[audleman]

Something to look for: what gives you that feeling of total bliss?

I know I am a good programmer because when I finally solve the problem it feels good! My brain just releases all these bliss feelings and I go "oh my God, I nailed it!"

That feeling only comes once every several hundred hours of programming. I am routinely faced with technical problems to solve that are completely overwhelming, and that means I have to slog through confusion for weeks on end. If I didn't have that desire to get to the end goal I would probably give up.

I think you should look for what has given you that feeling in the past. If it's building something that works, lining up all the numbers (to 5 decimal places), or cracking a tough problem programming might be very fulfilling to you.

[crazypyro]

Exactly this. Whenever an interview asks about why I choose this career, I jump straight to talking about that feeling of success when something works after working at it for hours, days, etc.