Yesterday I met with a friend of many years. He’s a man with lots of life experience and a sharp, bright mind. He jokingly told me that he doesn’t know a lot, therefore I should not expect too much of him – however, if I had a question related to accountancy, I should ask him, because that is all he ever did and still does. He added that there was no reason to consult someone else since he’s been an accountant for more than 50 years, and he will have given the same answer, provided that the other person is right. He went on and explained how it was the best decision ever to become a self-employed accountant. He would spend many hours in his home office and work until his brain was tired, or the day’s task list exhausted. He never really considered his profession as being work since he just loved what he was doing. We spoke about my immigration and how I love living in the US versus my country of origin. He said, as if it was a fact impossible to refute, that the place of living doesn’t matter anyway if what you do is your passion and keeps you busy every day, as long as you want.
I think he made some very interesting statements, and I sure want to live my life accordingly. What accounting is to him, coding is to me. I wouldn’t wanna live outside the US anymore, but I agree that a fulfilled professional life can make so many annoying aspects of life less important.
And so I go on, grateful that I was able to become a self-employed developer, and more determined than ever to make it work. What is your calling?