Like the person who wrote the article and as someone who has hired for more than a decade for my own businesses, I've noticed my best developers had pet project

Like the person who wrote the article and as someone who has hired for more than a decade for my own businesses, I've noticed my best developers had pet projects. They tend also to be the most passionate about developing. It's not an absolute rule, but I found a good indicator. As for having a life, let me tell you I have a 6 months old who spent 1.5 months of his life in the hospital, a wife, I'm CTO and co-founder of startup for which I code about 60 hours a week. On top of that, I have time to help my my wife with her business (my previous company), I have fulfilled time with my family, take the weekends off and have time for personal hobbies and pet projects. I sleep enough and sleep well and I'm happy and balanced. A lot of the most involved and active people in the tech community in Montreal that I know personally have startups, children and time for their family. I'll tell you they're the most awesome, bright, funny and balanced people I ever met. One thing that makes it possible for me is a 10 minutes walk commute. The other biggest factor is having priorities straight on how I want to balance my life. Is it easy? No. Do I always have the energy and passion to go forward? Yes. Seeing my son smile when I wake him up each morning helps a lot. You don't have to be young, without a family and responsibilities to have the passion and energy to be able to do things you care about for yourself outside your work. Even if you work more than 40 hours a week... Another thing: some pet projects or hobbies can take only a few hours a week or a month. So not having enough time is not a valid argument in my opinion.