Staying motivated in development

Hey everyone

I have been pushing myself to the extremes recently and trying not to drop any balls.

The pressure of achieving my  goals coupled  with expectations from friends and family render me a tightly wound human sometimes and I feel like this state will resonate with most of you.

When I started off coding the future was bright. There were no clients that didn’t get it dictating implausible deadlines, an industry of charlatans on bouncy balls and suits, tech was in it’s infancy and there was such freedom. It felt more like a privilege than an obligation but then I grew up. My passions turned into concepts subjected to other people’s requirements. My art was transformed into a watered down version of itself subject to someone else’s interpretation of a reasonable timeframe. I nearly quit.

This feeling left me with significant burnout and a strong dislike for the industry so I quit everything but working for myself. I did it cold turkey and didn’t tell anyone. I started building every project I put on the backburner. I had no financial safety net but went for it anyway because it was better than the alternative, which was quitting the industry as a whole.

I’m a year into my journey. I’ll let you know how it goes. Share your stories with me on Twitter or comment below.