Working in Tech because I love Money (and Tech)

Sun, 10 Sep 2023 17:08:48 -0000

Response to OP: https://mas.to/@carnage4life/111041142589647602

For those not on Mastodon:

Did you choose tech because it pays well, or because you have a genuine interest?

Every time this conversation comes up I laugh because you can almost line up the folks that are like "I do this because I love it" and look ask them what they do for work.

How many FOSS advocates "Do it cause you love it folks" are out there bussin for tips or not making 6-figures already or trying to get there.

Also the unanimous black (American) sentiment is this AND I AGREE.

You didn't pay us for our work for two centuries then you paid us poorly. Shut up and let us be excited we can buy stuff that our Moms worked three jobs for us and still couldn't afford.

Wanting money is different for us. How come many athletes and rappers (I think the folks complaining may call these folks thugs) do the same thing the first time they come into money - They buy their Mom's or GrandMa's house.

We watched people bust their asses for nothing to live a long life having nothing and most will die WITH NOTHING. We're pre-conditioned to do things because it will make life that much easier, so hell yeah I do it for the money. That doesn't mean I wouldn't tinker with it without the money but I would be doing completely different things.

Like if I were just doing things for not money I would be spending all my money on coffee and learning to make latte art and journaling about this with my evergrowing fascination with fountain pens that I would keep in the luxury messenger bags that I also really have a GENUINE INTEREST IN.

Oh wait... I need money for all those things.

Reading How to be Everything gave me the insight of the whole Einstein situation.

You see being a jobless teacher didn't pay all that well so after chasing the dream for a couple years he got the hookup from his friend's dad and started working at the patent office while he was doing what he enjoyed. He was passionate about the work that he did and wanted to master it, but the second he started getting popular enough to sustain a life doing what he loved, he did it...about 9 years after he was doing the other thing we was pretty good at FOR THE MONEY.

All that to say. I got mad because I've seen this and the zealots out there (especially ones with VP/Founder in their title and formerly at ) are all like "You have to love it!". Nah homie, you don't have to love it. You just have to be decent enough to keep your job at it. Both can be true (I love DevRel, I'm decent enough at it to stay employed).