I am a man and I feel the same way. I recently graduated and have been working as a hardware designer for the past year and a half. I find cube life very depressing and am increasingly losing my motivation.
I have better social interaction, though. My work has people who are hard to converse with because of their lack of social skills but the majority of people aren't like that.
Even though I hate sitting in my cubicle all day, I really don't like most meetings because the information discussed isn't interesting and my eyes glaze over. People get into pointless arguments and I sit there hoping for the meeting to end. The only meetings that I like are design meetings, but most of our meetings just cover status updates.
I yearn for a job that doesn't involve sitting in front of a computer all day. I love hardware design and programming, but 8 hours a day of it is very taxing. I suffer from RSI in my wrists and have yet to find a long lasting remedy.
Maybe the best option would be to start my own hardware or software company. Working for someone else just adds to the dreariness. Other than that, I have been thinking about becoming a doctor.
Your point about starting a business is a good one. I initially learned programming while self-employed as a web designer back in the wee days of the web. On my own, I always wore more hats than just "code monkey," and that made a difference. Not to mention that when you're self-employed, you can go take a walk outdoors, etc., anytime you like. I guess a predilection for self-employment is why most of us are here reading Hacker News.
At risk of going off-topic: I, too, suffer from RSI. As a programmer and musician, it is a double whammy for me. I have found many short-term solutions, but have recently experienced some astonishing relief from reading The Mindbody Prescription by Dr. Sarno (I believe someone here on HN mentioned it). If you think you would be open to the idea of RSI as a disorder originating in the brain as a result of buried emotional tension, you should check it out.
I suffer from RSI in my wrists and have yet to find a long lasting remedy.
A bit off-topic, obviously, but I've found that rock climbing is really great for the wrists. Starting senior year, I developed unbearable wrist pain from too much typing. After being unable to type for more than an hour or so at a time for almost a year, I started climbing at a local climbing gym, and for the past couple of years I've been able to program all day without any pain. It's worth trying, if you haven't tried that already.
I would advise you to make some time of move now to discover what you really want to do with your career. I remember having the same sorts of feelings at that point in my career but ignoring them. Ten years later, guess who is still a cube dweller? Do something orthogonal to what you have been NOW.
I have better social interaction, though. My work has people who are hard to converse with because of their lack of social skills but the majority of people aren't like that.
Even though I hate sitting in my cubicle all day, I really don't like most meetings because the information discussed isn't interesting and my eyes glaze over. People get into pointless arguments and I sit there hoping for the meeting to end. The only meetings that I like are design meetings, but most of our meetings just cover status updates.
I yearn for a job that doesn't involve sitting in front of a computer all day. I love hardware design and programming, but 8 hours a day of it is very taxing. I suffer from RSI in my wrists and have yet to find a long lasting remedy.
Maybe the best option would be to start my own hardware or software company. Working for someone else just adds to the dreariness. Other than that, I have been thinking about becoming a doctor.