How can I effectively shorten the hours I devote to my software developer career, so I can have more time...












-2















I have been a junior C++ developer for a year since graduating in engineering.



I am also pursuing my creative dreams on the side. However, I feel like my current lifestyle is not sustainable.



My job and commute take up 50 hours a week that I can't devote to creative work. I try to dedicate the rest of my time to my passion. However, whenever I have any other responsibilities(to family, friends, health, maintenance), my time gets immediately drained. I have no free time at all, which can feel demoralizing.



I want to know how I can get the best of both worlds -- a secure livelihood that I enjoy, with more time to pursue my art. I am willing to sacrifice pay for this.



There are several options I know of that may accomplish this. I just don't know how achievable they are.




  1. Find a part time software job.

  2. Becoming a freelancer

  3. Find a 30 hour software job

  4. Find a remote job.

  5. Save money and quit my job for X years

  6. Ask my current manager if I could work fewer hours at my current job


Which of the above options is most attainable for me as a junior developer, and what strategy can I use to avoid hurting my software career?










share|improve this question









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  • This question as written seems to be more asking about time management or personal productivity. For a Workplace question focus on one workplace issue (e.g. how to approach your boss about flexible hours). Also you're trying to ask too many things for a good question. E.g. "How do I ask about flexible hours" and "How do I transition to professional artist" deserve different questions and answers.

    – Brandin
    20 mins ago











  • Are you pursing Arts as a career or a hobby. You have only been a developer for 1 year which is nothing. You can have a passion and it can simply be something you do in your free time.

    – Shadowzee
    13 mins ago











  • Shadowzee: I am pursuing arts as a profession. The reason why I didn't get an arts degree was because of the risk involved, and at the time I hoped that getting a technical degree could shift my interests.

    – Jen
    5 mins ago











  • Brandin: I just edited the question. Is there anything else I could do to fix issues? I feel like a question like this belongs on this site, but I definitely can improve it to make it follow guidelines more.

    – Jen
    4 mins ago


















-2















I have been a junior C++ developer for a year since graduating in engineering.



I am also pursuing my creative dreams on the side. However, I feel like my current lifestyle is not sustainable.



My job and commute take up 50 hours a week that I can't devote to creative work. I try to dedicate the rest of my time to my passion. However, whenever I have any other responsibilities(to family, friends, health, maintenance), my time gets immediately drained. I have no free time at all, which can feel demoralizing.



I want to know how I can get the best of both worlds -- a secure livelihood that I enjoy, with more time to pursue my art. I am willing to sacrifice pay for this.



There are several options I know of that may accomplish this. I just don't know how achievable they are.




  1. Find a part time software job.

  2. Becoming a freelancer

  3. Find a 30 hour software job

  4. Find a remote job.

  5. Save money and quit my job for X years

  6. Ask my current manager if I could work fewer hours at my current job


Which of the above options is most attainable for me as a junior developer, and what strategy can I use to avoid hurting my software career?










share|improve this question









New contributor




Jen is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.





















  • This question as written seems to be more asking about time management or personal productivity. For a Workplace question focus on one workplace issue (e.g. how to approach your boss about flexible hours). Also you're trying to ask too many things for a good question. E.g. "How do I ask about flexible hours" and "How do I transition to professional artist" deserve different questions and answers.

    – Brandin
    20 mins ago











  • Are you pursing Arts as a career or a hobby. You have only been a developer for 1 year which is nothing. You can have a passion and it can simply be something you do in your free time.

    – Shadowzee
    13 mins ago











  • Shadowzee: I am pursuing arts as a profession. The reason why I didn't get an arts degree was because of the risk involved, and at the time I hoped that getting a technical degree could shift my interests.

    – Jen
    5 mins ago











  • Brandin: I just edited the question. Is there anything else I could do to fix issues? I feel like a question like this belongs on this site, but I definitely can improve it to make it follow guidelines more.

    – Jen
    4 mins ago
















-2












-2








-2








I have been a junior C++ developer for a year since graduating in engineering.



I am also pursuing my creative dreams on the side. However, I feel like my current lifestyle is not sustainable.



My job and commute take up 50 hours a week that I can't devote to creative work. I try to dedicate the rest of my time to my passion. However, whenever I have any other responsibilities(to family, friends, health, maintenance), my time gets immediately drained. I have no free time at all, which can feel demoralizing.



I want to know how I can get the best of both worlds -- a secure livelihood that I enjoy, with more time to pursue my art. I am willing to sacrifice pay for this.



There are several options I know of that may accomplish this. I just don't know how achievable they are.




  1. Find a part time software job.

  2. Becoming a freelancer

  3. Find a 30 hour software job

  4. Find a remote job.

  5. Save money and quit my job for X years

  6. Ask my current manager if I could work fewer hours at my current job


Which of the above options is most attainable for me as a junior developer, and what strategy can I use to avoid hurting my software career?










share|improve this question









New contributor




Jen is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.












I have been a junior C++ developer for a year since graduating in engineering.



I am also pursuing my creative dreams on the side. However, I feel like my current lifestyle is not sustainable.



My job and commute take up 50 hours a week that I can't devote to creative work. I try to dedicate the rest of my time to my passion. However, whenever I have any other responsibilities(to family, friends, health, maintenance), my time gets immediately drained. I have no free time at all, which can feel demoralizing.



I want to know how I can get the best of both worlds -- a secure livelihood that I enjoy, with more time to pursue my art. I am willing to sacrifice pay for this.



There are several options I know of that may accomplish this. I just don't know how achievable they are.




  1. Find a part time software job.

  2. Becoming a freelancer

  3. Find a 30 hour software job

  4. Find a remote job.

  5. Save money and quit my job for X years

  6. Ask my current manager if I could work fewer hours at my current job


Which of the above options is most attainable for me as a junior developer, and what strategy can I use to avoid hurting my software career?







careers






share|improve this question









New contributor




Jen is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.











share|improve this question









New contributor




Jen is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.









share|improve this question




share|improve this question








edited 6 mins ago







Jen













New contributor




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asked 58 mins ago









JenJen

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61




New contributor




Jen is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.





New contributor





Jen is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.






Jen is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.













  • This question as written seems to be more asking about time management or personal productivity. For a Workplace question focus on one workplace issue (e.g. how to approach your boss about flexible hours). Also you're trying to ask too many things for a good question. E.g. "How do I ask about flexible hours" and "How do I transition to professional artist" deserve different questions and answers.

    – Brandin
    20 mins ago











  • Are you pursing Arts as a career or a hobby. You have only been a developer for 1 year which is nothing. You can have a passion and it can simply be something you do in your free time.

    – Shadowzee
    13 mins ago











  • Shadowzee: I am pursuing arts as a profession. The reason why I didn't get an arts degree was because of the risk involved, and at the time I hoped that getting a technical degree could shift my interests.

    – Jen
    5 mins ago











  • Brandin: I just edited the question. Is there anything else I could do to fix issues? I feel like a question like this belongs on this site, but I definitely can improve it to make it follow guidelines more.

    – Jen
    4 mins ago





















  • This question as written seems to be more asking about time management or personal productivity. For a Workplace question focus on one workplace issue (e.g. how to approach your boss about flexible hours). Also you're trying to ask too many things for a good question. E.g. "How do I ask about flexible hours" and "How do I transition to professional artist" deserve different questions and answers.

    – Brandin
    20 mins ago











  • Are you pursing Arts as a career or a hobby. You have only been a developer for 1 year which is nothing. You can have a passion and it can simply be something you do in your free time.

    – Shadowzee
    13 mins ago











  • Shadowzee: I am pursuing arts as a profession. The reason why I didn't get an arts degree was because of the risk involved, and at the time I hoped that getting a technical degree could shift my interests.

    – Jen
    5 mins ago











  • Brandin: I just edited the question. Is there anything else I could do to fix issues? I feel like a question like this belongs on this site, but I definitely can improve it to make it follow guidelines more.

    – Jen
    4 mins ago



















This question as written seems to be more asking about time management or personal productivity. For a Workplace question focus on one workplace issue (e.g. how to approach your boss about flexible hours). Also you're trying to ask too many things for a good question. E.g. "How do I ask about flexible hours" and "How do I transition to professional artist" deserve different questions and answers.

– Brandin
20 mins ago





This question as written seems to be more asking about time management or personal productivity. For a Workplace question focus on one workplace issue (e.g. how to approach your boss about flexible hours). Also you're trying to ask too many things for a good question. E.g. "How do I ask about flexible hours" and "How do I transition to professional artist" deserve different questions and answers.

– Brandin
20 mins ago













Are you pursing Arts as a career or a hobby. You have only been a developer for 1 year which is nothing. You can have a passion and it can simply be something you do in your free time.

– Shadowzee
13 mins ago





Are you pursing Arts as a career or a hobby. You have only been a developer for 1 year which is nothing. You can have a passion and it can simply be something you do in your free time.

– Shadowzee
13 mins ago













Shadowzee: I am pursuing arts as a profession. The reason why I didn't get an arts degree was because of the risk involved, and at the time I hoped that getting a technical degree could shift my interests.

– Jen
5 mins ago





Shadowzee: I am pursuing arts as a profession. The reason why I didn't get an arts degree was because of the risk involved, and at the time I hoped that getting a technical degree could shift my interests.

– Jen
5 mins ago













Brandin: I just edited the question. Is there anything else I could do to fix issues? I feel like a question like this belongs on this site, but I definitely can improve it to make it follow guidelines more.

– Jen
4 mins ago







Brandin: I just edited the question. Is there anything else I could do to fix issues? I feel like a question like this belongs on this site, but I definitely can improve it to make it follow guidelines more.

– Jen
4 mins ago












1 Answer
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Stick with programming for 5 years. Once you've solidified that as a career (assuming you improve), you can start taking 2-3 month sabbaticals every few years if you save properly, because you will be able to find jobs easily. In the meantime, dedicate an hour a day. A 50 hour workweek with commute time doesn't sound that taxing to me, especially for a young person. There's 168 hours in a week. 50 is work, 56 is sleep, leaving you with 62 hours a week for anything else. That's almost 9 hours a day on average.





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    1 Answer
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    Stick with programming for 5 years. Once you've solidified that as a career (assuming you improve), you can start taking 2-3 month sabbaticals every few years if you save properly, because you will be able to find jobs easily. In the meantime, dedicate an hour a day. A 50 hour workweek with commute time doesn't sound that taxing to me, especially for a young person. There's 168 hours in a week. 50 is work, 56 is sleep, leaving you with 62 hours a week for anything else. That's almost 9 hours a day on average.





    share




























      0














      Stick with programming for 5 years. Once you've solidified that as a career (assuming you improve), you can start taking 2-3 month sabbaticals every few years if you save properly, because you will be able to find jobs easily. In the meantime, dedicate an hour a day. A 50 hour workweek with commute time doesn't sound that taxing to me, especially for a young person. There's 168 hours in a week. 50 is work, 56 is sleep, leaving you with 62 hours a week for anything else. That's almost 9 hours a day on average.





      share


























        0












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        Stick with programming for 5 years. Once you've solidified that as a career (assuming you improve), you can start taking 2-3 month sabbaticals every few years if you save properly, because you will be able to find jobs easily. In the meantime, dedicate an hour a day. A 50 hour workweek with commute time doesn't sound that taxing to me, especially for a young person. There's 168 hours in a week. 50 is work, 56 is sleep, leaving you with 62 hours a week for anything else. That's almost 9 hours a day on average.





        share













        Stick with programming for 5 years. Once you've solidified that as a career (assuming you improve), you can start taking 2-3 month sabbaticals every few years if you save properly, because you will be able to find jobs easily. In the meantime, dedicate an hour a day. A 50 hour workweek with commute time doesn't sound that taxing to me, especially for a young person. There's 168 hours in a week. 50 is work, 56 is sleep, leaving you with 62 hours a week for anything else. That's almost 9 hours a day on average.






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        answered 7 mins ago









        TomboTombo

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