I just read Ted Dziuba’s blog on not programming on his spare time. His point is interesting, but I don’t think he expressed it very well. For any readers out there, I think I should first put this entry in a bit of context. I program all the time. I am constantly writing little tools, websites, learning new technologies (my blog entry on Ruby on Rails was posted at near midnight), and getting excited about the next new thing. Just ask my wife, while she’s checking Perez Hilton; I’m reading a programming guide.

I deeply believe there is a balance in work and life. I believe a person should do as much of what makes them happy as possible. I’m writing this in between a run and a bike ride to a climbing gym, for example. However, people tend to do things that they enjoy and that makes them happy in their free time.

What makes me happy? Learning things.

I’ve known for quite some time that my biggest hurdle wasn’t discovering what I found interesting so I could pursue that as a career, but rather focusing my energies on something that I could really make a difference in and that was really inspiring to me. The things that I gravitate toward are usually challenging and represent a huge learning curve. I attribute my attraction to this somewhat to our natural tendency for seeking.

I don’t know Ted, and I don’t want to put words in his mouth, but I think what Ted was trying to say is that it’s important to balance your outside work activities and understand when others have different habits than you.

Would I hire somebody that doesn’t program outside of work? Absolutely.
Would I ask in an interview what they like to do with their free time? Of course I would.

Part of working for my company, Security Innovation, is fitting in with our company culture, and part of that is sharing common interests. We tend to work long hours and I wouldn’t want to spend 10-14 hours per day with somebody I didn’t have anything in common with. I also want to know that they’re interested in what they’re doing and that they are doing what they love. These people tend to work harder, learn faster and do better work than people that don’t enjoy what they do, in my experience.

So I guess my big lesson from all of this is just take all things in balance. Just because somebody programs with all their time, or knows every bit of security knowledge doesn’t make them a good hire. Conversely, though, being excited about what you do with the majority of your life is a very important thing.

Labels: coding, development, free time