What to do when a programmer is tired

It is not uncommon for programmers to lose their enthusiasm for work due to mental and physical exhaustion while programming.

There are many articles that can serve as evidence of this, proving that this is already a common phenomenon in the IT industry. Since I have already dealt with burnout myself, I want to explore this issue in more depth to help others solve or even prevent it.

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Causes of burnout

Programmers are more susceptible to burnout than professionals in other fields. I don’t have a clear answer as to why this happens, but I think there are four main reasons.

• The first is the physiological reason. Sitting at a desk and facing a computer every day is unhealthy and will make people more listless and sleepy. Sleepiness may also lead to other bad habits, such as eating snacks, smoking, staying up late, etc., which will eventually lead to depression and fatigue.
• The second reason is that programming is highly cognitively intensive and very stressful work, which can lead to mental fatigue and damage.
• Third, it’s possible that you’re burned out because the work you’re doing is draining you of energy and yielding little reward. The only solution is to take some time off and reflect on what kind of work you’d like to do if money wasn’t an issue.
• The fourth reason is not something I came up with, but something I found in the comments section of Hacker News. Someone described it accurately, "Burnout is caused by repeatedly making a lot of sacrifices or working on high-stakes problems only to fail. This is a result of a negative prediction gap in the nucleus accumbens. Your brain needs to be able to handle failure rationally." This one is so true. There is hardly a day in the life of creating software that is not filled with failures and setbacks.

I've experienced burnout a few times myself. While I never gave up programming, I occasionally doubted whether I had chosen the right career. So, since then, I've started to focus on strategic work methods to maintain long-term motivation and productivity. In this article, I'll introduce some of my development habits, as well as some techniques that can prevent or even eliminate burnout.

Let’s start with the basics.

• Eat well. Don't think that being a vegetarian is the end of the world. Try gradually replacing soda with water, eating a low-sugar diet, eating more vegetables, and not overeating. And most importantly, keep going.
• Sleep well. This includes good sleep quality and adequate sleep time. A better sleeping environment can make us feel refreshed when we wake up. One specific trick is to reduce the exposure to blue light that can keep people awake at night. This can be done by installing Flux to adjust the color of the computer monitor.
• Don't overwork yourself. There is a lot of evidence that productivity, or output, drops dramatically after four hours of focused work. It's impossible to maintain high productivity for a long time in a highly cognitively intensive profession like programming.
• Pomodoro Technique. This is a simple and effective method for programmers who want to maintain productivity while getting some necessary rest. The Pomodoro Technique is to work hard for 25 minutes, then take a 5-minute break, and then repeat. It works better if you have a specific goal in each work period. Ideally, you should do some activities away from the computer during the break, such as taking a walk, doing push-ups, etc. Of course, you can also take a 30-minute break after three Pomodoro Techniques, which is also very effective.
• Stay active, keep moving. I was going to say exercise, but many people have a misunderstanding that exercise must include going to the gym, or something else. But in reality, staying active can also be achieved by taking the stairs instead of the elevator, or parking the car in a corner and riding a bike to work. In short, other ways to exercise in daily life are easier to achieve, rather than being addicted to the computer all day.

More specific points

• Experiment, play, learn, prototype. These things can get you a lot of benefit in the short term and produce output quickly. For example, building websites over and over again in the same way you always do. However, this can become boring and uninteresting over time. Programming is part engineering, using well-proven techniques for producing software. But it also allows you to have fun, experiment, and try new ideas. Spending 20% ​​of your time on technology is one of the most effective strategies to avoid burnout. Technology can mean trying new libraries, creating something interesting but not work-related, or learning something you haven't touched before, such as functional programming.
• Attend meetups, conferences, and listen to podcasts. Programming can be lonely. Meeting other developers or listening to their experiences on podcasts can make you care more about your work. No one likes to complain, but sharing or hearing about other programmers' struggles and how they overcame them can motivate you to keep going.
• Create a good working environment and don't skimp on the tools. A PC that compiles quickly will save you time waiting unnecessarily. Make sure you have a comfortable chair, desk and monitor and setup. If you work in a noisy environment, invest in a high-quality headset to isolate the noise.
• Master the tools. Good tools make programming more enjoyable, and mastering them makes you more productive. This is a well-known point, but I'll say it again. Knowing all the shortcuts in your tools, editors, operating systems, and command lines can save you a lot of time. Automating routine tasks can speed up the process and further keep burnout at bay.
• Take a break and explore other things. There are many fun activities besides programming. For example: sports, cultural activities, sex, reading, Legos, social activities, fishing, baking, photography, etc. If you always do one thing continuously, such as programming, then one day you will inevitably be exhausted. So, do some seemingly unrelated work that can actually rekindle your passion, and these works may also inspire you to have new ideas and thoughts, just like the legendary Nobel Prize winner Richard Feynman learned the swing of the board.
• Consider changing jobs or starting a different project. Burnout can also be caused by doing boring, exhausting work, such as fine-tuning an existing code base all day. It can also be caused by the project you are currently working on no longer meeting your interests or your values. In addition, if you find that coding no longer excites you, you can also consider related fields, such as information architecture, system administration, etc., which may rekindle your passion.
• Integrate those tasks that you can complete smoothly into daily tasks. These tasks include testing code, writing comments, improving variable naming, etc., which can release endorphins and help restore work behavior. This technique is intended to make our brains more motivated for the work we do.

in conclusion

There’s no magic bullet to cure burnout, and everyone’s situation is different, so I’ve listed some tips that I’ve found to be effective for you, hopefully.

Granted, it takes time to develop new habits, but eating well, sleeping well, exercising, and taking good care of yourself can make you feel better, which in turn can help you do a better job at getting work done and keep your love of programming alive.

So, come on. Don't force yourself to work 10 hours a day, 6 days a week. It's scientifically proven that after a certain number of focused working hours, attention will drop sharply. So, focus on using the Pomodoro Technique efficiently during work hours, and forget about it completely after get off work. Learn to say no, and do something you like besides programming. This is the real important point, come on, young man!