If I ever win the lottery I'm dropping software engineering to do music somehow. I play guitar and learn music theory as a hobby, but only at a beginner/intermediate level with not enough time to practice and get to the next level.
You can get to the next level without needing to change careers. I just hit a new plateau on the guitar last month and I’ve got a full time job that sometimes requires weekend work, two young kids, and a wife getter her PhD. The trick is that I don’t do anything much other than play guitar in the 2-3 hours a week that I have to myself!
It is also very focused and goal oriented practice as I don’t have the time to otherwise mess around.
FYI, it seems to me like all your comments might be automatically "dead"? I don't know if there is some auto moderation process in the background or if they're all getting organically downvoted or something? But every time I see one of your posts, in any topic, it's gray and dead.
I vouched for this one because it seemed reasonable. I know I struggle with making time for practice.