Lost My Motivation For My Day Job, What Do I Do?

Summary

In this video, John Sonmez addresses the challenge of maintaining focus and motivation while working a day job that doesn't inspire passion, especially for developers aspiring to start their own ventures. He suggests replacing the passion for the job with a passion for working hard, emphasizing the importance of developing a strong work ethic. John advises working the agreed hours diligently but not more, and to prioritize personal projects by dedicating the best hours of the day to them. He also encourages viewing the day job as a learning opportunity and a stepping stone to build the necessary skills for future entrepreneurial success.

Takeaways

• 😀 Focus on developing a strong work ethic during your day job, as it will be crucial for your entrepreneurial success.
• 🔑 Understand that your day job is a means to support your personal projects and to build the skills necessary for your own business.
• 🏆 Replace the passion for the day job with the passion for working hard and doing what is required, even if it's not personally interesting.
• 🕒 Dedicate your best hours to your own projects, ideally by waking up earlier and working on them before your day job.
• 💡 Change your perspective to view the day job as a learning opportunity and a form of 'paid training' to improve your skills.
• 🚫 Avoid working overtime for your employer; stick to the agreed hours to ensure you have time and energy for your own endeavors.
• 🤔 Maintain professionalism and fulfill your work responsibilities, but don't get too emotionally invested in tasks that don't align with your personal goals.
• 🌟 Emphasize the importance of self-improvement and personal growth, which can be achieved through the challenges and experiences of your day job.
• 🛠 Use the day job as a platform to master new skills and gain insights that can be beneficial to your own business in the future.
• 🔄 Encourage a mindset shift where the day job is seen not as a burden, but as a stepping stone to achieving your entrepreneurial aspirations.
• 🙌 Employers should support their employees' growth and aspirations, as this will lead to a more motivated and productive workforce.

Q & A

What is the main concern of the person who asked the question in the transcript?

The main concern is about maintaining focus and motivation during a day job that the person is not passionate about, while also working on personal projects in their spare time that could potentially advance their development career and generate revenue.

What advice does John Sonmez give for dealing with a lack of interest in the day job?

John Sonmez suggests replacing the passion for the actual work with a passion for working hard, focusing on developing a strong work ethic, and doing the best job possible during the day job hours.

What does John Sonmez recommend doing with the first hours of the day?

He recommends waking up earlier and working on personal projects first, before starting the day job. This is referred to as 'paying yourself first' with your time and energy.

How does John Sonmez view the relationship between an employer and an employee who wants to grow and possibly start their own business?

John Sonmez believes that if an employer focuses on helping employees become the best version of themselves, they will do a better job for the company and attract more good people. He advises against trying to trap employees and instead encourages them to advance their careers and achieve their goals.

What is the importance of working hard during the day job according to John Sonmez?

Working hard during the day job is important because it helps build the work ethic needed for success in one's own business. It's a way to prepare for the harder work that will be required when working for oneself.

What does John Sonmez suggest as a strategy for managing time between a day job and personal projects?

He suggests working the agreed-upon hours for the day job and then focusing on personal projects outside of those hours, ensuring not to overwork and to allocate the best hours of the day to personal projects.

How should one approach their day job if they are not passionate about the work they are doing?

One should approach their day job with the intention of working hard and doing the best job they can, without getting too emotionally invested in the work itself.

What mindset should one have when working on their own projects while still employed?

One should have a mindset of building a bridge to their future, learning and applying good work ethics, and viewing the day job as a form of paid training that supports their personal growth and future endeavors.

What is the 'pay yourself first' expression mentioned by John Sonmez referring to?

The 'pay yourself first' expression refers to the idea of allocating time and resources to one's own projects and goals before anything else, ensuring that personal development and aspirations are prioritized.

What is the potential benefit of viewing the day job as a form of 'apprenticeship' or 'tutelage'?

Viewing the day job as an apprenticeship or tutelage can change one's perspective from feeling trapped to seeing it as a valuable learning experience, which can contribute to personal and professional growth.

Outlines

00:00

🤔 Balancing Day Job and Personal Projects

John Sonmez from simpleprogrammer.com addresses a common issue faced by developers who aspire to be entrepreneurs. The question comes from a viewer who is working at an agency, building websites they're not passionate about, while simultaneously trying to advance their career with personal projects. John empathizes with the struggle of staying motivated in a day job that doesn't align with one's interests and offers advice on maintaining focus and motivation. He suggests that while the day job may not be personally fulfilling, it's essential to work hard and take the experience as an opportunity to build a strong work ethic, which will be crucial for future entrepreneurial endeavors.

05:01

🔨 Cultivating a Strong Work Ethic

In the second paragraph, John continues to provide guidance on how to manage the day job while working on personal projects. He emphasizes the importance of working hard during the day job, not for the sake of the job itself, but to develop the necessary work ethic for future success. John advises replacing the passion for the job with the passion for working hard and being disciplined. He recommends waking up early to work on personal projects before starting the day job, thus 'paying oneself first' with dedicated time. John also encourages learning as much as possible from the current job to turn it into a beneficial experience, viewing it as paid training. He concludes by advising not to quit the day job but to use it as a stepping stone to build the foundation for one's entrepreneurial journey.

Keywords

💡Entrepreneurial

Entrepreneurial refers to the qualities or actions of an entrepreneur, someone who creates a new business, bearing most of the risks and enjoying most of the rewards. In the video, the theme revolves around the entrepreneurial spirit of developers looking to start their own ventures while working a day job, as the advice given is to start businesses as developers.

💡Day Job

A day job is a primary occupation that one works during the day, often used to distinguish it from other part-time or freelance work. The script discusses the struggle of maintaining focus and motivation at a day job when one's passion lies in personal projects, illustrating the common challenge faced by aspiring entrepreneurs.

💡Revenue Generating

Revenue generating refers to the process or activities that produce income for a business or individual. The video mentions the goal of creating products and services that generate revenue outside of one's day job, indicating the aspiration to achieve financial success through entrepreneurial endeavors.

💡Motivation

Motivation is the reason or reasons one has for acting or behaving in a particular way. The script addresses the issue of staying motivated while working on tasks that do not personally interest the individual, which is a critical aspect of balancing a day job with entrepreneurial aspirations.

💡Work Ethic

Work ethic is a belief about the value of work, often understood as the degree of dedication and diligence one has towards their work. The video emphasizes the importance of developing a strong work ethic as a foundation for success in both one's day job and entrepreneurial ventures.

💡Self-Improvement

Self-improvement refers to the process of personal development by improving one's skills, knowledge, or situation. The script encourages the viewer to use their day job as a means for self-improvement, learning new skills and mastering them for future benefit.

💡Paid Training

Paid training is when an employer provides education or skill development to an employee while still paying their regular wages. In the context of the video, the day job is likened to paid training, where one is not only earning a salary but also gaining valuable experience and skills.

💡Apprenticeship

An apprenticeship is a system of training a new generation of practitioners of a skill or craft through a combination of on-the-job training and often some form of more formal academic instruction. The video script uses the term to describe the day job as a form of apprenticeship, where one learns the necessary skills for future success.

💡Productivity

Productivity is the effectiveness of production as measured by the quantity of goods and services produced by a worker or a machine. The script suggests being productive during the day job by working hard and focusing on the task at hand, even if it's not personally engaging.

💡Personal Projects

Personal projects refer to tasks or initiatives that an individual undertakes outside of their professional obligations, often for personal growth or passion. The video discusses the importance of working on personal projects during one's spare time as a means to advance one's career and create new opportunities.

💡Transitioning

Transitioning is the process of changing from one state or condition to another. In the video, transitioning refers to the phase of moving from a day job to an entrepreneurial venture, which requires building the necessary skills and mindset for self-employment.

Highlights

John Sonmez discusses the challenge of staying motivated at a day job while working on personal projects.

The question comes from a developer who is not passionate about their current job but is working on ideas to advance their career.

John advises on maintaining focus and motivation while working on uninteresting tasks at a day job.

He emphasizes the importance of working hard even when not passionate about the task at hand.

John suggests that working hard for an employer can be a form of training for working hard for oneself.

He recommends not working overtime but focusing on the quality of work during the agreed hours.

John advises waking up earlier to work on personal projects before starting the day job.

The concept of 'paying yourself first' with time is introduced as a strategy for personal project development.

John encourages viewing the day job as a form of 'apprenticeship' to build necessary skills and work ethic.

He suggests changing one's perspective to see the day job as a stepping stone rather than a prison.

John advises learning as much as possible from the current job to benefit future endeavors.

The importance of having a good work ethic even when not motivated by the task is reiterated.

John stresses the value of treating the day job as 'paid training' to improve oneself.

He recommends not quitting the day job but instead using it to build a foundation for future success.

John discusses the balance between working hard at the day job and dedicating time to personal projects.

The video concludes with advice on maintaining a positive mindset and using the day job as a learning opportunity.

Transcripts

hey john sonmez from

simpleprogrammer.com

um i got a i got an interesting question

that i was going to answer today

and this is obviously from someone who's

watching the entreprogrammers podcast

uh because he said it's a question from

a developer newer

so i give a lot of advice around um sort

of

the idea of quitting your job and not

necessarily quitting your job but

you know how to how to start your own

business how this is

entrepreneurial type of thing right as a

as a developer

so that's where this comes from he says

hi john i've got a burning question

at the moment and thought you might be

able to give some advice

i'm working the day job at an agency

building websites that i don't really

care about that much

in my spare time i'm working on ideas

that will push my dev career forward and

hopefully

create a review gen revenue generating

products

and services cool but my big question is

how do i keep focused motivated during

the day job when i'm not really into the

product life service that i'm working on

and seem to spend my time thinking about

my own projects

you must have faced this problem at some

point happy

uh for you to use my questions in a

video but please don't use my name in

case my

boss watches your videos thanks in

advance okay

so uh gabriel oops no

his name really isn't gabriel so it's

it's george

but uh but anyway um

yeah actually i have faced this problem

uh yeah i remember going into two too

far

into details but yeah i've been many

times right i've been

i had my day job which you know my

aspirations have always been to get out

on my own

uh i'm not to say that i haven't ever

liked my day job i

definitely liked a lot of companies i've

worked for i definitely have been

passionate about the work

that i've worked on but there comes some

point when you're doing your own thing

where you care about doing your own

thing you don't care about the

kind of code that you're having to write

during the day for your day job because

that's

that's not interesting to you that's not

your own thing

so you know what did i do in that

situation well

here's what i did and here's what i sort

of recommend and

you know employers that are watching

this and

might not like this advice so much but

hey um

it's the advice you know if i hire

someone to work for me

i'd give them the same advice because i

honestly believe

you know if you're an employer watching

this you're like man don't let my devs

you know listen to this john guy he's

gonna he's gonna screw up my

my deal here but honestly if you give

if your focus on employees right is to

give them

to make them be the best version of

themselves

possible to use elliott hulse's right

if you if you want people to succeed

and your focus is on on improving them

improving their skills and improving

their lives

they're going to do better job for you

and they're going to bring

other people to you that are going to do

a good job right

if you if you don't if you try to trap

them and say oh then we need to keep

them here and

and keep them from going off in their

own direction and starting their own

business or whatever

they're not going to be happy they're

going to get by minimally they're not

going to

do a good job for you you're not going

to they're not going to attract more

people

who you know if you're if you're a place

where you're helping people grow

you're gonna get a lot of good people

you're not gonna get them for a long

time

but for the time that you have them they

will be

you know you're gonna get a lot of good

ideas and work

out of them and you know so that's

that's just my philosophy

on that so i i always encourage i mean

help your employees not need you anymore

help them become

you know better versions of themselves

to get out on their own

there's no there's you're not gonna it's

not gonna hurt you to do that

right it's not like encouraging them to

you know go start their own businesses

but

but don't discourage them you know be

encouraging

for them to advance their career to

achieve their goals and their dreams

those are going to be happy people that

are going to work for you

hard so with that said uh

work your eight hours every day whatever

it is you know i mean do not

work over do not you know put to

like work hard like when you are working

for your employer right your day job uh

you don't you're lacking motivation you

don't

um you're not really into this you don't

really care about

what you're doing but what you can care

about and be passionate about

is the principle of working hard and

and doing what you're supposed to do

right this is one of

one of the advice pieces of advice i

give to people that are looking to quit

their job and want to get out on their

own

is first learn to work hard for someone

else then because when you are out on

your own

right you're gonna be busting your butt

all the time

working hard for yourself it's just

gonna happen you're gonna

like it is so much harder to work for

yourself

way harder an eight hour a day working

on your own

right if you're really working which you

don't get paid if you if you

if you don't you there's no getting paid

for goofing off when you're working for

yourself

it's tough so that's my advice is like

replace your passion for what you're

actually doing

with your passion for working hard be

you know if you got to be a mindless

i don't want to say models but if you've

got to be a zombie for the eight hours

you're working for someone else

do it but do it working hard working

towards the principle of working hard do

the best job that you can

don't get so emotionally wrapped up into

the work and

and whatnot but just be the kind of you

know pumping out the

the work working very hard knowing that

you're building

for yourself the work ethic that you

will need to be successful

right this is this is the key here is

you know during that time

when you're transitioning you've got

these big ideas you want to get out on

your own

build yourself that bridge you're going

to need to learn

really really good work ethic and to be

able to work when you don't feel like it

when you're not motivated

when you don't care about this crap

because even your own stuff you're not

going to care about that

you know it eventually you will you will

you will feel like you don't care about

it

so so work hard learn to work hard but

work the minimal at the same time right

so

i know it seems like a contradiction but

put in your 40

and that's it that's it that's what you

agreed you know

cut it as much as possible and and work

on your own stuff

the other thing also is wake up

earlier in the day and work on your

stuff first

pick you know the whole pay yourself

first expression pay yourself your hours

first

take two hours or one hour a day

whatever time you're gonna allocate

to your own stuff and spend those hours

first wake up earlier before you get to

the job before your dream before you get

home and you're tired and you don't feel

like you're working on

anything anymore that's that's you know

that's

my best advice on this and that's going

to help you

the most don't quit your job don't do

anything silly like that you're going to

have to grind this out this is a test

it's a trial it's a whole

difficult period but you're doing the

right thing by building

you know what you're building on the

side by continuing to work for

for this company um you know like i said

the focus the motivation during the day

when you're not really into

to the work you're going to replace that

with with knowing that you're there for

a purpose

which is to train you to work hard and

that this

in this work that you're doing for this

company is supporting you to be able to

build your own

thing right when you change your

perspective when you change your

viewpoint and you look at it in those

terms

it's no longer a prison sentence right

it's it's a

it's a tutelage it's a it's a chant an

apprenticeship

right it's a chance to uh learn as much

as you can use that

also try to learn as much as you can at

your current job

what can you learn what can you pick up

what kind of skills can you master right

how can you turn it to your benefit it's

not that you're just like you know

shoveling manure for eight hours a day

with no purpose in mind

right you're you're you're building your

character by working hard

you're learning new skills right you use

this to your advantage as much as

possible

think of it as paid training you're

getting paid to actually

like learn and to to be able to uh to

improve yourself

so so do that go through this pain it

you know

if you change your mindset to see this

as a positive experience

i think i think that will will help you

don't worry about being so passionate

about the work or the websites that

you're building

that's not you don't have to have

passion about that

um but but what you do have to do is

have that good work ethic

and and stick with this and like i said

don't give it more than

than you need to but give it the minimum

to get through it

as you're working on your own then give

yourself your best hours first

so that's it that's my advice in this

situation hopefully

that helps you and uh and yeah

uh thanks thanks thanks for sending me

the email this is this is a good one

i think a lot of people are stuck in a

similar situation want to know how to

get out of

out of this problem all right well

that's it for this uh this video

uh please subscribe to this channel if

you uh if you like these videos

take care