I’ve been working for multiple tech companies for over twenty years. I’m 43 years old now. In recent years, I’ve worked as an Agile and DevOps coach, mentoring multiple teams in Scrum and helping improve DevOps infrastructure to make them more efficient.

However, I’ve grown a little tired of doing the same coaching work for so many years. Additionally, the economy in my country is in a recession, leaving fewer coaching opportunities. When you work as a coach, you’re essentially trading time for money, it no longer feels worth it. I can see my future looking bleak if I continue down this path.

Throughout my career, I’ve always coded small tools to help with my work. These tools automated tasks like checking technical debt, analyzing team effectiveness, and monitoring code quality. When I code, I enter a state of flow, and deep down, I realize how much I love programming.

So, when I quit my last job, I decided to become a full-time independent developer. I no longer want to trade time for money. Of course, there are both advantages and disadvantages to this decision:

Advantages:

  • I’m a full-stack developer with strong training and experience.
  • I have a genuine passion for coding.
  • I have some savings to sustain myself for a while though, I also have a 3-year-old child to raise. (I’m not sure if this is an advantage or a disadvantage.)

Disadvantages:

  • I have no experience monetizing apps.
  • As mentioned, I have a child to support, and my savings won’t last forever.
  • I have little knowledge about product development and business operations.

Recently, I read a book called What I Talk About When I Talk About Running. The author writes about his experiences with writing and running. One part deeply resonated with me: When he decided to become a professional writer, he chose to sell his business. His friends urged him to keep it and hire a manager instead, but he replied, “When I want to do something, I give it my all and leave no regrets.” So he sold his business and became a full-time writer.

I don’t have his talent, but I believe life is fair, if you keep working hard at something, eventually, you’ll see results.