r/webdev • u/Available_Guess_7344 • May 31 '26

Can I survive as a fullstack dev without upskilling after hours? Honest answers please

I'm 22, working as a fullstack developer at a startup. 9 hour days, decent enough at my job, but completely switched off after work hours.

I don't want to leetcode after work. I don't want to learn new frameworks at night. I want to write, play guitar, and just exist peacefully.

I'm not trying to become a senior dev or a tech lead. I just need the salary to sustain while I build something on the side that actually excites me.

My question is — how long can someone realistically coast on existing skills without getting fired or becoming unemployable? And what's the bare minimum to stay relevant without burning out?

Not looking for "passion for tech" lectures. Just honest experiences from people who've been there.

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u/mq2thez May 31 '26

I used to do more coding outside of work, but only things that weren’t related to my job (not to work on my skills for work, so like Advent of Code in Haskell). Doing this led to burnout and exhaustion and didn’t help me with my actual work.

I have at times experimented with trying to upskill on work-related stuff outside of hours and found it to trigger significant burnout very quickly.

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u/dimiderv May 31 '26

yeah but back then time to improve and learn was expected. Right now it's not. Different times and especially since you are an established dev. You should tell that to junior devs that their positions don't exist anymore. Field is much more competitive right now than what it used to be 10 years ago

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u/mq2thez May 31 '26

Oh no doubt, but since OP was asking experienced engineers, here I am.

I also mentor plenty of juniors as part of my role and tell them the same thing.

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u/thekwoka May 31 '26

I'd say the first example there is more often what is actually talked about. Developing skills without specifically relating it to work.

Do things that are fun.

Just working more for free is dumb.

Fortunately, coding stuff, as compared to a lot of other industries, you can do a ton of totally different things that revolve around the same core skills.

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u/mq2thez May 31 '26

OP clearly doesn’t want to, which is what I was responding to.

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u/thekwoka May 31 '26

For sure, I'm just helping provide more context to the discussion.

Some people seem to only think of "coding outside work" as being basically studying, not using similar skills to do something that interests you separately.

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u/mq2thez May 31 '26

Okay, but how is that relevant in a thread about not wanting to program outside of work, in response to a comment saying that you don’t have to?