It seems like others on the team and other devs I’ve talked to about this don’t really have the same outlook as I do because they are able to get enough enjoyment and fulfillment out of working with the tech stack that the other factors don’t seem to matter as much if at all to them.
I have started to feel this way at all the companies I have worked for at some point, leading me to believe that I just wasn’t working at the right place or I was getting burned out / needed to find somewhere I was passionate about the mission statement of the company for this to go away, but it seems to be a problem that is tied to me and not my environment.
I enjoy programming in my free time and love learning, building things, etc… but am not someone who is so enthralled by the act of writing and working with software that I can fully be happy working on absolutely anything like others I know in the same field as me.
In an ideal world, I would be able to find somewhere to work that either lines up really well with something I am passionate about or the people I work with are so great that it makes up for the work not being particularly interesting, but this seems challenging to achieve in practice.
Does anyone else feel similarly to how I do and if so, are there any strategies you have found useful to help motivate yourself?
I wouldn't put that much stock in what you're colleagues are saying, esp. if you only know them from remote calls. Most people understand that this industry demands "passion", so they know it'd be very stupid to admit that they just don't care. Also, if you're in the US, work is religion and if you admit that you don't care about it, it's basically like admitting that you don't believe in Allah while living in an Islamic state - at the very least, your social status will drop.
There might be some other explanations too, besides outright lying. Some colleagues might be in denial, some might still be young. Finally, some might have this rare trait where they can genuinely get excited by solving similar, mundane code puzzles year after year (reportedly, lots of people in coding jobs take Adderal etc. to zombify themselves into this state, for the sake of making money).
- doing each action correctly
- finding micro optimizations (if I turn the mower this way, I get that stupid piece of grass that I can never get without another entire pass)
- or, dare I say, finding joy in a job well done helps me get into a "mindfulness"(?) mindset
"Job" meaning everything from "put my shoes on" to "sharpened the mower blade well" to "made the pass with that mower perfectly" to "got all the yard work done". Focusing on the small bits first seems to snowball into the larger ones.
I think getting into the mindfulness mindset and finding joy is what has really helped me. The work itself is boring, tedious, etc. However, pride in a job well done feels good, which creates a positive feedback loop. This year, the yard work has felt less terrible and the yard is looking better than ever.
I'm not quite there yet with software development, but applying the same sort of strategy has been helping over the past couple of weeks. Not every day is omg-amazing but the good days are starting to outweigh the bad ones.
How do you keep it fresh?
I have a couple tips which HELP for me, but definitely don't solve the problem. There is no silver bullet unfortunately, save for maybe Adderall.
- Watch videos about coding and invest in the craft
- Learn about design patterns, not just what they are but why they are sometimes THE tool for the job.
- Adopt the KISS mindset and defend it furiously. Keep it simple stupid. Can you find a really simple, elegant solution to the problem? Maybe you've seen this problem 100 times before, and just solved it for a for loop. Is there a better way?
- Slow down. To do all the aforementioned things you need to relief the pressure you're feeling to output code all the time. Meditate, find peace in whatever outcome follows this decision to invest in your craft. If you spend a couple days off on YouTube learning about a cool programming solution, and your employer gives you shit, don't worry about it. There are many jobs, and what will be... will be.
Seriously, though, what else do you like? I made the mistake of letting the process of searching for jobs destroy any love I had for programming. I’d imagine a ho-hum job can do that to a lesser degree. You can’t let them define it. Find out what you love, get immersed in that first: or find something new that sounds cool. Get your zest for learning and creating back. For me it is physics and mathematics, but for all I know, it could be sports bets or logistics in Djibouti. And then if there is a programming application, easy to incorporate that in.
Also, retaining childlike abilities to get excited about stuff might get you mocked, but it’ll keep you spry, and this tends to have a snowball effect elsewhere in life.
1. Stop giving a shit about your job and find enjoyment elsewhere that your job pays for.
2. Find a new job.
Don’t get stuck.
2. History. This is also a trick answer - much of history is fiction, especially autobiographies.
Motivational coaches use one or the other. Often stories of themselves. Sometimes of specific people. It's part myth, but don't question it too much or you'll lose the buzz.
A practical approach is also reading stories of people in similar situations. Lots of documentaries and books on tech giants or people like John Carmack & Romero. Startup School videos got me motivated through 100-hour weeks for a year, but after a point you deplete that motivational source.
3. Get into flow. There's specific rules around this [1]. If you want to 'gamify' things, this is how you do it.
Curious. Get curious about things..
Unrealistic expectation.