General > General Technical Chat

is electronics even waste of time

<< < (4/6) > >>

VooDust:
1-2 years of my life was spent learning electronics on the side. I would spend the nights in my "lab" after bringing the kids to bed, twisting my mind over beginner circuits. Anything I ever built could have been done by 1st year EE students. Total waste of time.

It just so happened I interviewed for a prestigious (to me) job at a world known software company. Totally unrelated to EE, but when I had to prove I was curious minded, able to learn and to solve problems on my own, I showed them my hardware gadgets that I designed and manufactured. I got the job.

Moral of the story: You have to put something in to get something out. Also I was lucky.

mathsquid:

--- Quote from: strawberry on December 29, 2021, 10:48:07 pm ---if dont make something useful nor capable inventing something. is that waste of resources to pretend smart
if dont make something useful. is this addiction like hoarding
if make something good, it will show up on aliexpress for 1/10 bom cost
if components become tiny, need expensive assembly service
if components become less reliable
what is net worth from this

--- End quote ---

I feel this in my bones.

I feel it about electronics and about all my other hobbies.  It's a feeling that I'm wasting my time. That I should be doing something more productive or worthwhile. Other posters have said that if you enjoy it then it's not a waste, and I agree completely. But it's not that simple.

One problem is that if I did switch to some other hobby, I'd eventually feel the same way about it. So the truth is that this it's not about electronics, or any other particular hobby. It's an issue with me experiencing existential dread.

Another problem--and this may just be me being weird--is that sometimes I don't know whether I'm enjoying something or not. My hobbies all involve problem-solving of some sort. Problem-solving can be fun and rewarding, but it can also be frustrating. This happens all too often: I want to make something (a circuit/program/metal doohicky), and I run into a really challenging problem/task. I get tunnel vision while working on it, and then a couple of hours later I'll realize that I've not been having fun for the past 45 minutes, and I feel like that time was wasted. It's difficult for me to realize when I need to pause and go do something else.

And when I think about it, I do like and mostly enjoy electronics and my other hobbies, even if they frustrate me sometimes. Apart from some applications that I can use in the classroom (like approximating the golden ratio with a resistor ladder), I don't foresee anything "useful" coming out of it, and I know that that is okay. But it doesn't always feel okay. I'm sorry that the OP has these sorts of feelings, but it is comforting that I'm not the only one.



VooDust:

--- Quote from: mathsquid on December 30, 2021, 11:03:18 pm ---I feel this in my bones.

I feel it about electronics and about all my other hobbies.  It's a feeling that I'm wasting my time. That I should be doing something more productive or worthwhile.Other posters have said that if you enjoy it then it's not a waste, and I agree completely. But it's not that simple.

One problem is that if I did switch to some other hobby, I'd eventually feel the same way about it. So the truth is that this it's not about electronics, or any other particular hobby. It's an issue with me experiencing existential dread.

Another problem--and this may just be me being weird--is that sometimes I don't know whether I'm enjoying something or not. My hobbies all involve problem-solving of some sort. Problem-solving can be fun and rewarding, but it can also be frustrating. This happens all too often: I want to make something (a circuit/program/metal doohicky), and I run into a really challenging problem/task. I get tunnel vision while working on it, and then a couple of hours later I'll realize that I've not been having fun for the past 45 minutes, and I feel like that time was wasted. It's difficult for me to realize when I need to pause and go do something else.

And when I think about it, I do like and mostly enjoy electronics and my other hobbies, even if they frustrate me sometimes. Apart from some applications that I can use in the classroom (like approximating the golden ratio with a resistor ladder), I don't foresee anything "useful" coming out of it, and I know that that is okay. But it doesn't always feel okay. I'm sorry that the OP has these sorts of feelings, but it is comforting that I'm not the only one.

--- End quote ---

This is me to a T. You might want to take the Autism Quotient test and go from there. Autism can take many forms and is undiagnosed in many adults.

Also, depression. But that can have many root causes and I don't have a solution for that.

But it helps when you know there is a reason and you are actually supposed to be this way.

armandine2:
If we're considering theories: for me the Correspondence Theorem is a favourite.

Something to do with the hidden curriculum -- if we are not inclined to favour long projects perhaps we were taught not to be.


armandine2:
and ... a good gripe - not too off topic

EEVblog #40 - Dilbert and the world of micro managed Engineering

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page

[*] Previous page

There was an error while thanking
Thanking...
Go to full version
Powered by SMFPacks Advanced Attachments Uploader Mod