[T-hawk]

I'm an example of your #2. I have a pretty easy and cushy 40-hour software development job, in a fairly quiet company and industry. I could be making more or doing splashier work at a FAANG, but I'm happy to compartmentalize software into that box, and spend the rest of my time on non-technical hobbies and interests.

Not everyone has to be a world-smashing rock star startup. Hacker News certainly has an exposure bias towards that, but there's absolutely nothing wrong with doing a mundane software job to easily pay the bills, while channeling your passionate focus elsewhere.

It's perfectly fine to have a wall between work and other interests. I rarely get interested in software for its own sake outside of getting paid for it (maybe a small personal project once every couple years), and conversely my other interests need to stay passions rather than trying to be leveraged into monetizing.

[foogazi]

> I could be making more or doing splashier work at a FAANG, but I'm happy to compartmentalize software into that box, and spend the rest of my time on non-technical hobbies and interests.

Do you think FAANG people have no hobbies?

They are just like you and me.