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I used to work in the games industry, which was me trying to feed my family and pursue an art passion at the same time. It wasn’t great at either: pay is low an

I used to work in the games industry, which was me trying to feed my family and pursue an art passion at the same time. It wasn’t great at either: pay is low and the art you get to make not so fulfilling. I switched a few years ago to splitting these apart: I (1) got a non art tech job that I love (which is key) and that pays great, and (2) I started doing pure artistic games on the side as a hobby, no need for money from them. I am much, much happier. I think many people, my past self included, cause themselves a lot of pain by trying to lump everything together. If someone loves baking pie no one says “When are you going to quit your job and open a bakery?!” It’s just fun! Why does it need to pay the bills?

dinosaurdynasty 4y ago
> Why does it need to pay the bills? Because life is so expensive for so many that every effort has to have money in mind or they starve. Especially if you are chronically ill (or simply have less-than-average energy levels), meaningful stuff outside work just will not happen.
digitallyfree 4y ago
This sort of leads into the "debate" between two perspectives on work which I saw a lot in my school years. The first camp is those who believe that you should find a job in a field you love (maybe that's art). The idea is that even if you don't make much, you'll be happy and have the drive to do well. The second camp is that you should find a field you don't necessarily love, but is more stable/higher paying and thus allows you to comfortably do the things you like in your spare time. I've heard these two argued to death among students in high school and among parents today. I took the second route and am happy with my choice, though I agree it's not for everyone (really depends on the work you do and whether or not you have the time/energy/will to work on your creative passions).
- personalidea 4y ago
  Personally, the best advice (for me) on picking a career came from Hunter S Thompson: Decide what kind of life you want to live, then find a job that supports that.

dinosaurdynasty 4y ago

> Why does it need to pay the bills? Because life is so expensive for so many that every effort has to have money in mind or they starve. Especially if you are chronically ill (or simply have less-than-average energy levels), meaningful stuff outside work just will not happen.

digitallyfree 4y ago

This sort of leads into the "debate" between two perspectives on work which I saw a lot in my school years. The first camp is those who believe that you should find a job in a field you love (maybe that's art). The idea is that even if you don't make much, you'll be happy and have the drive to do well. The second camp is that you should find a field you don't necessarily love, but is more stable/higher paying and thus allows you to comfortably do the things you like in your spare time. I've heard these two argued to death among students in high school and among parents today. I took the second route and am happy with my choice, though I agree it's not for everyone (really depends on the work you do and whether or not you have the time/energy/will to work on your creative passions).

personalidea 4y ago
Personally, the best advice (for me) on picking a career came from Hunter S Thompson: Decide what kind of life you want to live, then find a job that supports that.