what you do Have fun!

deepaksurti 8y ago

Most of us , whether we realise it or agree or not, work for income which in turn allows us to work on more interesting things. Some may save up some money which lasts for a duration and go do the interesting things. You are doing it right! However what will help is doing it differently. Can you do time blocking? I assume that while you are doing interesting things at work, no one notices or cares. That is a great job! So why not block your 1st half to do the necessary boring work, and the second half the interesting work. Win Win! I agree this may need some discipline but think of it as a daily ritual! Btw, many greats [1] have had rituals like this, so who knows? :-) The other aspect you might be missing is 'when interesting things turn boring'. Usually that happens when you want to ship the product and you hit the long tail of shipping. Try replacing 'doing interesting' vs 'doing interesting and shipping'. But we don't want to give up the idea of doing only interesting? That happens when you can work through the boring parts of shipping an interesting piece of work. Keep trying and you will find it, then find a job in that domain or do your startup in that domain and you are set. I realised 3D graphics was my calling the same way, so I am saying from experience. [1] : https://www.amazon.com/Daily-Rituals-How-Artists-Work/dp/0307273601 https://www.amazon.com/Daily-Rituals-How-Artists-Work/dp/030...

martin-adams 8y ago

What I would do in your situation is start with reading books. If you’re not into reading, try Audible. What you mention feels in line with the book Start with Why by Simon Sinek.

paraditedc 8y ago

Work or hobby, you can only choose one for each type of activity. You need to decide if you want to do programming as work, or hobby. If you decide to do programming as work, go find another hobby that keeps you interested and treat programming solely as revenue source and don't devote too much into it. Otherwise, you get to enjoy programming a hobby, and you need to find a source of income. This can be from the hobby, but it kills the fun of it.

eabraham 8y ago

I felt the way you did a few years ago. There are a couple ways to navigate around this type of block. First, try to connect with the customers/end-users of your code. Receiving positive or negative feedback is a great way to become more engaged with your work. Knowing that you make someone's life better can imbue your work with more meaning. Second, if you are interested in a profitable side business approach your side projects with monetization in mind. Learning something outside programming but tangentially related has helped me stay interested in my day job. Researching the depth and breath of the space (competitors, CPC for popular keywords, payment processing) can be very stimulating. Two years ago I started https://www.delayforreddit.com https://www.delayforreddit.com and its been a great way for me to explore a side business and work towards fulltime self-employment.

dwaltrip 8y ago

Discover what is meaningful to you. It may take some years. Once you have ideas about what is meaningful, try to make your work more connected to these things. If not directly, then indirectly. For example, your work could support your free-time hobbies that you love. Or, of course, the classic of supporting your family and community through a job that you may not love but can tolerate. Try to cultivate a sense of pragmatism in your life. It is fun to hide in the clouds -- I've done it before as well -- but unfortunately you can't stay up there forever. People (and yourself) will very much enjoy what your pragmatism can accomplish, and it is nice to see that. I once heard a quote that happiness isn't what people want. It is meaning that we want. This idea rings true to me.

schizoidboy 8y ago
I think this gets to the heart of it. Some places to start: Meaning in Work TED talk by a researcher in the field: https://youtu.be/RLFVoEF2RI0?t=177 https://youtu.be/RLFVoEF2RI0?t=177 Happiness vs Meaning: https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2013.830764 https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2013.830764 My favorite survey of the field: https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2015.1137623 https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2015.1137623

agentultra 8y ago

Maybe you're focusing on the wrong problem. Without knowing what "naturally motivates you," one thing that does motivate most people is helping others and feeling important. Look up from your monitor at the business around you. Your job isn't simply to sling code all day: you're a problem solver. If you can write a little script that removes a small inefficiency in the sales teams' process you'll be their hero. If you start adding some code to ship usage metrics that help your team adopt a feature that improves your users' workflow -- you'll be a champion. Follow this path and you'll come across interesting problems to solve.

salamanderman 8y ago

I highly recommend some bootcamps if a proper degree is too much time or money investment right now. They have a real impact on skills, and how your resume is perceived. Also, as far as career advancement is concerned, if you're bored at work and you can't get them to give you more, or at least more interesting, work then it is time to move to another company. Apply for something higher than your current role; there's a good shot you'll get it. Some companies promote, eventually, but the fastest ladder climbers I've seen promote themselves by going somewhere that needs them as soon as their current job isn't rewarding them, financially, intellectually, emotionally, etc., enough.

blackSnake 8y ago

Learn to live conservatively. In other words, lower your expenses as much as you can. It will allow you to be more flexible because you can work a part-time gig and use the rest of the time to explore. Some posters are right that you should appreciate that you have a well paying job, or even a job to that. I would say, though, life is short and you were fortunate enough to be born as a human being! One of the most conscious beings on the planet. Human potential has not been tapped. Explore it because one day, not too far from now, you will be old(if you make it) and wonder why you spent your energy the way you did, in a cubicle inside for half your life. In my opinion, the risks are worth the reward. You can always go back to the programming.

TheRealWatson 8y ago

This is just my experience and of some I observe around me. I see a lot of very talented and passionate developers wanting to come up with personal projects that can make them money but, because they're so deeply interested in software engineering, the only ideas they have are related to (surprise!) software engineering problems. Yes, you can make money selling products or services for software development but to really come up with something that reaches more people or businesses you need to invest in other interests, you need to be around more non-techies, you need to try more concrete world things. Use your acute problem analysis and solving skills to identify and model problems in the world "out there." Model and remodel the problem to exhaustion, fall in love with it; think, design, experiment solutions and a why people would pay for it. It's possible there's a lot of stuff to learn in this whole process. And you can do this over and over, with different problem spaces, if you become good at it.

tcrow 8y ago

I've been there my friend. I've done as you have done. I even managed to convince my wife to let me go part-time for 6 months to pursue my "dream" and find meaning, you know, attempting the ideal. I eventually came to the conclusion that taking on more responsibility in my life gave me more of what I have been looking for than pursing only what I found interesting (remember interest fades!). Do not cheat your employer (if you owned the company, would you appreciate your employees doing this?). Perhaps search for better ways to accomplish your work duties, take on responsibility, or move on to another endeavor where you would be more inclined to be an actual steward or leader. Best of luck, don't be afraid to do some reflection, perhaps you will surprise yourself in regards to what exactly you are looking for, I know I have! -T

dnlsrl 8y ago

I don't have a college degree and yet I just got a junior developer position at a company. I'm probably not the best to give you this advice or am misunderstanding what you're trying to achieve but as somebody who has changed between professions, I can say it's feasible. I went from tech support to translation and now to programming. Being self-taught shouldn't stop you from trying to get a job in a field you're interested in. Sure, a degree might be something a lot of employers look for in a person, but if you can prove you can do the job, then go ahead for it. Best of luck.

ConfusedDog 8y ago

The problem is that you don't feel like fulfilled at your current workplace. I can guarantee everyone had that feeling at one point or another. I have a PhD in engineering and I'm still not fulfilled. It's not about degrees, how many certs, how many side projects, etc. It's about life. You already answered your own question - you'd be happier to be free to explore things and share the knowledge. The keywords are "to be free", "to explore," "to share knowledge." How to make them into something sustainable is the question. And I suspect they are not the only things you want. The modifier is to be GREAT at them.

orasis 8y ago

“Just keep doing what you’re doing, but weirder.”

colinwilyb 8y ago
I'm replying to this comment in the hopes of getting your attention. Hackernews has no DM system – could you shoot me an email if you have a moment? cbol###ton242#@gmail#.com

werber 8y ago

Maybe try to pivot into a less technical role, like a developer advocate where you need to be technologically current, but also have a social teaching-esque component to your role.

hackermailman 8y ago

Look around your local university's external job listings to get attached to a team as a research programmer. Often they are just looking for somebody to build and maintain a UI the scientists can use more easily, but you'll have lot's of opportunities to start rewriting algorithms to make them more efficient, and you're working with post-doc researchers and grad students so everyday is interesting not to mention some come with benefits, such as free tuition credits so you can P/T take courses at the school. Some resources here for teaching yourself these topics https://functionalcs.github.io/curriculum/ https://functionalcs.github.io/curriculum/ You will also collect letters of recommendations from the PhDs you work with, guaranteeing future employment on more research grant teams or for use to apply to a grad school program. Most students and developers pass up these opportunities because they don't pay near the same salary as industry does but if you can live with a hit in income you'll never be bored again. Sometimes you'll be the 'CTO', your job is to design whatever you think is the best way to sort/access/display research data which leads into Knuth territory generating all permutations, creating graphs, building a DSL, creating the user interfaces for it, best way to host an interface online for remote access, ect.

gdubs 8y ago

There’s an old zen expression: “Before enlightenment chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.” One benefit I’ve found from meditating is that it makes me less judgemental of tasks and more willing to approach everything in life with a desire to do the task well. I’d recommend reading one of Phil Jackson’s books (the NBA coach). He’s got some great thoughts on Zen, and it’s interesting to see how he used meditation to help superstar athletes with big egos to focus on tasks that others might find “boring”. My naive impression of why this is effective is that meditation helps your brain realize that labels like “fun”, or “boring”, tend to fall apart upon scrutiny.

davidscolgan 8y ago

In short, part time remote freelance web development. Do it for 10-20 hours a week depending on how much money you need/want. Do whatever you want with the rest of your time. I've been doing this for 8 years (the entirety of my professional career). I've had times when I worked about 10 hours a week and nomaded around Europe. I've had times when I wanted to build a thing, so I spent 30 hours a week working on the project and 10 hours a week on freelance. The thing didn't work out but it didn't matter because I had "safer" money coming in from freelancing. I've had times when I wanted more money, so I worked about 30 hours a week on freelance to build up some savings. I absolutely love this lifestyle and have basically complete control of my time now other than the time I put into freelance. I currently work about 3-4 hours in the morning in my home office and then do whatever in the afternoons. Currently my afternoon project is a website for helping other developers switch from full time employment to this part time lifestyle (www.lessboring.com). If you can succeed at full time development employment, you can succeed in freelance, you just have to learn some social skills and some business skills depending on how much you know about those areas. The people I see who are struggling as freelancers seem to basically think they can operate exactly as an employee and succeed independently. OP, I'd be happy to talk with you specifically over email or the phone about your situation. My email's in my profile. I've basically determined that my life goal is to help people get better jobs they actually enjoy, and as a developer you have way more options than most people since development is such a valuable skill right now.

gumby 8y ago

I have chosen to steer my career in a “suboptimal” way: I have changed from field to field (literally having been a software developer, pharmaceutical chemist, machinist...). I have pals who’ve stuck to being a lawyer, banker, programmer, etc and they are also happy, but that would not have worked for me. Over the decades they have risen higher in their fields, and almost certainly earn more salary than I, but I am happy, looking backwards, regardless. So it’s possible you don’t need a “career” if you can be happy regardless. I don’t know about art school but a humanities education can be more powerful than an engineering education in some domains — both teach you a mode of thinking in addition to a domain specific skill set. As it happens I always put “programmer” on visa forms and the like as that is how I think of myself.

almightysilence 8y ago

Watch this video, it might help you: https://www.ted.com/talks/emilie_wapnick_why_some_of_us_don_t_have_one_true_calling?utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare https://www.ted.com/talks/emilie_wapnick_why_some_of_us_don_...

Tempest1981 8y ago

There is a big push to pursue your passion, which could become a trap. Mike Rowe has a different angle: "Don't Pursue Your Passion. Chase Opportunity." https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NT1i26RbrhM https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NT1i26RbrhM Not sure I fully agree, but I appreciate the different perspective

sys_64738 8y ago

I recommend you tell your immediate boss that you are bored with work and not motivated. They'll quickly help you out.

downrightmike 8y ago

I had a guitar teacher who put it like: When you're learning to play a song, eventually you'll hate playing it, but you need to keep practicing to get better and get back to liking the song again.

sky_projektor 8y ago

Wish I had an answer to your question. But, you can try living alone in a jungle & do the necessary things for basic survival, cultivate, hunt, cook, tailor, etc. Those activities can help you get a new interest in regular things & after a period of such stay, mundane things would appear interesting to live for.