If you were to quit your developer job today and move away from the tech world for a little while, what job would you do? Or what domain would interest you?
Sitting and thinking about this for just a moment...is unnerving. I'm not convinced I could "move away from the tech world" for too long. My brain is wired to tinker and build in the digital realm, my physique is accustomed to stationary existence, I've allowed tech to build a house of cards within myself which props up my life. It gives my day structure and when I take breaks (2-3 days here and there), i'm often at a loss for what to do with my time. It takes a good week for me to find my pre-tech self, something I haven't done in 6-8 months.
If I were to quit today, I would spend time unschooling my child. Maybe along the way I could rediscover some important lessons about how to live a more physically present life.
Try a creative hobby. Go out and take photos, try drawing, or writing. It came up in another HN thread recently how transient all the stuff we build is. Whatever it is we're building right now will one day be replaced. A photograph, or a painting, or a story can persist for a much longer time (maybe 'forever'), and provides a productive outlet that feels more connected to the 'real' world, at least for me.
I would try to be a martial arts teacher (i always try to teach others at my kickboxing gym, why not get paid).
Also, any hobby/sport that gives you big addrenaline rush + makes/keeps you fit but doesn't slowly kill you (example: (kick)boxing kills your braincells) ?
I imagine that I could be happy building wood furniture. Or maybe becoming a car mechanic. I think that I'd still like to either make or repair something, if I wasn't going to be a software developer.
I got into building up my arsenal of tools about 4 years ago and have found that there are quite a bit of programmers and engineers into the hobby. It can also be a decent source of side income, even starting out (cutting boards for myself)
Look into producing beehive equipment; even if you're not a beekeeper, there is a constant and large demand for high quality, low price woodenware. Fairly easy to set up jigs and it is easy to find blueprints. By the end you'll be a beekeeper anyway ;)
You and me both. I still paint, and it's one of the most enjoyable things I do. Although I do wonder if I switched to it full-time if it would lose its lustre.
I started on a journey towards sustainable agriculture, working with dessert coast greenhouses. But got sucked back in to work on data systems for international development, which has been quite a success so far.
Welder. It's everything that makes a skill desirable to learn. Very easy to start, impossible to master.
Pays reasonably well too if you can find work. Also most welders are people who don't put up with much BS so it's refreshing coming from pretty much any other field.
Although I've dabbled in tech and code for the past 15+ years, I've never been able to find a decent tech job. I got into the trades and have bounced around everywhere. Welding is one of my most valuable skills IMO, but as a career I've seen some of the most terrible conditions and communities. YMMV
I also love welding. My grandpa wanted to teach me, but he didn't have a second helmet. So he has me wear the helmet because he can weld by sound, so he just looks the other way and lays down a bead that is more perfect than lots that I see in the wild. (He started and ran a machine shop for most of his working life.)
There was a study done recently linking airborne manganese (below federal occupational safety levels) and neurological symptoms similar to Parkinson's disease.
There are far worse conditions that arise from welding (and more so from welding incorrectly) that Parkinson's is the least of your worry. Even then, "so what" comes to mind. If you love doing it the fear of death shouldn't stop you. A youtuber I love once said "Has anyone ever noticed how there aren't any old welders? (cynical chuckle)". He's right but people still do it.
You can also, in some cases, avoid using manganese based fluxes. There are quite common rods without the presense of manganese.
> Welder. It's everything that makes a skill desirable
> to learn. Very easy to start, impossible to master
Indeed. I picked up a bit of hobby glassblowing then metalwork which led me to learn welding and blacksmithing. I don't necessarily want to leave IT for it but I love these things as an avocation. Eventually, I will be good enough that I might offset the cost of my formal and informal education in these things. That's the plan, anyway.
I studied welding and metal fabrication part time to get my certification. It was a great time. Apart from the physical skills of manipulating metal I really enjoyed the technical drawing aspect. It involved a lot of geometry and visualizing 3D objects.
Philosophy or history if salary wasn't an issue.
Something mechanical/physical if it was. Mechanic sounds good. Who knows, from there to CNC master, 3D printing...
Indie movie maker (with story, screenplay, editing, cinematography, directing and money all being mine so that I am in total control of creativity). Making movies has been a long time dream for me. I will do that when I am older and have enough time and finances to experiment, more than what I have been able to so far. And when I do that successfully, I would be simply swapping software & moviemaking for what is profession and what is hobby.
You can make a feature on your smartphone. Time is more of an issue, but you really, really don't need much cash. And you can make a short film in a weekend on a zero budget, comfortably.
See this article on "Layover" - made for $6k - and remember that you could shoot for much less.
Hell, Sundance sensation "Tangerine" was shot on an iPhone.
Turning that into a full-time profession is a different animal, though. If you really want to do that as a career, I'd advise learning a lot about the realities of the indie filmmaking life before jumping. It's not a great time for that move.
I already did after 25 years in development. I'm tempted to do a side-project or startup now after a few years away. If I was to return to tech I'd be very focused on creating real benefit and progress (think perhaps environmental, climate change, medical or learning etc), rather than a shiner bauble or "disrupting" something that really shouldn't be (internet connected kettles? Making everything a consumer replaceable).
My driver was the rant that easily followed on from the above. :) Basically wanting something more substantive, less ephemeral, more tactile. I ended up in restoration. I'm enjoying it hugely and the things I'm doing will have life of many decades, perhaps sometimes centuries.
The surprise was, even after 3 years, discovering there's still more satisfaction in physical tiredness and manual activity at the end of the day than just mental. I'd already experienced this in car restoration and various projects but assumed much was from hobby and novelty interest.
What type of restoration? Cars? Houses? Pinball machines?
> The surprise was, even after 3 years, discovering there's still more satisfaction in physical tiredness and manual activity at the end of the day than just mental.
My motorcycle broke down in Silicon Valley once. The guy I called to come pick it up had a normal ford truck. The bed was outfitted with a dual motorcycle winch. I got to talking to him on the way back to SF. He used to be in IT. Specifically, he used to manage and maintain one of Amazon's data warehouses in Seattle.
I asked him if he missed IT and he told me pretty much what you just said: the physical tiredness at the end of the day is more satisfying than just the mental exhaustion. He also got to make his own hours and he made more money towing motorcycles.
Houses. Well houses++ really. Working at an old estate preserving and restoring. There's a little of everything including the old farm equipment etc. I'm a strange mix of restorer, labourer and extremely junior apprentice (seems like every trade these days needs a vocational course and piece of paper before you're "allowed", even when clearly able).
They try and use my project and IT abilities when they can too, though I try and discourage them. :) I'm tempted to focus on blacksmithing as it's so interesting, satisfying and just a little magic to watch the guy work. Much to learn if I follow through on that.
I looked around at many things, including car and motorcycle restoration, steam trains (lots of volunteers, few jobs!), and more current things like environment and alternative energy. Many either needed me to go back to uni, or have assorted bits of paper and experience first rather than able to learn as I go.
This somehow raises more questions than answers, for me at least: You work full-time restoring a single property? Do you work for the owner, or is it maintained by a nonprofit/government? I'm guessing you work for a company, or are some kind of subcontractor? This sounds amazing.
It's one of the countless historic houses in the UK and Europe. Similar age as and nearer Downton Abbey than mere house! Elizabethan (late 1500s) and numerous alterations since, so plenty is in need of care and restoration.
There's gardens, stables, barns, and a number of outbuildings and estate houses for staff in older times. They still have some tenants and lettings, managed by the estate. The lettings are maintained by local firms usually. Then there's all the amenities associated with being open to the public, putting on various events. There's a charitable trust, but I work for the estate company.
I like the informality of it compared to the large company feel of say the National Trust (national preservation charity) who are more defined with roles. Of course they have hundreds of properties, thousands of staff along with countless volunteers.
This is fascinating, thank you for responding. What an interesting way to engage with history. (I'm from America; anything here from the 1500s is an archaeological site.)
I'm only 4 years into my career, and I feel done just working for "business". I'd love to do something with "real benefit", particularly the environment or medical.
Not that I'm saying I'm capable of it, but basically I'd want to move into doing my hobbies for a living.
I'm an aikido instructor already, but making a living from it is not very easy (and incredibly poorly paid compared to programming). Also I'm not sure I'd like it so much if it was my entire career.
I'm also a musician, but I'm not good enough to make a living performing or teaching. I might be able to if I had funds for two or three years of intensive practice, training and bloody hard work beforehand I suppose.
But yeah, in dreamworld I would make my living from a mixture of aikido, music and some code on the side, because honestly I'd never want to give it up entirely.
Weird to read this, because I'm thinking of switching into software development.
But if I were going to switch into something else, it would probably be something involving the outdoors, with a tangible physical aspect to it. Surveying?
A colleague and good friend of mine was a surveyor before he went to college in CS. He said the surveying was very pleasant, but the job also involves a lot of driving.
I would be a cook/barman in my own small establishment. I actually prefer the work to dev (after 30+ yrs since childhood) but lack the finances to make the transfer.
I'm actually thinking of switching into video editing career slowly, just as a backup for my current programming profession. The reason is I'm not sure whether I can survive as a competitive programmer in my late 30s and also I think I kind of like editing.
You make it sound like programming is some sort of competitive sport where you can't reasonably compete anymore when you're past your prime.
There's clearly no obvious reason why someone in his 40s shouldn't be able to develop software just as well as someone in his 30s. Apart from a more or less healthy lifestyle, staying competitive in this line of work is more about mindset than about age. You stay young by exposing yourself to new ideas and challenges.
I've met 30 year olds who act twice their age because they've settled into a cosy big corporate job that doesn't require anything but will get them safely to retirement.
I've also met 50 year olds who're still avidly learning new stuff and who've managed to remain quite competitive in the software consulting business.
Another thing to keep in mind is: Level up. When athletes in competitive disciplines can't keep up anymore they often become trainers and mentors. For various reasons this makes sense in software development, too. Coaching / mentoring / teaching is a rare skill, as is competent management.
Then there's always the opportunity to create your own software product (I know, easier said than done but much more doable still than in many other disciplines) and sell value instead of your time.
I went up the management chain for a while (startup CTO, etc.), and it kind of burned. Switched back to dev for a larger (200 headcount) e-commerce.
My experience is valued very, very highly. I look at designs from younger developers and help them shape it a bit, and it's normally appreciated. I am willing to bet I am a better developer now at 38 than I was at 28. I expect to be better still at 48.
The "young people are smarter" thing is a myth. This is not a competitive sport built out of hours worked: it's about being able to write good code, and that takes experience and practice. Keep crafting, good luck.
Developer here and just about to turn 42. It helps if you can find a niche where you are a subject matter expert, hopefully a subject matter that is going to be relevant for some time.
Keeps me out of the rat race of which tech to learn next, or at least doing it at my own pace. This year I'll be applying Rust.
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[ 3.3 ms ] story [ 2258 ms ] threadIf I were to quit today, I would spend time unschooling my child. Maybe along the way I could rediscover some important lessons about how to live a more physically present life.
Also, any hobby/sport that gives you big addrenaline rush + makes/keeps you fit but doesn't slowly kill you (example: (kick)boxing kills your braincells) ?
I used to learn to paint during the whole my childhood, but I gave up to be a painter and switched to be a tech guy.
I really like paint and I do some doodles in the weekend now.
Pays reasonably well too if you can find work. Also most welders are people who don't put up with much BS so it's refreshing coming from pretty much any other field.
https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/manganese-exposure-puts-...
You can also, in some cases, avoid using manganese based fluxes. There are quite common rods without the presense of manganese.
Indeed. I picked up a bit of hobby glassblowing then metalwork which led me to learn welding and blacksmithing. I don't necessarily want to leave IT for it but I love these things as an avocation. Eventually, I will be good enough that I might offset the cost of my formal and informal education in these things. That's the plan, anyway.
You can make a feature on your smartphone. Time is more of an issue, but you really, really don't need much cash. And you can make a short film in a weekend on a zero budget, comfortably.
See this article on "Layover" - made for $6k - and remember that you could shoot for much less.
http://www.thewrap.com/redefining-micro-budget-filmmaking-th...
Hell, Sundance sensation "Tangerine" was shot on an iPhone.
Turning that into a full-time profession is a different animal, though. If you really want to do that as a career, I'd advise learning a lot about the realities of the indie filmmaking life before jumping. It's not a great time for that move.
My driver was the rant that easily followed on from the above. :) Basically wanting something more substantive, less ephemeral, more tactile. I ended up in restoration. I'm enjoying it hugely and the things I'm doing will have life of many decades, perhaps sometimes centuries.
The surprise was, even after 3 years, discovering there's still more satisfaction in physical tiredness and manual activity at the end of the day than just mental. I'd already experienced this in car restoration and various projects but assumed much was from hobby and novelty interest.
What type of restoration? Cars? Houses? Pinball machines?
> The surprise was, even after 3 years, discovering there's still more satisfaction in physical tiredness and manual activity at the end of the day than just mental.
My motorcycle broke down in Silicon Valley once. The guy I called to come pick it up had a normal ford truck. The bed was outfitted with a dual motorcycle winch. I got to talking to him on the way back to SF. He used to be in IT. Specifically, he used to manage and maintain one of Amazon's data warehouses in Seattle.
I asked him if he missed IT and he told me pretty much what you just said: the physical tiredness at the end of the day is more satisfying than just the mental exhaustion. He also got to make his own hours and he made more money towing motorcycles.
They try and use my project and IT abilities when they can too, though I try and discourage them. :) I'm tempted to focus on blacksmithing as it's so interesting, satisfying and just a little magic to watch the guy work. Much to learn if I follow through on that.
I looked around at many things, including car and motorcycle restoration, steam trains (lots of volunteers, few jobs!), and more current things like environment and alternative energy. Many either needed me to go back to uni, or have assorted bits of paper and experience first rather than able to learn as I go.
There's gardens, stables, barns, and a number of outbuildings and estate houses for staff in older times. They still have some tenants and lettings, managed by the estate. The lettings are maintained by local firms usually. Then there's all the amenities associated with being open to the public, putting on various events. There's a charitable trust, but I work for the estate company.
I like the informality of it compared to the large company feel of say the National Trust (national preservation charity) who are more defined with roles. Of course they have hundreds of properties, thousands of staff along with countless volunteers.
I love farming and growing stuff.
I'm an aikido instructor already, but making a living from it is not very easy (and incredibly poorly paid compared to programming). Also I'm not sure I'd like it so much if it was my entire career.
I'm also a musician, but I'm not good enough to make a living performing or teaching. I might be able to if I had funds for two or three years of intensive practice, training and bloody hard work beforehand I suppose.
But yeah, in dreamworld I would make my living from a mixture of aikido, music and some code on the side, because honestly I'd never want to give it up entirely.
Edit: Or HV mechanic. I love big engines.
But if I were going to switch into something else, it would probably be something involving the outdoors, with a tangible physical aspect to it. Surveying?
Like accounting...
There's clearly no obvious reason why someone in his 40s shouldn't be able to develop software just as well as someone in his 30s. Apart from a more or less healthy lifestyle, staying competitive in this line of work is more about mindset than about age. You stay young by exposing yourself to new ideas and challenges. I've met 30 year olds who act twice their age because they've settled into a cosy big corporate job that doesn't require anything but will get them safely to retirement. I've also met 50 year olds who're still avidly learning new stuff and who've managed to remain quite competitive in the software consulting business.
Another thing to keep in mind is: Level up. When athletes in competitive disciplines can't keep up anymore they often become trainers and mentors. For various reasons this makes sense in software development, too. Coaching / mentoring / teaching is a rare skill, as is competent management.
Then there's always the opportunity to create your own software product (I know, easier said than done but much more doable still than in many other disciplines) and sell value instead of your time.
Video editing is a far, far higher competition field than programming.
Lots more people wanting to do it, lots less jobs, on average for lots less pay and much worse hours.
I went up the management chain for a while (startup CTO, etc.), and it kind of burned. Switched back to dev for a larger (200 headcount) e-commerce.
My experience is valued very, very highly. I look at designs from younger developers and help them shape it a bit, and it's normally appreciated. I am willing to bet I am a better developer now at 38 than I was at 28. I expect to be better still at 48.
The "young people are smarter" thing is a myth. This is not a competitive sport built out of hours worked: it's about being able to write good code, and that takes experience and practice. Keep crafting, good luck.
Keeps me out of the rat race of which tech to learn next, or at least doing it at my own pace. This year I'll be applying Rust.