

Ask HN: How to get positive again? - DwyiBtnS

Hi everyone,<p>I have been lurking here for a while and finally managed to find the courage to ask a question here: How do you get positive again?<p>Let me explain; I work in IT industry and the project I am working has been going less then a year and all ready we have lots of Java code with, what feels like, hundreds of factories, interfaces, implementations etc. and it all ready feels like we use every design pattern under the sun. Some of me colleagues think it is really great and love Java. They think it is the greatest thing since sliced bread.<p>I don't. (I have caught the Clojure bug).<p>Last year I also had a bad performance review in a Microsoft style review system. My skill set didn't quite match what was required at the time, true, but contributed to the best of my ability. So now I am part of a performance review, but guess what, there is no education budget to help me learn the stuff I wasn't so good at and I think the performance review doesn't do anything to address my motivation. I have to do that myself, according to my manager.<p>On top of that I was diagnosed with MS a few years ago. I inject myself three times a week with Rebif, in the beginning I really really struggled with it and it would take me a long time to do (30 minutes or more). Now I can do it in less than a minute. I have been using anti-depressants for almost two years now and although I feel a lot better I still find it difficult to get motivated and to get excited about (work) things.<p>So, here is my question to you: How do you get positive and motivated (again) and stay that way? I somehow ended up in this vicious circle and I want to get out of it and enjoy life again.<p>TIA
A.n. Other.
======
Skywing
Listen, in life you just need to find "your thing." Your thing can be anything
that you enjoy doing, or feel like you're good at. Everybody has a "thing",
whether or not they know it. Sometimes I hear people say that they wish they
were good at something, or had a hobby. Well, they are good at something, they
just have to find it. So, find your thing and during your free time you really
need to make an effort to do that thing on a regular basis. It can be running,
fishing, programming, hanging out with family and friends - just something to
take you away from work and stress. Working a job, 8 hours a day or more, can
be difficult to unwind from. But neglecting to unwind will catch up with you
eventually, and I always felt like it hit me in the form of depression or just
a general negative attitude.

If programming is your "thing" but yet you program at work, as well, like me,
then this can be pretty difficult. If this is your scenario, I'd suggest
switching it up completely, at home. Venture into some unknown language all
together on a platform that you're not familiar with, even. Forget the JVM. If
you stick to something that is close to what you do at your stressful job then
I feel like your mind may never fully relax, even at home. I've been having a
ton of fun learning how to program iphone applications over the past week.
It's something I've wanted to do for a long time but always felt like the
barrier to entry was high, because of the OSX requirement, the funky
Objective-C language, the clunky Xcode IDE. But, newer versions of Xcode and
the Objective-C compiler have become really awesome, actually. For me, iphone
app dev is a slightly crazy but interesting combination of visual coding,
because there's a lot of weird things like "shift click and drag a line from
this GUI element over to this line of text in your code to create some very
important delegate connection", combined with your typical programming but in
a awkwardly funky language syntax - it's all pretty fun, really.

Just some thoughts. Good luck!

------
arkitaip
So sorry that you are going through this rough patch. Can't be easy struggling
with MS and depression while having to do unfulfilled work day in and day out.

What is your therapist saying? Because you need to talk to a professional who
understands your background, and medical and mental condition. A therapist can
guide you through your issues, shed light over the darkness you're
experiencing and break down a long healing process into manageable steps.

------
squidsoup
Having struggled with depression myself, one of the most beneficial things I
did to improve my state of mind, other than getting medical help, was to learn
to play an instrument. For me it continues to be extremely therapeutic and a
great source of joy.

Find something that you enjoy doing (ideally something you can do for the rest
of your life) where there is no expectation from anyone else but yourself to
improve. I think many of the people that frequent HN are driven to improve
themselves, but are probably also very self critical. If you can find an
activity/craft/art/sport that you find engaging and allows you to slowly grow
in proficiency with over time, you may find it helpful.

In terms of your workplace scenario, I'd suggest just trying to do your best
given the constraints you have. While your workplace is unlikely to wholesale
adopt Clojure, perhaps you can use it to solve small problems, or failing that
use what you've learned about functional programming to simplify your Java
code.

------
dholowiski
CHANGE

Change something significant in your life. That might be your job, where you
live, or even your position at the company you currently work at. It might
mean a new hobby or a big new project.

In my opinion it's not about being positive, it's about having something to be
passionate about. If you don't, CHANGE until you do.

Of course, much easier said than done.

------
jamesjguthrie
I worked in sales and customer service a few years back and totally hated it,
it just wasn't for me. It really got me down and affected my home life. So I
gave it up, went back into education and created my own startup.

Now I'm half way through my degree, on summer break, working at home in a pair
of shorts every day.

Don't continue doing something that is making you unhappy. If your work or
workplace is making you unhappy, find something else. Life is too short!

