Maybe in USA only!
Back in the day being a programmer was definitively NOT "hot".
Ask HN: In the 90s, did programmers job-hop frequently?
31–40 of 41 posts
Re: Ask HN: In the 90s, did programmers job-hop frequently?
#32Earlier quoted context omitted.
A 55 year old job hopper is common. They are sometimes called consultants or they work short term employment contracts. They travel like a 20 year old. Plus no matter how old you are working for startups means frequent employment changes. Don't be ageist.
absolutely people "semi retire", they get a few consulting gigs here and there, and earn a bit from that. They're usually very good at what they do and get called in to accomplish a specific task, perhaps one that needs a very special skillset. That's different to a 55 year old, looking for a permanent position, with a history of job hopping. And to be clear i's not the age that worries me, it's the hopping. I believ…
I understand your point of view. 30 years experience with no more than 2 years you can expect they probably would stay with you for about the same length. A 32 year old with the same track record after a big life change like marriage/baby might change but so might the 55 year old (they might want to settle down as well).
I've gotten feedback you stayed too long and you didn't stay long enough from different employers during the same job cycle. Every employer expects different things.
Curious what do you consider an acceptance length at 55? 3 years, 5 years, 10 years+ vs a 32 year old?
Re: Ask HN: In the 90s, did programmers job-hop frequently?
#33Earlier quoted context omitted.
absolutely people "semi retire", they get a few consulting gigs here and there, and earn a bit from that. They're usually very good at what they do and get called in to accomplish a specific task, perhaps one that needs a very special skillset. That's different to a 55 year old, looking for a permanent position, with a history of job hopping. And to be clear i's not the age that worries me, it's the hopping. I believ…
I understand your point of view. 30 years experience with no more than 2 years you can expect they probably would stay with you for about the same length. A 32 year old with the same track record after a big life change like marriage/baby might change but so might the 55 year old (they might want to settle down as well). I've gotten feedback you stayed too long and you didn't stay long enough from different employers…
It's not a number - each person's history is unique so its a lot more nuanced than that.
When hiring we're looking for someone who'll fit, someone who will add to the whole. Hiring people is expensive, each new person is a lot of time invested. We want to feel like you'll want to stay for a while.
Getting that feeling is hard, and of course there are no guarantees in life, but we don't treat people as fungible. You are you, and we can't just go down to the supermarket and replace you.
History is no predictor of the future, but it can be a signal.
Re: Ask HN: In the 90s, did programmers job-hop frequently?
#34Seems normal for 20-somethings, yes people did this in the 90s. Probably necessary in your 20s, to get varied experience and increase pay. 30-somethings can be more risk averse if they have young kids. By 40s and 50s, more chance someone knows what suits them and found a place that's a good fit and they want to stay, sometimes by then they have enough assets that they'll stay in a job they're happy even if pay is sta…
This resonates with me quite a bit. I took an unstable role in my twenties, had the motivation to upgrade to something much better, then settled down and started a family.
Eight years later and I've developed a deep skepticism about private industry and how companies are run, and know I'm working for an employer that's conducive to my mental health. Eventually you gain the recognition of how important that is, and how easily it can be lost once you have it.
Re: Ask HN: In the 90s, did programmers job-hop frequently?
#35Seems normal for 20-somethings, yes people did this in the 90s. Probably necessary in your 20s, to get varied experience and increase pay. 30-somethings can be more risk averse if they have young kids. By 40s and 50s, more chance someone knows what suits them and found a place that's a good fit and they want to stay, sometimes by then they have enough assets that they'll stay in a job they're happy even if pay is sta…
In my mid 50s and what I want is stability and benefits. I’ll happily stay in my current company and role for another 10 years for those things.
Re: Ask HN: In the 90s, did programmers job-hop frequently?
#36.com boom was full of 3-6 month contract roles, where each new contract was an opportunity to improve cash compensation. Improving earnings via job-hopping is nothing new, the difference may be in the other reasons people hop.
Yeah I mostly did 3-6mth contracts from ~96-2005 then a contract offered me a very generous FTE role to stay.
I loved contract work and probably could’ve done it forever but marriage/kids changed what I look for in a job.
Re: Ask HN: In the 90s, did programmers job-hop frequently?
#37I changed jobs every 2-3 years as its the only method to get a proper raise in this country. I only worked 6 years in one place which was my first job.
So this worked for me so far. I guess it depends on who you are and the level of shit shoveling you can handle. I noticed that this level is surprisingly high for some people.
Re: Ask HN: In the 90s, did programmers job-hop frequently?
#38Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think your equating hopping with age is misplaced. Yes, younger do hop more, there are plenty more senior people that maybe want something new and interesting - making it less about making more $$
I'm pointing out that as an employer (not in a startup), I'm not that excited about hiring a hopper. We tend to want folk to hang around since we invest a lot of time and effort in their training, domain knowledge etc. Knowing that someone will move on in a couple years just isn't appealing to me.
I would never hire a hopper willingly and I don’t quite know why some companies do. If I see a bunch of short arrangements on LinkedIn, then it goes on the ‘no’ pile. With the current market here, I have some hoppers begging to try them as ‘they promise they won’t hop’, but I have no way to enforce that; no one cares about options and timing bonuses and raises doesn’t work. We prefer people who stay 10+ years at a position and who don’t ’get bored’; we don’t want to be the TikTok attention span of saas; if people have that, they have to find something else.
Re: Ask HN: In the 90s, did programmers job-hop frequently?
#39Maybe in USA only! Back in the day being a programmer was definitively NOT "hot".
It was hot (maybe not HOT) in the late 90's, me and people around me definitely hoped around.
Re: Ask HN: In the 90s, did programmers job-hop frequently?
#40Back in the 90s there was still this idea of working at the same company for life. Places like Kodak and Xerox use to have this.
Some of my adjunct professors in the Rochester area would tell me about this.
Things started to change after the dotcom crash and the acceleration of new technology taking out larger legacy firms.