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I really like the list included in this article and the general thesis of "try to have fun programming again!" However I think the post is just touching upon th
by komali2 2y ago
I really like the list included in this article and the general thesis of "try to have fun programming again!" However I think the post is just touching upon the deep hustle culture issue our culture has, which is in my opinion a symptom of late stage capitalism, where we are all transformed into nothing more than worker-consumers and the height of success is becoming a worksumer, where you've managed to monetize your consumption activities (streamers, influencers).
How can you justify coding "for fun" when realistically that time could be spent billing to a client? Even if it's just a couple hundred extra bucks a week, if you invest it wisely, come retirement that could be non-insignificant increase in your quality of life! Or maybe the extra cash saves your ass when you get an unexpected high medical bill, if you're an American.
Why would you build a FOSS project when Google or someone is just going to take your project and integrate it into something they're building, monetize their product, and you'll never see a cent of it? Or why work on your own FOSS project when you could do the more optimized thing of trying to get a commit in on react or vue or whatever which will blow the socks off your interviewers during your next job hunt?
Maybe we're all quite ill right now or maybe just I am if nobody else thinks like that. I don't have a solution it just makes me sad that that's how things seem to be right now, and that's just as a relatively well off American developer. I imagine it's even worse if you have to fight much harder to get the high paying jobs that I have much easier access to.
- stana 2y agoWe are all temporarily embarrassed millionaires. That big project idea just around the corner...
- keybored 2y agoGo online for five minutes and you get confirmation that everyone is doing it. Don’t and you do not.
- sakjur 2y agoThe hustle culture you’re describing so well brings me down every day. I want to be a craftsman, growing experience and using my knowledge and expertise when I deliver value. Competing on care and attention, charging what I need and delivering something I can be proud of. The first step for that is something I’m planning rather soon: move to a small town where I can afford life without needing to hustle with all of my energy just to stay afloat.
- komali2 2y agoI took that first step by moving to Taiwan and it completely changed my life. Having a privileged life of plenty makes a literally unimaginable difference. Money buys freedom, if it doesn't in one spot, you can maybe geographically arbitrage until it does.
- trashburger 2y agoThe "hustle culture" affects you if you believe it does. If you didn't "get a commit in on react or vue or whatever" until now, what was it that stopped you? Why aren't you billing that client? Will starting a hobby project now change anything meaningful in your life? I personally think you need to let go of this mindset and try to do something just for fun for once, no really.