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Discussion on: Becoming a programmer late in your career

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Brian Lampe

I dropped out of college after one semester. I tried to get back, but life kept getting in the way. I worked all kinds of jobs. Fast food, waiting tables, bungee master, remodeling, pwc repairman, driving a truck... Eventually I got a desk job doing some kind of data entry plus. I got bored with that, and a friend suggested I try a programming class. I took a few classes, and I was in love. I started automating stuff for my team. I eventually worked my way into a sort of programmer-analyst role. They wouldn't make me a full developer, so I found someone who would.

I was about 33 at the time. Not super late, but later than a lot of folks. Every now and then I think maybe I should do another switch, but I don't know of anything that would be as gratifying. Lots of people hate their jobs like I hated mine. I'm one of the lucky ones that escaped.