Fear of failing in this field is giving me severe senioritis

2 points by irisedhaze 4y ago ↗ HN

This is quite a personal post. I just want to ask this community's advice because I feel like my life is going in a downward spiral already.

First off, I'm not from the US or any country which has a major impact on global tech development. Most tech jobs here are either in big local companies or in outsourcing.

I'm currently in my senior year but has been struggling to finish my senior project for more than two years already (yes, I've been a senior for that long) because I'm too afraid to graduate and enter the tech field. I'm actually losing interest in my project as time goes by and my passion for most things tech-related has been dwindling. Trying to do anything about it just makes me think how much "I hate this work."

Some of my peers in other fields actually say they envy me for choosing this degree because based on their perception, it could lead me to a job that could make me well-off. However, seeing how much work I need to do (i.e. through constant studying and learning) just to have a steady career, it's making me question if I really made the right choice in terms of my education and possible career paths. Moreover, I'm starting to feel the pressure of the job market seeing how more people are entering this field because "this is where the money is." Not to mention the job cuts I've been hearing about because of global recession.

1 comment

[ 5.3 ms ] story [ 14.4 ms ] thread

gostsamo 4y ago ↗

You can never be good in any meaningful job if you don't try to expand and deepen your knowledge about the problems you are solving. Everything from gardener to a software architect requires studying and understanding. So, you can even devote yourself to observing the world around you or you can spend your time moving crades from one shelf to another and be content with what you have.

In regard to people entering the field, what you have is formal education and knowledge about the industry, while they have the desire to be paid money, but with unrealistic expectations about their abilities. They don't know what they don't know. So, what you have is quality if you are willing to develop it further.

Finally, the job cuts will be hard for the least productive. And they will be temporary because software is increasing productivity of people and processes by definition. In 2-3 years time the bad companies will be removed from the market and there will be space for new growth. So, use this time, don't wait.

It seems to me that you have severe case of lacking self-confidence. Procrastination is usually the lack of belief that we can accomplish the final task. However, the fact that there is always something else to learn does not mean that you can't learn quite a lot which you can use to build a good life for yourself.