This is a preview of an article scheduled for completion before the week is out (and while it shares superficial similarities to a recent Paul Graham article, it was started before Paul "published", and has been a topic that I've long wanted to cover).

I've dedicated a little more time to writing now, and should finally complete another commissioned magazine article over the next month (this one on distributed/symmetrical computing with .NET), which will be satisfying to finally .

Introduction

Software development can be a tremendously rewarding and enjoyable career.

Few careers offer comparable opportunities to weave intricate, complex structures that, while virtual, have such a  positive impact on the world around them. Few offer the freedom and creativity that software development does, or the very real potential for entrepreneurial riches.

Whether it's building a new peer-to-peer application, control software for a massive power generator, or improving the workflow of the corporate scorecard system, done right this can be a very fulfilling, enjoyable, challenging pursuit.

This article describes the wonder and curiosity that many developers start out with, whether it's when they pick up their first JavaScript in 1 Hour book, when they start toying with the gcc compiler for the first time, or when they started their first Computer Science course in university. It describes how that natural enthusiasm can be crushed, and how it can hopefully be regained or maintained.

This is written for the developer, whether a new recruit or a veteran, motivated or unmotivated, spirited or crushed, yet it's also written for software development managers (who might identify how to make the workplace more enjoyable and more rewarding).

A Passion for Software Development

Does your mind race at all hours, abuzz with potential solutions for vexing software development challenges? Do you lie awake at night -- anxious like a preschooler on Christmas Eve -- eager for morning to arrive so you can implement the crafty coding structures you just thought up? Do you frequently find yourself powering up your system in the twilight hours to implement the fruits of an epiphany?

Or do you put in just enough face time and superficial effort that sacrifice makes up for undelivered results? Do you purge your mind of software development the moment the virtual end-of-day whistle goes off, sliding off your Aeron dinosaur satisfied that it's one day closer to the weekend? Do you dread Mondays, motivating yourself to keep going with the dream of a far off vacation?

Do you eagerly embrace new technologies, seeing it as a challenging opportunity to learn something new when a solution calls for a new skill? Would you voluntarily dive into the innards of the Firefox web browser if a solution demanded it and you'd never touched it before? Do you swim through documentation, thirstily absorbing new APIs, tools, and languages to expand your skill-set, eagerly embracing industry advances?

Or do you dread anything different, praying that you're tasked with challenges that require only the skills you've long held, allowing you to apply them in a mechanical, repetitious fashion? Do you hope every project is an echo of a prior project? Do you put off any task requiring research, and show disdain towards new languages, techniques and practices, hoping that they don't gain traction?

Are you really passionate about software development?

Be honest with yourself.

A desire to outshine a teammate isn't passion. Nor is a motivation to impress the boss. Neither is a combination of the two worn as a magic defensive cloak against downsizing spells. All of those are second-rate, artificial passion substitutes: Mixed into the recipe, they yield subpar results, often leaving a nasty aftertaste called burnout and dissatisfaction.

Instead I'm talking about a bona fide interest and enjoyment of the craft and challenge of software development, even outside of career or job security issues (though it benefits the same). This isn't a job ad demanding that you're "passionate about business reports!", but rather is just a moment for sober reflection on whether you're over-clocking life, or running idle instructions in a tight loop.

If you're like most software developers in the industry today, a feeling of enthusiasm and enjoyment for the pursuit is just a distant memory (often during the happy days of university and your first job). Instead it has become a career, and is just something you do from 9-5 (or more when passion is replaced by sacrifice). Skills have likely stagnated, moving just enough to compete with coworkers, or to avoid obsolescence.

Of course there are those who've never (and will never) enjoyed this career. The only advice I can offer to those people is a suggestion that life is too fleeting to spend so much time doing something you don't enjoy.

Many others, however, remember the passion, and sporatically get a taste of it again. For those people I propose some personal habits that coupled with workplace practices (for managers, as well as people who rightfully manage up), that will help recapture, and maintain, that passion.

Software developers who truly love what they are doing are the ones creating the most innovative code. They're the ones with productivity rates multiples of their peers in the industry. They're the ones getting paid to do what they love doing.

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