| I've been there before. I recently came across Jamis Buck's talking about his experience https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71suekjBV9Y and I strongly recommend it. If only to hear someone eloquently talk about going through the process. Previously, I saw his talk about generating mazes and it has always stuck with me. (Unfortunately that one wasn't recorded). Speaking as a developer, I have been writing code and solving problems professionally for so long that I have forgotten what it's like to just write code for fun. For me, and not for anyone else. Without any expectations or stress. And listening to him talking about rediscovering fun by exploring different ways to create mazes really clicked with me. I've only recently gotten back into that, and it has been embarrassingly awkward to knock off the rust and put myself in the mindset of "Let's just do this because it could be cool". I even bought his book on generating mazes. Not because I'm particularly into them, but to help exercise those sore muscles and I'm thinking I can perhaps feed on his passion. A coworker told me he also put one out about building ray tracers. To branch out beyond that, I've also begun putting together a list of fun hacks that interest me personally. Now I say all of this, but I do think while time away from your day-to-day is very important (take some vacation time! spend time exploring other hobbies!), even after a significant time away, when you come back to your day job you may still be unmotivated/numb/demoralized. I'm hoping rediscovering the fun in what I do helps put things in perspective more than just listening to others preach. Helps rekindle the feelings and reasons why I pursued my career in the first place beyond just making a living. Good luck. I wish you the best. Edit: OH! I completely forgot. Make sure to prioritize the easy-to-ignore-things. Spend time with friends/family. Exercise. Make sure you're getting enough sleep. Those sound so simple, but I strongly believe it's incredibly tough when you ignore those basics. |