| Hey! > Why do you think building a business will fix the problem you feel? It wont. But it will solve one aspect of (lack of) independence -- the soul crashing 9-5 and working with people. I don't want to go length into my view of the tech industry and how I consider most of it an inefficient cog machine mixed with human psychology, but getting rid of it by creating a business which can be run on it's own -- will improve my quality of life significantly. For example: there is no logical sense at all to work 9-5, 5 days a week from Mo-Fr, in an office. By having my business I can train in the morning and then work 12 to 8. I can take Monday off (without asking for permission). I can work from home or cafe, or a park. I get to build the lifestyle I want rather than conforming to some 1890s factory idea of the 9 to 5. Another example: there is no need to have 15 people teams with idiotic daily standups. By building my own business, I get to work with only myself (yay), and some other people to whom I can outsource things I'm not good at, and not waste time on idiotic corporate rituals. And as for McDonalnds, well, I been in the tech industry for over a decade now. That's what I know. I don't know anything about store locations, managing staff and stock. Sure I can learn, but it's smarter to leverage my existing knowledge rather than starting from 0. And also a physical business means more exposure to working with other people, and a more typical hierarchical structure. |
I, have become . . . comfortably numb, myself . . .
Maybe for a long time, I've considered 9-5 to be easy hours but what happens during that time needs to be uplifting in some way. Some big way would be good even if it's not financial.
The stuck, boring, and comfortable could be juggled or rebalanced on their own, or you could throw in the 9-5 for some other schedule or commitment. Or dig deeper from where you are now until you hit a promising spark, in spite of any disappointments that may be obstacles.
Over many years of employment I had no doubt I would be an entrepreneur, and a boring 9-5 is no more real work or commitment than a more uplifting 9-5, but I never could have started my company on the side during any of the boring times.
I think the ideal situation is where you look forward to going to work every day because you accomplish something for your employer, and you look forward to coming back from the employer whether it's home for R & R or to work on your own future business. You need to feel some worthwhile anticipation either way/direction.
For me 9-5 is not a problem in itself, but commuting can be the big downer, and a lot of it can go together if it turns out that commuting with the mainstream is what the real problem is. A revised employment schedule with a bit more time commitment can still be OK if it takes away from a more painful commute. You need to look forward to your destination both coming & going, and the anticipation needs to outlast your travel time each way.
It's never going to be like driving to Disney World, but that's an extreme example for many people of how long a trip you can sometimes maintain anticipation for.