Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Ask HN: Tell me your stories of taking lower paid work to be happier

news.ycombinator.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

101–110 of 111 posts

Re: Ask HN: Tell me your stories of taking lower paid work to be happier

#101

Post by squarepizza »

senordevnyc wrote: post #95
squarepizza wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

'In accepting an honorary degree from the University of Notre Dame a few years ago, General David Sarnoff made this statement: "We are too prone to make technological instruments the scapegoats for the sins of those who wield them. The products of modern science are not in themselves good or bad; it is the way they are used that determines their value." That is the voice of the current somnambulism. Suppose we were t…

Since you didn't provide the author, it's Marshall McLuhan, from Understanding Media . Here's a link: http://topologicalmedialab.net/xinwei/classes/readings/McLuh... For the record, I disagree with McLuhan, but perhaps I don't fully understand his argument.

If you disagree with the statement, "guns don't kill people, people do," then you agree with McLuhan's maxim of the medium being the message and that there is no such thing as an unbiased tool.

You can use a hammer to screw and a screw to hammer, but the biases for their respective uses are embedded in their affordances. McLuhan argues that the same can be said for any tool, whether it's a binky or a bomb.

Re: Ask HN: Tell me your stories of taking lower paid work to be happier

#102

Post by fsckboy »

djeastm wrote: post #90
burningChrome wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> working in radar stations on top of remote mountain. Interesting story. I worked in a bike shop a number of years ago. Guy came in and I helped him find some stuff for a long distance ride he was going to do. I noticed he had a black baseball hat with the initials "NJTTTF" sewn into the front of it and I had no idea wtf it meant so as he was checking out I asked him. He said, "You don't want to know." and I said, "…

As former military intelligence, I have a hard time believing someone in that line of work would wear a hat advertising which task force they worked on. Or that such a task force would even allow such hats to be made.

it was govt disinformation to undermine the conspiracy theories about Weather Mountain, which theories were too close to the truth.

Re: Ask HN: Tell me your stories of taking lower paid work to be happier

#103

Post by senordevnyc »

Msurrow wrote: post #100
senordevnyc wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Once you have kids, this calculus becomes way more complicated.

Oh yes. I have two. What I dont get is how having 2 more persons somehow makes everything travel related at least 4x more expensive?! Anyway, there is no “roughing it through asia” with two little ones. Thats why I wrote the caveat with grinding cash while early 20s, to build a little extra to draw on when the this happens

Yeah, it's some about cost, but it's also about logistics, education, wanting kids to have stability, relationships with extended family, special needs, physical safety, etc, etc. In my case also add custody to the mix, which makes extended travel a non-starter.

Re: Ask HN: Tell me your stories of taking lower paid work to be happier

#104

Post by technojamin »

mriet wrote: post #45

Spent basically 19 years doing enterprise software dev for your typical slew of companies: logistics, banking, fintech, retail, etc. After a particularly unpleasant startup experience, decided that 1) recruiters are BS and 2) I wanted to work on research related problems, because they were probably the most technically and intellectually challenging. Spent 2-3 months really looking for a job, and found a hidden gem.…

Making a pivot to working on research-adjacent software instead of corporate software has been in the back of my mind over the past couple of years. Do you mind sharing a bit on how you went about your search and found your current job?

Re: Ask HN: Tell me your stories of taking lower paid work to be happier

#106

Post by beej71 »

matrix87 wrote: post #65
frithsun wrote: post #14

After decades in the software industry, I decided to just get a factory job within bicycling distance of my house and only do programming as a hobby. I can't take the hype cycle anymore. First it was big data this and big data that, now it's all AI. It's always about something other than crafting sensible solutions to real problems. A breaking point for me was getting scolded to figure out how to apply LLM technology…

> I can't take the hype cycle anymore. First it was big data this and big data that, now it's all AI. It's always about something other than crafting sensible solutions to real problems. I've thought the same thing. So many people in software just pretend to chase after some meme and being around them makes me really cynical It's just buzzword this buzzword that to some people. Who gives a shit about solving problems…

Yes! And so many of the products sound so _dull_ to me. They're so excited to talk about how this technology will revolutionize some niche sector... As I got older, my response more frequently became, "Who cares?"

When I think of what would bring me back to dev, I always think of jobs supporting some kind of science work, like weather or GIS.

Re: Ask HN: Tell me your stories of taking lower paid work to be happier

#107

Post by beej71 »

I got out of dev (20 YOE) and now teach CS full time at a state university. I make about half of what I could reasonably make in industry, but I only work 7.5 months a year. I'm an instructor, not a research professor.

And I LOVE the work. It's so challenging and so rewarding. Not only do I get to just have fun exploring CS all day and sharpening my own skills, but I have the meta-challenge of learning how to be a better teacher. I'm passionate about that, and I'm likely never going back to industry.

I'm not really proud of a lot of the programming I did in the marketing sector. But this is something laudable; I feel like I'm genuinely helping people and leveraging my skills in a way that makes the world a better place.

Re: Ask HN: Tell me your stories of taking lower paid work to be happier

#108

Post by danroc »

After nearly a decade working in architecture (buildings, not software!), and having reached quite a comfortable position and salary within my company, I decided I wanted more flexibility in my life.

I threw ideas for 80% work time, or 1-day work-from-home (pre-pandemic), to my boss at the time, but was always met with resistance (“architects cannot work from home!” or “you are too important and need to be around all times!”).

I quickly realized my future there was “either accept it or leave it”. So I left and after some months trying to figure out my next move, I decided to take my chances in tech on a remote job (had extensive experience coding throughout my life as a hobby).

My first job in tech, 4 years ago, paid me half of what I was making in architecture. I never looked back. Got a dog, went traveling around while working, made my own schedule, never felt more free or happier.

Today, I am making more than my last salary in architecture and can never imagine working 9-5 in an office again in my life.

Re: Ask HN: Tell me your stories of taking lower paid work to be happier

#109

Post by bugsliker »

Volundr wrote: post #76

A few years ago, I was offered a job in fintech, a company whose whole business model was basically to sit on a pile of money and make it bigger. The company had a good reputation among developers and used interesting tech. Plus, I knew someone who worked there, and he had nothing but good things to say about the experience. During the final interview with the hiring manager, however, I asked a question about how the…

Out of curiosity, how did you find the opportunity in public transit?

Re: Ask HN: Tell me your stories of taking lower paid work to be happier

#110

Post by charlie0 »

mwerd wrote: post #39

I quit a high pay/low cost of living job to move to a high pay high cost of living job when I was young. The skills, connections, experience I got were great but eventually it was clear I wasn't on a path for long term happiness in that city. I then quit that high pay/high cost of living job to move to a low cost of living area. I bought a house, which was unattainable in hcol area. I ended up getting promoted to com…

Assuming the mythical black swan doesn't come in, drop returns 20% and stays that way for years, but yet, I'm too following this path. It's the best that can be done, black swans or not.
Post reply on HN