[ChrisMarshallNY]

Speaking only for myself, I never wanted to be rich. It would have been nice to have the money, but I never wanted to make the sacrifices necessary.

I also didn't want to be used by some predator, to make them rich. I found a [less-than-perfect, but OK] company to work for, that had values I liked, and stayed there, for a long time. I got to hang with the really cool kids. I mean the ones that were so cool, no one knew who they were, because they didn't care about being cool. They just liked doing what they were doing, and they were the best at it.

I was the dumbest kid in the room, and I'm smarter than the average bear. I also got to play with some very cool toys.

But I was a manager, for most of that time, and I didn't want to give up coding. I didn't have a "shower clause" in my employment contract, so I spent a great deal of my extracurricular time, doing open-source stuff. I had an organization that could use my skills, so I worked with them.

Eventually, the cool ride was over (after almost 27 years), and I found myself ready to roll up my sleeves, and help make someone else rich.

But no one wanted me, so I was forced to retire, and I've never been happier.

I was just talking about this, yesterday, to a friend of mine, who sold his company, and is getting set to become a Man of Leisure. He's like me. He needs something to do, and I suspect that he'll do something cool.

I mentioned how upset I was, when I figured out that no one wanted me, but, after a year or so of following my own muse, I realized that I had been working at a state of chronic, low-grade misery, for over 30 years. I probably work harder now, than I ever did, drawing a salary, and I absolutely love it. This is what I've been working on, for the last month or so[0]. Still have a ways to go, but it's coming along great, and I've been learning a lot.

Here's a post that I wrote, some time ago, about how I like to approach things[1].

[0] https://github.com/RiftValleySoftware/ambiamara/tree/master/...

[1] https://littlegreenviper.com/miscellany/thats-not-what-ships...

[test1235]

> I didn't have a "shower clause" in my employment contract

what's a shower clause?

EDIT:

"That’s the clause that says your employer owns every idea that you come up with in the shower."

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24585399

[charlie0]

I don't want to be rich either, but it would be awesome to FIRE before I'm 65.

[ChrisMarshallNY]

It was never a goal of mine, but I found out I could, at 55.

It would have been nice, to have the extra decade of salary, but c’est la vie…

[cortesoft]

You can do that on a normal salary, too.

[riehwvfbk]

But only if you get incredibly lucky. Even in the Bay Area where many an employee became a millionaire the chance of that being you is still a single digit percentage.

[ChrisMarshallNY]

Not just luck. Self-discipline, structure, and sacrifice are necessary.

Living frugally, deferring (or avoiding) purchases, saving a substantial percentage, etc., was important for me.

Also, the world around us, changes.

In my entire career, I never made more than what some kids make, coming right out of school, these days.

The same for my father. He never made more than about $50K, his entire life, yet had a half-acre house in Potomac, two cars, and a stay-at-home wife.

[ludicrousdispla]

I'm wondering what a "shower clause" would be in a contract and hoping it's not a Silkwood reference.

[ChrisMarshallNY]

No. It's the clause that is common in tech contracts, where any idea that you come up with, "in the shower," belongs to the company.

It prevents things like moonlighting, or doing charity work.

I worked for a company that employed a lot of top-notch photographers, and there's no way that they would have agreed to anything like that.

[ludicrousdispla]

oh yeah, the 'no intellectually rewarding hobbies' clause ... that has always seemed counterproductive and short-sighted from my perspective