The highs and lows are what make life intresting.
Be passionate about what you do and give it your all.
Make it personal.
Give a damn.
It's the only way to live.
Unless you have equity (and even then it must be a large amount), you are a cog that can be replaced at will, trading X hours per week of your life that you won't ever get back for your currency of choice.
Give a damn and make it personal: about your growth, your compensation, and your career path. If you want passion, work towards financial security and then work on something fulfilling, where you control your destiny.
No one is looking out for you but you.
Source: 15 years in tech, also watching a friend lose everything (EDIT: friends from 80+ hour weeks, job and house when let go) when High Voltage Studios (a game studio in Illinois) started its decent into failure
Are saying is that unless you can afford to start your own company you should not care about what you do all day every day?
Absolutely agree that you need to be thinking about your own growth and compensation, but let's be honest, your growth probably going to happen inside somebody elses company, I don't think you should let that hold you back on enjoying every day and trying to be the very best at whatever it is that you do.
I would argue you should not put off passions for some future day. Life is short. Be passionate today.
I dont know how your friend "lost everything" when High Voltage went bust. Did he go to jail or something?
It's perfectly possible to be passionate about a company and being part of building its products and making sure that you've properly financially and professionally insulated against failure or calamity.
I have seen too many Programmers lose everything. I'm not sure why.
I think part of it's the big money up front, free perks(food & drink), and all the positive energy that the founder/founders tell the employees. It seems like family--kinda. It seems like a dream come true.
Then your not. A bigger company buys yours, and heads roll. Then the real world rears its ugly head. You are being interviewed by a kid.
Since the barrier to entry is not great--there's usually someone to fill your shoes. The ego is not killed though. You had a really good run. You have skills. You start to regret all those pep talks you gave people. I seen some turn to drugs to fill the void.
I have seen twenty somethings go from the fast food industry to pretty good jobs. Their attitudes changed. They aren't cynical about the "system" anymore. They have a great time at work. They work hard. Some save that money, but a lot of it is just blown. The cute girlfriend worships him. It all seems kinda easy, but hard enough to not worry. "No one can do what I do, or as well." There's company dinners. The awards. There's trips to Europe, with LDS steeped into the luggage. Fun times! Life couldn't be better.
The company quietly losses money, and it's back to just getting by. Too many become homeless.
I really believe unless your the Rock Star Programmer; save your money because their will be a time when the parties over. In this industry, it seems like it's in your late thirties.
I hate to be that guy, but I'm tired of hearing, "I used to be a programmer." from a homeless person. Don't think she will stick by you either. Don't estrange the people you once knew when you get that shiny job. Don't let the "haves, or rich kid's father fill your head with stars, and cliches. He has a huge bank account to fall back upon. He has assets to fall back on. He will take care of his kid, but you are expendable.
> I hate to be that guy, but I'm tired of hearing, "I used to be a programmer." from a homeless person.
Is this really happening? I can't imagine someone good enough to make big bucks suddenly go this bankrupt. Even if you are in SF, you could buy an airplane ticket to some extremely cheap place, do some consulting or freelancing and get back on your feet in no time.
In my experience, the road to personal satisfaction at a corporation is to take pride in doing a great job, taking each day at a time. If at the end of each day you can say you did quality work of which you are proud, then you're doing it right. If, at the end of all that, you are contributing to something of substance (such as a hit game, or a product that gets a lot of users), then that's just the cherry on top.
If you pin your hopes and dreams on the actions of executives above your pay grade, then you're setting yourself up for disappointment. Don't get emotionally invested in stuff that you can't control.
When you're hired to do a job, do it as well as you can, and then go home with the emotional energy to spend on your friends/family/hobbies.
What does that have to do with making the company you work for your life?
If your passion is hinged on your company's success there's a decent chance that is going to end poorly for you.
Indeed - be passionate about the work you do - but that may or may not have anything to do with the company that you work for.
I've had jobs where I very much enjoy and am passionate about the work I do but did not necessarily buy into the company culture or vision. These companies were instrumental in my career growth but ultimately not the right fit for me, but I have absolutely no regrets about my time with them.
On the flip side, I still know plenty of "koolaid drinkers" that are still at these companies (or have been laid off by them) and I can objectively say that many of their careers have not progressed since I was there. I know: different strokes for different folks. Maybe they value stability over career progress and that's okay.
Let's just not pretend that the best way to grow a person's career is to attach yourself to someone else's company that doesn't necessarily have your best interest in mind.
Sounds like someone fell for the passionate bit. Translation 'work really cheap for me and really hard'. They take the passion straight to the bank and give you a pat on the back, trust me.
Companies will fire you at the first convienent opportunity. There is no such thing as loyalty for an employer. Don't take it personal, live your life.
Those companys have a tendency to grow, and at a certain point, the old "Loyalists" are swept aside by a silent alliance of douches. After that its run of the mill. Do not bet on human constellations to uphold.
It is actually kind of difficult to get fired at a large tech company, unless you do something illegal, and you'll get plenty of advance notice since you'll be put on a performance plan.
I disagree. At the end of the day you are nothing but a piece of meat to your employer that they are obligated to pay. Almost every employer is actively working to get as much work out of you for as little cost to them as possible. That is to say, there are those employers who aren't like this, but they are few and far between and are the exception, not the rule.
If you aren't a partner, "making it personal" at work means quitting when you have had enough. "Passionate" co-workers quit earlier, without another job ready and/or with some kind of unpleasant showdown.
The highs and lows are what make life intresting. Be passionate about what you do and give it your all. Make it personal. Give a damn. It's the only way to live.