[pessimizer]

> Programming is a very demanding trade, and I don't think you can do it just for the paycheck, you need to have some degree of passion for it. If someone disagrees with me about this I'd love to hear different takes.

I don't have any different abstract or psychological take on it, I just know people who have programmed for 30 years who don't love it now, and some who never loved it and always wished they were doing something more interesting. They are also perfectly good programmers, who work because they get paid for it rather than some spiritual edification.