Hi everyone! So, I have recently decided to take a break from school to find out who I want to be and what I want to do with my life. I used to major in mechanical engineering but the more I devoted my time to it, the more I realized this was not who I am. Which brings me sort of to a halt because I am stuck between two careers, computer programming and graphic design. So this is why I came to this place. I'm wondering what are the pros and cons of programming, besides the not seeing the light of day for months on end ;). I'm pretty creative and intuitive but money making is also a priority for me. So I need your advice!!! Any information on personal experience and the industry would be much appreciated. Thanks.

People typically undergo 2 major career changes in their lifetime. Your first job introduces you to the job market; its quirks, its ups and downs, bosses, responsibilities. The second job you build your retirement fund with. Your third career is when you unleash your passion for something close to your heart. If you cut yourself out of studies right now, you are limiting yourself on your second career. And without the money generated by that second career, you can forget about a third career altogether.

I started as a programmer 20 years ago; I experienced hands-on the rise of 3D graphics and the evolution of Internet. It was a hell of a ride! I did an MBA by sheer guts; it was a very painful process going back to school at 40. I am now doing management, still in the high-tech sector; lots of legal, project management, negotiations, marketing & PR. I have a kid too. Lots of responsibilities, both personally and professionally. Once I get tired of all this, I want to go into the real estate business; renovating houses is a real passion for me.

So my message is simple: 1) pick your a domain where you think you will see the most changes and then ride the wave, and 2) never limit yourself in terms of education early on; it's tough to go back to school at later in life.

Hope this helps.

Quote: Original post by Anonymous Poster
People typically undergo 2 major career changes in their lifetime. Your first job introduces you to the job market; its quirks, its ups and downs, bosses, responsibilities. The second job you build your retirement fund with. Your third career is when you unleash your passion for something close to your heart. If you cut yourself out of studies right now, you are limiting yourself on your second career. And without the money generated by that second career, you can forget about a third career altogether.

I started as a programmer 20 years ago; I experienced hands-on the rise of 3D graphics and the evolution of Internet. It was a hell of a ride! I did an MBA by sheer guts; it was a very painful process going back to school at 40. I am now doing management, still in the high-tech sector; lots of legal, project management, negotiations, marketing & PR. I have a kid too. Lots of responsibilities, both personally and professionally. Once I get tired of all this, I want to go into the real estate business; renovating houses is a real passion for me.

So my message is simple: 1) pick your a domain where you think you will see the most changes and then ride the wave, and 2) never limit yourself in terms of education early on; it's tough to go back to school at later in life.

Hope this helps.

What would you say was the hardest thing for you being a programmer? Thank you again for your advice.I really do appreciate this because I'm finally realizing that I can't find what I want to do by myself.Have to do at least SOME research.

Quote: What would you say was the hardest thing for you being a programmer?

Realizing my usefulness as a programmer was declining. I started making raytracers using FORTRAN and C on a VAX. I gave up when C# came about. Not that I could not learn that. But that was one too many paradigm shifts for me. At one point in a technical career, you realize that communication and "people skills" are far more efficient than technical skills in getting things done on time and on budget. I decided to hone those soft skills rather than trying to get more proficient at ActiveX and STL or learning C#; that invariably leads you up the ladder. Friends of mine decided to stick close to technology; they are still typing code today, specializing even more in their little niche each day in order to stay competitive. I just hope their niche is not going to disapear suddently.

I faced a similar choice when I left high school, between illustration or computer science. I ended up choosing illustration, because I felt that if I did computer science, I would lose my artistic skills, whereas I didn't find it so hard to program during my spare time because I wasn't so critical of my programming skills.

I spent six years doing that degree - three years full-time, three years part-time - because I had to repeat many subjects because I was unprepared for the amount of work I had to do as an illustrator. I only graduated a month ago, and I'm glad I put in the effort to finish it off, because I don't regret the choice I made. It took a few years, but it grounded me and served me an awesome lesson - you can't always skim through life.

During that time I programmed on and off, but I never gave it up. Ironically, after a brief stint as a freelance illustrator, I'm now very focussed on game and app programming. I've found it much more productive to focus on one skill at a time than to focus on all skills only a part of the time.

You can make money in both fields, it just depends on the route you take. On average, the pleb coder will make more than a pleb designer, and you find more tech companies being sold off than graphic design companies, but the money you make depends on how far you want to go in business. It's also worth noting that I've found both professions to be creatively challenging, as they both require a large dose of lateral thinking and problem solving.

Anyhow, good luck in deciding.