| I was there some years ago. I realized that the root cause of the problem was focusing on the wrong things (at least they were wrong for me). Tools are just that - they are tools. Granted, there are many of them, new and shining, coming in all packages, but that gets tiresome after you've spent a substantial period of time with them. They are all essentially the same and sooner or later you lose interest in them. What never gets boring is using tools to create things that affect people's lives. And I gather from your message that you've missed that joy. My advice is simple. Think of some thing that would be helpful to (non-technical) end users. Come up with some kind of service that would solve even a small problem for them. Then see your eyes light up as people are adopting your offering and giving you their thanks. In short, your work must have a meaning. You should know that somehow what you do improves the world we live in, even if in a small and seemingly insignificant way. For as long as you're just finishing tasks prepared by somebody else for somebody else's meaningless projects, you're not going to be happy. As with all creative professions, in programming too you have to take matter in your own hands. You've just realized (subconsciously) that your work has been meaningless. You basically need to find your path. What you could do: - Forget about the tools, just pick up something you're comfortable with and create something useful for people - Change jobs until you find a project you can personally identify with and where you'll see you work affecting the outside world in a tangible way - Change profession or role to the one where your need for meaning will be satisfied That's hard I know. I wish it weren't but it's just the way things are in life. |