[mabbo]

I think it's more complex than just "burned out".

If Shopify had laid me off on Tuesday (as it did to a few great people I worked with) I'd have been given 16 weeks severance. I doubt I would have looked for a new job for at least 6 months. Maybe a year. Maybe longer.

I've been paid so well over the last decade in this industry that I don't have debts anymore (car, home, credit cards). I don't spend much or live extravagantly. I have a safety net of money. And I have a 5-month old daughter that I want to spend more time with.

I'm not burned out, but I also don't really need to work right now. I could get by a long time just playing with my kid without needing to write a line of code. Maybe I could even downsize, move out of the city, go live somewhere with a lower cost of living and a quieter lifestyle. If I ran out of money, I could get a remote developer job in a week or two, even if it didn't pay as much as I make today.

I don't think I'm unique in this feeling. Developers are free in ways so few others are.

[hinkley]

Six years ago I took about eight months off. Didn’t get as much done as I’d hoped by half, but I’m almost at the point I could do that again. But at some point I should be hinting if early retirement instead, so I probably won’t.

Live below your means folks. Especially if you think your ethics actually matter to you, instead of something you do for theater.