[belval]

A common mistake around that kind of statement is that people infer that it means actually going to an agricultural lifestyle and just any other farmer and hanging the keyboard for good.

In practice, they'll start automating/building/designing new things after a few weeks. It's not a mindset that you can easily escape. They'll build a greenhouse and think about how cool it would be to setup automated watering, controlled airflow, autofeeders, etc... These things are doable for cheap. They absolutely won't stop being engineers, they'll just be engineers working on a different set of problems.

[scsilver]

Its why I like travelling/hiking/skiing. A shit ton of puzzles to solve with delicious treats, treatments, and experiences to reward your success. Something about solving problems in the warm sun, or a calming snow fall, is very fulfilling, the multisensory experience is refreshing.

[belval]

(Assuming this is sarcasm)

I am not saying that you can't take a break and do stuff that has nothing to do with problem solving. My point is that once you've built that mindset of system thinking and automating tasks, combined with skills that allow you to actually implement the routines needed for a given task, you will find it hard to not optimize daily toil.

I am not saying that this applies to everyone, but it most definitely applies to everyone I know that decided to "give up and live on a farm".