> It’s an investment in myself that I sell to my employer with regularly increasing salary.
I think this is a really important point!
Of course it's acceptable to go home and watch soccer.
But then you are relying on your employer to keep your skills current. Some employers will send you to a conference once a year, but I'm not sure that's enough.
If you don't keep learning you'll realize that when you are 45 your skills are 20 years out of date.
Considering how tech salaries exploded in the last decade, I think we're getting a fair deal for spending some of our free time learning.
Most jobs offer progression without the toil of deliberate study on your personal time. Good employers invest in their employees by allowing them to do gain skills while on the clock, be it through classes, independent study time, side projects, etc.
It's also dangerous to willingly give this away based on the salaries during a boom. The expectation won't go away when the boom goes away... In fact, it will probably get worse.
I think this is a really important point!
Of course it's acceptable to go home and watch soccer.
But then you are relying on your employer to keep your skills current. Some employers will send you to a conference once a year, but I'm not sure that's enough.
If you don't keep learning you'll realize that when you are 45 your skills are 20 years out of date.
Considering how tech salaries exploded in the last decade, I think we're getting a fair deal for spending some of our free time learning.