Latest / DevQuestions with Tim Corey / 048 Is It OK To Be In Software Development For The Money?

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048 Is It OK To Be In Software Development For The Money? · DevQuestions with Tim Corey

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to the Dev Questions Podcast with Tim Corey.
• 0:03
  SPEAKER_00: Join us each episode as we tackle the questions you are asking about a career in software development, understanding the industry, and new technology.
• 0:12
  SPEAKER_00: If you're just starting out or you want to grow stronger as a developer, this is the place to get your questions answered.
• 0:19
  SPEAKER_00: Now, here's your host, expert developer and online educator, Tim Corey.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_01: Is it okay to begin software development for the money?
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_01: Do I have to love being a software developer or can it just be a job?
• 0:33
  SPEAKER_01: Do I have to do software development outside my job in order to be successful as a developer?
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_01: This is a question that I came across on the internet, a series of questions that I thought were really important to answer because there's a lot of bad information out there.
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_01: So let's start off with a very clear answer to this question.
• 0:57
  SPEAKER_01: It's okay to be in software development for the money.
• 1:01
  SPEAKER_01: Quite frankly, the money can be excellent in software development.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_01: If you love planting flowers, I'm not sure how much money you can make planting flowers.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_01: But I tell you what, if you're also good at being a software developer, you can make a lot of money doing that.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_01: And that can help you have a lot more money to plant flowers.
• 1:25
  SPEAKER_01: So it's okay to be in software development for the money.
• 1:30
  SPEAKER_01: The upsides in being software development, the pay rate can be excellent.
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_01: Even in countries where certain things are a little more um depressed as far as financially, software development can still be a way you can make good money, especially since we have the internet.
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_01: And so even if you're in a different country, you can often work for people that will pay you more than you can make locally.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_01: And since software development doesn't have to be something where you have to be physically present, you can do that from your country.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_01: So the pay rate can be excellent.
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_01: The flexibility, the fact that you can work across different countries, that can be really helpful.
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_01: You can be halfway around the world and working for a company, and yet you don't have to travel there.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_01: So that flexibility is something you can't do if you like planting flowers, or if you work on cars, or if you build houses.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_01: You have to be physically present for those jobs.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_01: But with software development, you can do it virtually.
• 2:43
  SPEAKER_01: Now, there's also the upside that as you develop as a software developer, often areas open up to you that might not otherwise be open to you.
• 2:53
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe you don't really love software development, but you do it for a job.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_01: But by doing so, you can climb the ladder high enough to become management.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_01: Well, now you're not doing a thing that you're not real thrilled about.
• 3:07
  SPEAKER_01: And maybe you're doing something you you do like.
• 3:09
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe you do like being a manager.
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_01: Well, you can get there through software development.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_01: That's a pretty common path.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_01: It's not one you have to do, see a couple episodes ago, but it's one that you can do.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_01: So it can open up doors that might not otherwise be open to you.
• 3:26
  SPEAKER_01: And there's also the ability to be a consultant.
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe you can't find a job in your area, your city, your country, whatever, but you can work on your own and be a consultant.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_01: There are other jobs that that might not fit with.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_01: You might not be able to walk into a company and say, hey, I can help do something for you.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_01: Whereas a software developer can more often do that.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_01: So there's a lot of upsides to being a software developer, even if you don't love it.
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_01: Now, there are some downsides too, with as with anything.
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_01: If you don't love software development, it can be harder to be a developer.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_01: Because, like with any job, if you're not thrilled to do it, it makes that little bit harder.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_01: It makes the the hard things harder, it makes even the the great things a little less great.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_01: So it can be harder to do, and it's also hard to improve.
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_01: I love software development.
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_01: And because of that, I've always had this desire to do development and learn about development outside of work hours.
• 4:40
  SPEAKER_01: Now, is that always healthy?
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_01: No.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_01: If you're doing too much of it, you're taking away from the rest of your balance of life, and that's not okay.
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_01: But there is a time and a place to learn outside of work.
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_01: And I was always motivated to do that because I wanted to.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_01: I would build applications just because, or I would build things that maybe help somebody out that wasn't my job.
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_01: So because I did that, I gained more experience, I gained more knowledge, and I moved forward faster in my career.
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_01: So if you don't love being a software developer, it's hard to motivate yourself outside work hours to study and to build other applications or to work with other people on building software.
• 5:30
  SPEAKER_01: And you don't have to do that.
• 5:32
  SPEAKER_01: You can say, you know what?
• 5:34
  SPEAKER_01: Nope, I'm gonna work just 40 hours a week, and that's the time I'm gonna put into software development, no more.
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_01: That's fine.
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_01: You don't have to do any more than that.
• 5:44
  SPEAKER_01: But you may not progress as fast as someone else.
• 5:50
  SPEAKER_01: If you're okay with that, great.
• 5:52
  SPEAKER_01: But if you want to progress more quickly, then that might be a downside for you.
• 5:59
  SPEAKER_01: So there's positives and negatives to it, but don't let anyone tell you what your motivation needs to be to become a software developer.
• 6:09
  SPEAKER_01: Okay?
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_01: That's called gatekeeping.
• 6:11
  SPEAKER_01: And that's a pretty common thing on the internet, you know, where someone says, Well, you're not a real developer unless.
• 6:19
  SPEAKER_01: That's wrong.
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_01: If you write code, you're a developer.
• 6:23
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe you're an amateur developer because you haven't gotten paid yet.
• 6:26
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, fine, you're still a developer.
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_01: Once you get paid, you're a professional developer.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_01: Doesn't matter if you're getting paid to fix little bugs in a help desk or building full applications, you're still a developer.
• 6:37
  SPEAKER_01: Don't let people label you or put you down because they want to, because they think that they are the gatekeeper to this next tier of existence.
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_01: They're not.
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_01: Okay.
• 6:51
  SPEAKER_01: So don't let someone say you can't be a real developer if you're only in it for the money.
• 6:58
  SPEAKER_01: Be in it for the money.
• 6:58
  SPEAKER_01: That's fine.
• 6:59
  SPEAKER_01: That's not cynical, that's not a bad thing.
• 7:03
  SPEAKER_01: If this is what you're good at, even if you're not great at it, even if you're not highly motivated to do it on your own personal time, if you can do it, why not?
• 7:16
  SPEAKER_01: That it's great.
• 7:18
  SPEAKER_01: Do it, get the money, get do whatever you enjoy doing on your free time.
• 7:23
  SPEAKER_01: That's fine.
• 7:24
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, don't let someone else stop you from making a good living.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_01: Or for and don't make them feel bad, don't make them make you feel bad about it.
• 7:34
  SPEAKER_01: Don't feel bad about it.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_01: We all do work in order to live.
• 7:41
  SPEAKER_01: And sometimes our work doesn't align with our enjoyments.
• 7:46
  SPEAKER_01: There are things that I love to do that I'm not getting paid to do.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_01: I like playing video games, but you know what?
• 7:53
  SPEAKER_01: No one's paying me to play video games.
• 7:55
  SPEAKER_01: I'm not that good at it.
• 7:57
  SPEAKER_01: So I do something else.
• 7:59
  SPEAKER_01: Now I happen to enjoy being a software developer.
• 8:03
  SPEAKER_01: I happen to really enjoy teaching.
• 8:05
  SPEAKER_01: So that's what I do.
• 8:07
  SPEAKER_01: And because of that, I'm able to progress faster because I like doing it and I like practicing it.
• 8:15
  SPEAKER_01: I don't feel this burden of I have to go teach now.
• 8:19
  SPEAKER_01: I love doing it.
• 8:20
  SPEAKER_01: There are hard times, there are difficult times, but I tell you what, it allows me to move forward faster because I do enjoy it most of the time.
• 8:29
  SPEAKER_01: But don't let anybody tell you that that's the only way you can be something, is if you're doing it for enjoyment.
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_01: Do it because you love it, all right?
• 8:38
  SPEAKER_01: Or do it because of the cash.
• 8:40
  SPEAKER_01: It's either way, it's okay.
• 8:42
  SPEAKER_01: Just do it, all right?
• 8:43
  SPEAKER_01: So if you found this episode helpful, I'd appreciate it if you'd share it with your social network of choice.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_01: Thanks for listening.
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_01: And as always, I am Tim Corey.
• 8:52
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for joining us for this episode of Dev Questions.
• 8:55
  SPEAKER_00: Tim is committed to making it easier for you to become a developer.
• 8:58
  SPEAKER_00: If you would like to help make more content like this possible, please like, subscribe, rate, and share Dev Questions.
• 9:05
  SPEAKER_00: You can also send your questions to questions at Iamtimcorey.com.
• 9:11
  SPEAKER_00: Until next time, remember, you are too smart and your time too valuable to waste it making all the mistakes Tim did.
• 9:18
  SPEAKER_00: When you're ready to learn to think and code like a professional developer, head over to IamtimCore.com and enroll in a course.