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Programming for $ until I'm too old to

September 24, 2017
freelancing

The question I get from time to time is this one:

Do you really want to work like this when you're forty or fifty?

Yes, I'm perfectly okay with that.

I really love programming. I can't imagine myself doing anything else. I love it in every form. Even when forced to code in C#, like in college. It's still amazing. The creative part of it inspires me the most. Making something out of nothing fascinates me. The opportunity to get better is what keeps me up at night. There's so much space to grow, there's so much opportunity to become better, to really master it.


Regarding the last post I wrote, my friend Bruno asked me this:

If you strive for freedom so much, don't you want to accumulate money, say 1.000.000€, until you're 35 and then live out of interest rate? This way you would have ultimate freedom to do whatever you want.

I don't want to work so hard until I'm 35. I want to enjoy life while I'm still youngish. I want to simultaneously enjoy myself and work until I'm too old to do so. The opposite of working all the time until I'm older and then just enjoying myself doesn't look so appealing.

Work is a contact with reality for me. The struggle to make money makes life interesting. Having that problem solved would fundamentally change me as a person. I would probably die of boredom.

That’s why I'm happy with working part time. I get to have play/work balance, so I don't work too hard for clients and I don't play too hard. What's life without playing?

For me, that's not a life.