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Ask HN: What are well-paying alternative jobs to being a software developer?

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Re: Ask HN: What are well-paying alternative jobs to being a software developer?

#11

Post by emteycz »

cwitty88 wrote: post #8
emteycz wrote: post #6

DevOps, cloud architecture/engineering. Another option could be teaching IT (private) - organize lectures about your expertise, etc

DevOps doesn't really interest me. It seems to be messier than software development with all of the craziness like K8s and stuff like that nowadays.

You're looking at it from the SW dev angle, but DevOps is very interesting from the management angle too and you can leave stuff like K8s to some DevOps engineers after you've done your consulting.

I mean stuff like GitOps/trunk-based development, release management, feature management, monitoring, review apps (see on Gitlab), Git itself (still not universal) and so on.

Re: Ask HN: What are well-paying alternative jobs to being a software developer?

#12

Post by dont__panic »

I transitioned from software development into a fairly technical documentation position. Get paid more than I ever did as a software developer, and my previous employer was no slouch for pay. If you love writing and communication, it could be a good choice for you! But if you hate writing essays and playing with beta-quality software, stay far, far away.

Re: Ask HN: What are well-paying alternative jobs to being a software developer?

#13

Post by porksoda »

I took 8 months off fishing in the ocean, and never could really look that code in the eye again.

After that, I found it helps to move between teams and projects often. I last about 1-3 years with overlapping contracting jobs. Pays well, about $30 an hour on average, for as many hours as I want.

Honestly, I'm still edging the ~buildout~burnout vortex, so when I start to feel the first tendrils of that morning-sickness, I just let clients know that their number is up and that although I'll give them some time, they need to replace me.

It's happened that doing that in slack revitalized the whole workspace for a few more months.

edit: I neglect to mention, after the Great Rest my wife and I started serially travelling... so work is something I snatch time for, instead of "waking up to the grind". Covid put a pause on that, but it's in the air!

Re: Ask HN: What are well-paying alternative jobs to being a software developer?

#15

Post by porksoda »

porksoda wrote: post #13

I took 8 months off fishing in the ocean, and never could really look that code in the eye again. After that, I found it helps to move between teams and projects often. I last about 1-3 years with overlapping contracting jobs. Pays well, about $30 an hour on average, for as many hours as I want. Honestly, I'm still edging the ~buildout~burnout vortex, so when I start to feel the first tendrils of that morning-sicknes…

I did finally cave, for some "easy money", and backslid into a job with that same system (which has evolved in really nice ways since then).

I might have to give the deposit back if I can't start soon :)

Re: Ask HN: What are well-paying alternative jobs to being a software developer?

#16

Post by cwitty88 »

porksoda wrote: post #13

I took 8 months off fishing in the ocean, and never could really look that code in the eye again. After that, I found it helps to move between teams and projects often. I last about 1-3 years with overlapping contracting jobs. Pays well, about $30 an hour on average, for as many hours as I want. Honestly, I'm still edging the ~buildout~burnout vortex, so when I start to feel the first tendrils of that morning-sicknes…

This is by far the longest I have ever been with a company. I am rolling on 7 years at the moment. Part of me thinks that time off and a new company could be the answer but it's hard to know.

Re: Ask HN: What are well-paying alternative jobs to being a software developer?

#17

Post by porksoda »

cwitty88 wrote: post #16
porksoda wrote: post #13

I took 8 months off fishing in the ocean, and never could really look that code in the eye again. After that, I found it helps to move between teams and projects often. I last about 1-3 years with overlapping contracting jobs. Pays well, about $30 an hour on average, for as many hours as I want. Honestly, I'm still edging the ~buildout~burnout vortex, so when I start to feel the first tendrils of that morning-sicknes…

This is by far the longest I have ever been with a company. I am rolling on 7 years at the moment. Part of me thinks that time off and a new company could be the answer but it's hard to know.

Well you knnow, after all this time you can find a place to "coast" with your skills.

Example, I've always been a bit put off by the plethora of syntaxes and frameworks in javascript, and I lawnmowered my toes off with angular one fine july, but recently discovered svelte-kit.

It's a cinch, a few practice projects, a few paid ones, and one upwork refund later, I'm getting quite confident in my abilities to turn out decent stuff fast.

And the "fast" is the most important thing, with my new found impatience for not being thirty anymore.

Re: Ask HN: What are well-paying alternative jobs to being a software developer?

#18

Post by nostrademons »

Engineering manager is probably the easiest pivot. It's a very different skillset from software engineering (more people interaction, more organization, less creativity and logic) that some people will love and others will hate, but you get to use your previous experience and there's often a pay bump and additional job security.

Also consider trades like carpenter or electrician. Many software engineers also like this type of work because it involves building & fixing stuff, but it's more tangible, easy to disconnect from when you're not working, and requires less abstract thought. It still pays very well, though it can be hard on your body.

Re: Ask HN: What are well-paying alternative jobs to being a software developer?

#19

Post by sokoloff »

machiaweliczny wrote: post #14

Pilot or air traffic control. Anything where it’s expensive to get license is good alternative.

“What’s the difference between a regional pilot and a large pepperoni pizza?” “The pizza can feed a family of four.”

It’s a very long road to get to a decent paying flying job and if your reference is “well-paying like software was”, it basically never happens.

Re: Ask HN: What are well-paying alternative jobs to being a software developer?

#20

Post by porksoda »

cwitty88 wrote: post #16
porksoda wrote: post #13

I took 8 months off fishing in the ocean, and never could really look that code in the eye again. After that, I found it helps to move between teams and projects often. I last about 1-3 years with overlapping contracting jobs. Pays well, about $30 an hour on average, for as many hours as I want. Honestly, I'm still edging the ~buildout~burnout vortex, so when I start to feel the first tendrils of that morning-sicknes…

This is by far the longest I have ever been with a company. I am rolling on 7 years at the moment. Part of me thinks that time off and a new company could be the answer but it's hard to know.

That's an incredibly long time!
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