I switched careers (from business to software development) about 5 years ago. There was a lot on the line (wife, mortgage, etc), and so I gave it everything tha

I switched careers (from business to software development) about 5 years ago. There was a lot on the line (wife, mortgage, etc), and so I gave it everything that I had. I joined a start-up that was okay with taking as much as they could, and I hadn't yet developed the skill or mind-set to say no and draw clear boundaries between work and my personal life. I consistently worked evenings and weekends. I then left that job for a 'promotion', which ended up being a worse company and an even worse team. I also gave them everything that I had to 'prove' myself in my new job, and carry the load, and then they ended up laying me off, just before covid. I was off work for a few months 'recovering' (free-time without the enjoyment of it). I told myself that I would never give work everything that I had again, ever. After landing a new job, I followed the promise that I made to myself, even when I was certain it looked 'bad' that I was leaving on time every day. However, after delivering on projects, my team and company grew respect for me and it never once became a discussion point. I spent the next couple of years enjoying the new free time, spending it with friends, family, and on hobbies, etc. I believe that my ability to deliver in the normal work window was a product of a good team, and good leadership (the lead engineers did a great job in how they built the architecture, so the developers can work and deploy mostly independently and autonomously - we're remote). However, side projects still felt like work, so I converted my desktop from Windows to EndeavourOS (arch), and now, when I am enjoying leisure time on my computer and feel a spark of interest, it's quick and simple to open up vscode and start hacking away. Often, when I feel like 'playing a game', I actually just want to be creative, and it's allowed me to start programming projects that inspire me without thinking too much about it. I think this was a key move to re-inspire me to code on my own time. Another cool thing, is that at work you're typically locked into a certain set of tools (often older), so it's fun to pick up shiny new toys and tinker with them, with no deadline or formal requirements.