Ask HN: Am I committing career suicide?

Do it, and make sure to use your time off wisely. You have enough savings, you're single. If you're gonna do it, now is the time. I'm in a somewhat similar situation. I've been working in the Bay Area as an ASIC validation engineer in a big semiconductor company for the past few years. I'm 30 years old. I've also gotten quite bored with work, so on the side I've been doing some mobile development (Android then iOS). I just very recently (Friday) started interviewing and it seems that the demand is pretty high. (I've gotten several requests on linkedIn before even publishing any apps). The transition for you should be even smoother since you have a background in CS. I feel that you can't go wrong by taking some time-off, work on your own projects then decide whether to join a company or start your own. I don't have as much savings as you, so my goal is to quit my job and find another job in Mobile Development, while working on my own project on the side. In all cases, best of luck!

Here is the app that I released about a week ago (shameless plug): https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/dish./id648176152?ls=1&m...

Ha! Yes, ten years feels like a very, very long time just lately. ;)

There's nothing wrong with coasting when you know you're moving in a good direction, which it seems clear you are. In your situation, you have the chance to sit back, observe, and carefully consider the environment (in addition to consulting whatever oracles you consider the most wise) and then decide when or whether you should strike out with any given idea.

Unless you're throwing yourself on the mercy of an incubator on the strength of your resume, which in my opinion is a laughable gamble for kids who don't know better, you will want to think long and hard on what you want to do and how you want to do it. Once you can answer those questions for yourself (as you are the only one to whom you answer, and you'll never find a more forgiving situation), you'll have your direction.

Once you take it... well, that's another story. ;)

Thanks for this link! I've been reading a lot of blogs lately, but haven't seen this article. I've seen the TED talk mentioned in the article, and it was an inspiration to my idea, along with the Four Hour Work Week of course.

Quite a few people seem to be able to make a living as indie developers. But I wonder how many fail, without making their story public. People like to read about success stories, but not about failures.

After a decade at the same employer, I was completely burned out -- I had worked 60+ hour weeks for many years, with nothing resembling a "real" vacation since ~2004. I didn't enjoy the bulk of the work. I wasn't learning anything applicable outside of my employer's niche. I was being given projects that I was completely unqualified to work on (but I was the least unqualified person, so they fell to me).

After one particularly brutal day that didn't see me home until well after midnight, I did some serious soul-searching. I gave my (pretty generous) notice the next day.

I did the math and figured out my vacation payout + vacation time I had lost over the years due to the yearly cutoff was about three months, so I planned to take a three month vacation. Sleep all day, learn a programming language, drive to interesting places, read books, play video games, whatever sounded interesting that particular day. Recharge the ol' batteries. And that's exactly what I did.

After my three months of R&R were up, it was time to start looking for a job. I applied for interesting-sounding jobs that I thought I was qualified for. Silence. I contacted some friends and asked about opportunities, then sent CVs to the few that said, "Yes, we have positions you should apply for!" More silence. I continue(d) to apply for interesting jobs, resisting the urge to just scattershot resumes at everything I'm qualified for. (I think that's tacky, and I'm not that desperate yet. Plus, I don't want another job I'll hate and/or burn out on.)

My three months turned into six months...and then nine months...and now stands at 11 months. I haven't been able to get a single interview -- phone, e-mail, in-person, or otherwise. My savings and expenses are such that I'm okay for another two years or so, but I will need an income of some sort eventually.

Maybe my skill set is crap. Maybe my CV is crap. Maybe it's my employment history gap. Maybe it's karmic retribution. I can't be certain, but my money's on the gap.

tl;dr: Your mileage may vary, but I'm pretty sure I Darwin'd my career by taking time off without doing anything that I could put on a CV to explain the gap in my employment history.

Points well taken. Yes, indie opportunity is not what it was, but it's most certainly still there.

I can't speak to ageism in the market, though we all know it exists... hopefully your skills speak for you. My best weapon in the last decade has been the interview; if you enjoy and excel at that, plan on getting most of what you want. :)

I don't know what your qualifications are, but if you are interested in freelance web/Android work, please drop me a line. Info is in my profile. I have nothing waiting at the moment, but I do get a fair amount of leads.