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Ask HN: Burnt out from big tech. What's next?

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Re: Ask HN: Burnt out from big tech. What's next?

#151

Post by shortcake27 »

BizarreByte wrote: post #135
the_gastropod wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you’re working as a software engineer, you are already privileged, yes. It’s trivially easy, when making an average software engineer salary to save a significant portion of your income. If you save 50%, you need to work 1 year to save enough for a year off.

A lot of us aren’t making average HN level salaries and many have a lot of responsibilities. Saving 50% simply isn’t feasible for most people, even in this industry. It is not “trivially easy” to take a year off. It’s reckless.

Conversely, I am not privileged just because I don’t have the same responsibilities as you.

If you can’t take a year off work because you have a mortgage, debts, and a family to feed, that’s a problem you need to solve. However, assuming that I’m privileged because I don’t have those things in nonsensical. I live out of a very cheap car and my expenses are virtually zero. That is not a privileged position.

Re: Ask HN: Burnt out from big tech. What's next?

#152

Post by shortcake27 »

rrgok wrote: post #142
badpun wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The fact that the right solution is not accessible to everyone does not make it less right. If a specific cure for cancer costs say $20k per month, not everyone can buy it - but it doesn't not make it inefficient cure for cancer.

To be pedantic, your parent didn't say anything about right or wrong. It is irrelevant the correctness of a solution if you cannot implement it. Taking one year off is not a solution (even tough it is a right solution) for a lot people. The same for the cancer's cure. It is not a solution for a lot people.

I’m not privileged just because I don’t have the same responsibilities as other people. I made choices and those choices allow me to live an extremely cheap lifestyle. The fact other people have mortgages and/or families doesn’t make _me_ privileged; it’s a different situation.

The parent claimed living out of a car is “insane” and “privileged”. Focus on that and let it sink in for a moment.

Re: Ask HN: Burnt out from big tech. What's next?

#153

Post by BizarreByte »

shortcake27 wrote: post #151
BizarreByte wrote: post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A lot of us aren’t making average HN level salaries and many have a lot of responsibilities. Saving 50% simply isn’t feasible for most people, even in this industry. It is not “trivially easy” to take a year off. It’s reckless.

Conversely, I am not privileged just because I don’t have the same responsibilities as you. If you can’t take a year off work because you have a mortgage, debts, and a family to feed, that’s a problem you need to solve. However, assuming that I’m privileged because I don’t have those things in nonsensical. I live out of a very cheap car and my expenses are virtually zero. That is not a privileged position.

> That is not a privileged position.

That depends on if it’s caused by poverty, or a choice you made despite having the means for a better situation.

Being able to take a year off work and not end up homeless is incredibly privileged, but by your own admission you’re already homeless, possibly by choice. Most people don’t want to live in a car.

Re: Ask HN: Burnt out from big tech. What's next?

#154

Post by shortcake27 »

the_gastropod wrote: post #143
BizarreByte wrote: post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A lot of us aren’t making average HN level salaries and many have a lot of responsibilities. Saving 50% simply isn’t feasible for most people, even in this industry. It is not “trivially easy” to take a year off. It’s reckless.

Everyone's situation is unique. For many, it may not be easy at all—you're right. But in the "average" case of the average software engineer in the US, if you value the option to take a year off, it is absolutely trivial to save half your income. Let's just do some back-of-napkin math to prove my point. The average American software engineer makes $110,944 / year [1]. The median salary in the US is $54,132 / year [2]…

So I think the issue is that people with more money are taking on more responsibilities (more expensive house / car etc). This makes it harder for them to take sabbaticals.

The mistake is when those same people then claim that someone making the same money without the same responsibilities is privileged.

It is a very odd position to hold. I’m not privileged just because someone else decided to take on the maximum amount of debt that was available to them.

Re: Ask HN: Burnt out from big tech. What's next?

#155

Post by shortcake27 »

BizarreByte wrote: post #153
shortcake27 wrote: post #151

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Conversely, I am not privileged just because I don’t have the same responsibilities as you. If you can’t take a year off work because you have a mortgage, debts, and a family to feed, that’s a problem you need to solve. However, assuming that I’m privileged because I don’t have those things in nonsensical. I live out of a very cheap car and my expenses are virtually zero. That is not a privileged position.

> That is not a privileged position. That depends on if it’s caused by poverty, or a choice you made despite having the means for a better situation. Being able to take a year off work and not end up homeless is incredibly privileged, but by your own admission you’re already homeless, possibly by choice. Most people don’t want to live in a car.

> That depends on if it’s caused by poverty, or a choice you made despite having the means for a better situation.

There is a certain cost to living out of a car which is the same for everyone living out of a car. It is very cheap and attainable for almost everyone. This, by definition, makes it _not_ a privilege.

> you’re already homeless, possibly by choice. Most people don’t want to live in a car.

Absolutely, I’m homeless by choice, and you’re right it’s not for everyone. However, whether other people want to live in a car or not is irrelevant; if it’s attainable to almost anyone it’s not a privilege.

Re: Ask HN: Burnt out from big tech. What's next?

#156

Post by m00x »

314 wrote: post #45
m00x wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I left my job 2022 February to not sit in meetings and mostly be a preventer of bad engineering rather than a builder of good stuff. On a good day, I told people how they were wrong - on a bad day, I told them how they were wrong, again. You sound like a great guy to work with with all this modesty and open mindedness.

You don't know what their job was, or what kind of engineering decisions they were having to work around. You don't know what kind of corporate hieracrchy they were stuck in, or what effect it had on what they were building. Without knowing any of those things it is a bit premature to be making character judgements.

If your job is to tell people they're wrong every day, you're working with the wrong attitude.

Your job isn't to say no, it's to say: "This doesn't work, but how about this?".

Engineering isn't about being a prick that shoots down ideas and be the "smartest person in the room", it's to make those ideas become reality as closely as possible while working within the constraints of what's feasible.

Re: Ask HN: Burnt out from big tech. What's next?

#157

Post by lovich »

shortcake27 wrote: post #149
lovich wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You got flagged, but yea that’s crazy. I don’t make faang money but make like 60% and I still could only safely take off 8 months after having saved up for years. Being able to take off a year to recover from burnout, without dealing with the stress of having no income for a year, means you are probably post money if not close. If that’s the case and the OP has interests like they listed, just start a company doing s…

My car cost under $3k and my only expenses are food and car related stuff. DOC campsite pass for $195 for an entire year. It is insanely cheap to live out of a car. Not really sure why people are losing their mind over this.

There’s a presumption in this conversation that taking time off work from burnout isn’t going to be solved by becoming homeless. If you were going to go that route then you could just claim it would only be a few hundred in supplies for you to live in the woods off foraged game and plants.

On top of that it’s illegal to live out of your car in many jurisdictions in the US.

Re: Ask HN: Burnt out from big tech. What's next?

#158

Post by LewisVerstappen »

chii wrote: post #40
LewisVerstappen wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Much better option is to keep working in tech, earn as much money as is feasible, and then funnel the excess funds into companies that _do_ longetivity research. THat's a good idea. But I think an even better strategy would be to start a cryptocurrency hedge fund and later start an associated exchange. This will allow us to maximize the amount of money we earn, so we can have the greatest impact on companies that d…

> But I think an even better strategy would be to start a cryptocurrency hedge fund and later start an associated exchange. > ??? > profit > This will allow us to maximize the amount of money we earn So if you could fill in the ??? on how to profit, then yes, this is a good way too. Note that it needs to be legal.

I'm joking around. What you said is very similar to the "Effective Altruist" mindset and so I'm referencing FTX & Alameda.

Re: Ask HN: Burnt out from big tech. What's next?

#159

Post by cratermoon »

aryamaan wrote: post #74
cratermoon wrote: post #3

Definitely take a sabbatical, but it should be at least 6 months, preferably a year. Do what you feel like during that time.

why so long of sabbatical?

Anything less than 6 months won't be long enough to recover from the burnout. A full year gives time to work on a significant project or goal.

Re: Ask HN: Burnt out from big tech. What's next?

#160

Post by shortcake27 »

lovich wrote: post #157
shortcake27 wrote: post #149

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My car cost under $3k and my only expenses are food and car related stuff. DOC campsite pass for $195 for an entire year. It is insanely cheap to live out of a car. Not really sure why people are losing their mind over this.

There’s a presumption in this conversation that taking time off work from burnout isn’t going to be solved by becoming homeless. If you were going to go that route then you could just claim it would only be a few hundred in supplies for you to live in the woods off foraged game and plants. On top of that it’s illegal to live out of your car in many jurisdictions in the US.

No, the comment you responded to and agreed with was referring to my “privileged” position of being able quit my job and live out of my car.

Whether or not it would solve burnout and whether it’s legal in the US are different and new arguments.

I’m justifying my original position that living within meager means isn’t “insane” or “privileged”. If you are only able to take off 8 months after saving for years, that has nothing to do with my ability to live frugally. I don’t gain privilege just because other people choose to take on excessive amounts of debt and/or live more expensive lifestyles than me.

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