For the last ten months I have been working as a computer programmer/team leader and I have to say that I have never worked my brain harder. I mean that from the bottom of my heart, my brain has been pumped from day one and the process is not likely to slacken anytime soon. It is as if I sit down at my desk and a brain turbo kicks in and doesn't kick off until nine hours later.
On the surface, what I do sounds simple: I maintain existing human-machine interface (HMI) displays and develop new HMI displays on an as-needed basis. What is stimulating is that some of the software is over a decade old, some of it has be written by literally dozens of programmers over the years, and some of it has not been used until now. That's right, decade-old software that hasn't seen the light of day. This is a scientific programmer's dream: figure out what is wrong and fix it in time for the next roll-out--brain stimulation at Warp Factor 10.
More importantly is the human side of the equation--my coworkers. In my humble opinion, I work with some of the most talented and experienced programmers on this planet. Collectively, they probably have a couple of centuries or more of work experience and many of them have been working at this job for twenty years or more. The neat thing is that to a person they are happy to help you with any problem you have.
The main thing is that this environment is collaborative to the extreme. In my past jobs I have had to deal with a lot of ego, much of which was extremely destructive to the working environment. My current environment, on the other hand, is the opposite extreme in that it is incredibly collaborative. The difference between the two types of environment is mind boggling in the extreme.
I like coming home exhausted with by brain pumped. I think that this country would be much better off if more of its industry and research was done such that the workers came home feeling like I do.
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