I’ve spoken with several people who aren’t sure how much longer they can handle working in IT.
Some of the most common experiences they mention:
• stress
• burnout
• the day-to-day chaos
• conflicts
• impostor syndrome
• isolation
• shame
• feeling like they’re the only one going through this
It’s hard to understand from the outside. The IT field as a whole still has opportunities that other industries don’t. That only makes it harder for those caught in this whirlwind, whether as a developer or a leader. I know of cases where the suffering is so silent that even the people they live with don’t know about it.
Thinking about all this breaks my heart.
But there’s also a sense of calm that comes to me. I’ve been through similar experiences. I had the opportunity, and luck, to learn something that changed my life.
I learned that suffering doesn’t come from outside circumstances. It comes from within, from the set of thoughts and feelings. I learned that a state of greater peace and clarity is always available. It surfaces when the volume of thoughts decreases.
We have an innate connection to a deeper feeling. It brings new ideas and an infinite capacity to see situations in new ways. We are born with it, but we forget about it.
As for staying or leaving… making decisions of this size from an agitated mind doesn’t seem like a good idea.
We gain much more clarity when the dust settles.
Believing that it’s possible to calm down may make some difference. Remembering this state that is more centered or peaceful is enough to feel some relief. Ideas always come from within when we pay attention.
If you can relate, know that you’re not alone. ❤️
I don’t have solutions or advice. The idea of what’s best for each person can only come from within.
If you’d like to learn together and share experiences, I’d be happy to listen. :)
Top comments (7)
I don't think it is possible to leave IT; you will always be "why are you doing it by hand when it can be automated"
It always staggers me how intelligent, well educated people who's jobs
literally revolve around numbers (financial advisors and accountants) know so little about the functionality in Excel let alone what can be built stand-alone.
This is such a sweet article. Thank you. I find that even as a junior I am experiencing these things and it feels so unreal because it's so early in my career. I've been telling myself I need to relax but I struggle to break through all the noise. I do believe that it's just a low period in the industry right now and the tides will change again.
IT can feel like such a lonely, chaotic place sometimes. We're all in this together. ❤️
The point is, if you leave, do you have an alternative?
Personally I wouldn't really - the only alternative would be to take some very low-paid and mundane job, flipping burgers or something, which would neither give me the income that I need, nor any satisfaction - fact is, software dev is the ONLY thing I really know how to do!
Fortunately I still like the work, so for me it's not really an issue ...
To me it sounds like maybe you don't want to leave IT (assuming that you could) - maybe you should just start looking around for another employer (or go freelance, highly recommended, haha) - change of company culture, better work/life balance, more job satisfaction, less of a "rat race" ...
Leaving IT altogether would be very drastic, and probably only possible if you have a realistic alternative (or you have a very fat bank account, and you can live off that ...)
P.S. a different question is: if I were NOT in IT already - if I wouldn't even have picked a "vocation" for college or whatever, I'd still have to make a professional choice - would I then pick IT (and in particular software development) again?
That would be a big question and dilemma ...
I'm not a huge fan of the direction where we seem to be going with AI and all that - the idea that old school artisanal "coding" is going out of the window and we'll be mainly becoming smart "prompt engineers" - I don't know ... but maybe that's just due to my relative lack of familiarity with the subject and to the technology (AI) which makes me a bit wary of it ...
Besides, chances are that AI is going to invade virtually ALL professions, so you probably can't escape it, whether you like it or not :)
It's very stressful for sure, usually you can handle stress in your early 20's and even in your mid 20's but in your 30's it's actually starting to hit a toll. You notice hair thinning and hair loss
I know of people who had strokes or heart attacks over the stress and sleepless nights.
One person had 5 stents inserted into his arteries.
Another had a massive heart attack and had since retired for good.
Both are in their 50s. But don't congratulate your younger self too early.
Reports of younger developers or tech workers dying in their 30s and 40s are starting to happen.
GenAI like GithubCopilot and Cursor can only exacerbate greater expectations and pace of delivery and ticket item resolutions from the management.
This will hit the younger generations of IT or tech workers harder than the millennials or baby boomers.
Suggests that the younger generation cultivate at least one or two other side careers or income stream besides the main day job in IT.
One of the hardest things is knowing what else you could do with your skillset, outside of IT.