May 4, 2018 at 9:07 am
Adding a slightly different spin on the debate:
What about the fact that we have to work 5 days a week (or more), 8 hours a day (or more) doing the same thing, for someone else? I feel this is enough to rob any career of inspiration. Sitting at a desk all day long? The human body was not designed for this! I often wish i was doing something else, something more creative (i'm a musician), more physical (yoga teacher?), but i don't know whether that's because there is no balance in what we do. It's all or nothing. I often think it would be awesome to do two different jobs - maybe 3 days in one, 2 days in another, both completely different. Would the balance enable you to glean more inspiration and beginners mindedness' in whatever it is you do? I'd say i'm an OK technologist, a far more inspired musician, but i think if i just did music for a living (particularly if i was very successful at it) i'd lose my humbleness by spending all day doing what i'm good at... might let it get to my head. Mixing things up with something that i'm just OK at, but that challenges me every day, keeps me humble and that precious beginners mind i think we all need!
🙂
May 4, 2018 at 9:15 am
doodlingdba - Friday, May 4, 2018 9:07 AMAdding a slightly different spin on the debate:
What about the fact that we have to work 5 days a week (or more), 8 hours a day (or more) doing the same thing, for someone else? I feel this is enough to rob any career of inspiration. Sitting at a desk all day long? The human body was not designed for this! I often wish i was doing something else, something more creative (i'm a musician), more physical (yoga teacher?), but i don't know whether that's because there is no balance in what we do. It's all or nothing. I often think it would be awesome to do two different jobs - maybe 3 days in one, 2 days in another, both completely different. Would the balance enable you to glean more inspiration and beginners mindedness' in whatever it is you do? I'd say i'm an OK technologist, a far more inspired musician, but i think if i just did music for a living (particularly if i was very successful at it) i'd lose my humbleness by spending all day doing what i'm good at... might let it get to my head. Mixing things up with something that i'm just OK at, but that challenges me every day, keeps me humble and that precious beginners mind i think we all need!🙂
Personally, at lunch every day I walk 2 miles to clear my head and get some exercise. Works wonders for the blood pressure and blood sugar levels too!
Takes about 2/3 of my lunch hour, but it elevates my mood on top of everything else, so it's definitely worth it.
As for the inspiration, I find the myriad of puzzles involved in different aspects of my job keeps it from getting stale (programming, database design, writing, training, etc).
May 4, 2018 at 10:05 am
Great topic Steve.
For me it was a mix of both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Started off as a hobby after purchasing a Commodore VIC 20 way back when. Discovered I had a real knack / passion for computing technology and was quite fascinated by the hardware. After many years in the work force I finally had enough of a non technical job that I hated, left that and enrolled in College. 2 years later, with a fresh CIS diploma in hand, went looking for work that would allow me to be paid for what was essentially my hobby and passion. Now, 20 years later, still working for the same technology company and loving it. Best part is getting paid for doing what I really enjoy. However there is a downside to this - its going to be really hard to move on to retirement at some point.
May 4, 2018 at 10:31 am
If the question is why I work with computers the answer is definitely intrinsic, I've always liked playing with computers and trying to make them do what I want and I got a degree in CS because of that interest. That certainly translates well into a career in IT and dealing with the general BS in any job isn't as bad as long as it's basically doing what you want.
May 4, 2018 at 2:05 pm
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