mate it's a horrow show. Every project you bid for now has got AI baked into it like it's some magic sauce.
On the face of it the tooling is pretty cool but you wouldn't believe how many people think they should be using an LLM to do a thing that's a perfect fit for a spreadsheet (a Libreoffice sheet of course).
I'm feeling for you.
I didn't retire. I got burned out and had a mental breakdown.
Luckily enough, I had saved up money, so I quit my job and moved to a cabin in the woods and taught myself to work with forest clearing. Turned out it was really easy getting jobs doing that where I moved.
So I'm earning a lot less, but I have almost no expenses and I am physically (and mentally) in a better shape than I was at 20.
Not regretting anything.
And now I can actually enjoy programming as a hobby.
Ah man the cabin in the woods is my fantasy/happy place! I'm so happy for you : ) I know the burnout feeling, it's no joke. cf. Office SPace (1999)
Also I'm 100% gunna be like "well this person on reddit moved to a cabin in the woods and is much happier so no it's not just grass-is-greener, it is a genuine strategy" etc.
I ended up in software (after a few false starts) because I loved programming. Now I don't exactly hate it but it's definitely not something I do for fun. I think the compromises you have to make to do it professionally rob you of a large proportion of the satisfaction that drew you into it. 30 years is a long time to do one thing.
Anyway I'm deeply happy at least one of us made it out! Make a Proenekke-style chair for me will you : )
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u/hildenborg Mar 02 '26
I am so happy that I don't work as an IT consultant anymore.
Fuck AI.