I read the article as well as Paul Graham's 'How to Do What You Love (2006)' [<a href="http://www.paulgraham.com/love.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.paulgraham.com/love.html</a>] that another commenter mentioned here and have come to realisation that I'm stuck in the area that both articles discuss - and I know that my 'archetype' or history (which is probably very typical in this line of work) contributes to.<p>Tell me if this my story rings true for you:<p>- You grew up in the the analog era when digital was coming into mainstream (80s for me)<p>- Tinkered with early computers and video games (C64 for me, onto early PC gaming in the 90s and dialup)<p>- Fascinated by sci-fi and technology<p>- Had some higher-than-average ability and affinity with computers - not prodigious<p>- Fell into some facet of the IT world as a result of being "good with computers"<p>- Ended up being able to succeed (for me, this was in the world of web dev from 2005-2019)<p>- Realised that even though it pays the bills and that you had developed some expertise (hilariously, much of my expertise also vanished when Flash died) - maybe it wasn't what you were supposed to be doing<p>- Tried startups or your own business (I freelanced and started a small digital agency)<p>- Moved countries / changed gears (I went to SG, tried my hand as a tech PM)<p>- Still in tech, still unsure whether this is what you <i>should</i> be doing or whether you're wasting the remainder of your time here building variations of the same thing<p>I get the feeling a lot of 'us' in the tech world come from similar backgrounds and personalities and thus end up in the same spot.
From the article,<p>“Prestige is like a powerful magnet that warps even your beliefs about what you enjoy. It causes you to work not on what you like, but what you'd like to like.”<p>Paul Graham,
How to Do What You Love (2006)<p><a href="http://www.paulgraham.com/love.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.paulgraham.com/love.html</a>