[ryanio]

As a student about to enter the work force, I'm personally having an internal struggle with which lifestyle to choose to pursue. There is the go-big-or-go-home obsessive startup world work mentality, versus another side of the online world which I feel Hacker News glosses over without much recognition: building lifestyle passive income businesses online. There are countless amounts of people easily making 6 digits online, so it can't be an argument that people need to work this hard to earn a living. It's rather silly how easy it is to make money online with a simple product.

So if money isn't the problem, then why do people work their asses off until they break down or burn out? Is it just a social norm that people have to keep getting bigger, growing, hiring more, and raising more money?

[struppi]

Just my opinion, but you should basically do what you like. I like developing software, so working for ~40 hours a week is OK for me. But I also try not to spend too many hours (per year) working for clients so I have time for my own stuff and also for hobbies (cooking, photography, sports, ...).

I also know that I am less productive when I am tired or overworked, so this is another reasons why I try to limit my time in front of the computer. For example, when it's possible, I simply take breaks when I am tired (http://davidtanzer.net/node/114 - though this is often not possible when working for a client on-site).

I could make more money by doing the same work I do now for more hours - but that would just be a brute force solution. What I currently try is doing work that has better hourly rates. I'll also try to build some passive income - that's what you mentioned.

[npsimons]

As a student about to enter the work force, I'm personally having an internal struggle with which lifestyle to choose to pursue.

IMHO, as someone looking back from 34yo, I would say, try EVERYTHING. Keep your costs low, and take as many big risks as you can. Keep trying different things until you find one you love, then find a way to get paid for that.

So if money isn't the problem, then why do people work their asses off until they break down or burn out?

Some people are really passionate about what they are working on, they don't care about the money. Others are unfortunately just driven by greed. If I had to recommend one over the other, I'd definitely go with passion; just be careful not to burn out.

Also, the passive income thing is always a good idea to keep in mind; put a little bit of work into it, but do it early and don't make it your main focus, otherwise it's not very passive, is it?

[eli_gottlieb]

Honestly, if I knew how to run a passive-income business, I'd be doing it.

Think: our field is one of the few where the average worker owns his own means-of-production. Practical impact: the 40-60 hours you don't have to spend getting an income each week, if you have a passive income, can be spent on building awesome open-source projects you release for free to undercut those who like living in cubicles.