The thread author is in limited company with his work ethic, as a developer that has the problem of trying to hire people I find it a nightmare, there is little work ethic left in the west, if it wasn't for Asia and the Orient I would find it almost completely impossible to do anything, as westerners are so few on the ground. The west feels like the last days of Rome, the barbarians are knocking on the gate and as the rot has set in the people are pacified with bread and circuses, (welfare and free entertainment), and by welfare, if you don't work for it, its welfare, including student loans, credit on demand, pirate sites, and anything else you didn't work for before you got it.
The games industry right now is what being a club DJ was, and what being a pop star was before that, its the latest in thing, we live in a culture of wannabes, and its actively encouraged, see reality TV shows (oxymoron) like pop idol and Xfactor, in the 1960s if you wanted to be a pop star you paid your dues playing in the pubs and clubs learning your trade till you got signed, now people just go to an open TV show audition for the lottery of instant fame, its in the culture of the west, no body wants to work for a living, they want it now, thats why credit, reality TV, the cult of celebrity and wags are so popular.
People don't live in reality, they live in fantasy, second life alternate online lives, simulation computer games, DJ Rock star guitar hero games, remember when being a guitar hero meant years or WORK practising, not any more, they want it instantly, instant heroship, instant rock god, no work, just buy the computer game, better still, pirate the video game, even less work. Its the rise of the (i) generation, nobody wants to be ordinary anymore, or work or even wait for anything, they want it NOW, and believe they are ENTITLED to it. The video game industry is an attractant to this mindset, its why companies like TGC and others like them can be successful, now anybody can be a game developer with click and play tools. Much in the same way anybody can be a top business man with a tycoon game, or embark in exciting careers and alternate professions with simulation games. Work and leisure now become weisure.
Lets be honest, many leave school don't fancy the dole queue and expect something better than getting your hands dirty, so its off to collage, 3 years living on welfare, I mean student loans, then you leave school, lazily send a few CVs to large studios for your dream job, heavens forbid you should contact small developers and WORK your way up the career ladder before you contacted EA or Rockstar Games, of course you get ignored, blame the job market, sign on the dole, apply for any old job just to shut the parents up from moaning, while trying to maintain your self image of not really being on the dole you indulge on your fantasy career at the tax payers expense, ie making half finished games that never get finished, or writing your play, or writing your pop hit or whatever you do at your pretend career you indulge in to maintain your self image, while still living with your parents till your 30 years old and more. Adults living like children, they even have little strops like children, see the London Riots. Remember when people had self responsibility, you supported yourself, lived in property you payed for, and married the mother of your children.
If a developer was to look on these boards for people to hire, How is an employer to know a developer wants a job, nothing in the signature, clicking the links we see a poor web site, it has them asking, have you actually made a complete game, where are they, are you actually interested in making games, if so you should have a list of them. Do you talk about games, where is your blog. have you entered any games contests, have your worked successfully with others, can you complete a design brief, where is the evidence for this, what volunteer projects have you done, what mods have you worked on, can you actually work with other people, or do you just indulge in game developer onanism, is your games career a complete fantasy.
I can't reinvest my profits from game development back into game projects because finding contractors is such hard work, so I've had to invest it in other businesses. At the moment I want to hire a coder to make a tool that can wrap web pages as native applications using the AppGameKit, but really Im kind of put of bothering because finding contractors as it's such a nightmare. I can sympathise with the original poster because I often find myself doing the work myself leaving me little free time, because it can often be just plain easier than having to deal with finding someone to do the job. I find it laughable to read of people struggling to find games jobs, when one they do so little to actively seek employment, and two, there are loads of games developers jobs, they just are not all at Rockstar Games.
