It doesn't always end sadly -- it really depends on the individual and the company. In my case, I ended up doing the job of maybe 5-10 developers for a year an

It doesn't always end sadly -- it really depends on the individual and the company. In my case, I ended up doing the job of maybe 5-10 developers for a year and a half leading up to the launch of a product at a large tech company. It was tough, but I believed in the product and wanted it to succeed, so I didn't mind putting in the extra time. I was also fairly young at the time, so I could handle marathon coding sessions without burning out. After it launched (successfully), I developed a reputation within the company that let me basically have my pick of projects for the remainder of my time there. Additionally, I was awarded a 7-figure stock grant that ended up being worth 8 figures by the time it fully vested, so it worked out well financially too. I view that project as sort of a career-defining moment, and I'm extremely glad I did it.