You're not the only one. Once upon a time I enjoyed working on personal projects outside of work, but a combination of factors have killed this. First, I have

You're not the only one. Once upon a time I enjoyed working on personal projects outside of work, but a combination of factors have killed this. First, I have a family now, and spending time with them is more important to me than any job. (And any company that has a problem with this is not a good fit.) Second, I've been lucky enough to find jobs that are interesting and intellectually stimulating. My first programming jobs were kinda boring, so I had extra creative energy and learning and building things was an outlet. Third, owning a home always involves upkeep and fixit projects. These can be fun and are generally easier get my kids to involved in than teaching them to program (going back to #1).