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

Ask HN: How did you like your job in 2017?

news.ycombinator.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

61–68 of 68 posts

Re: Ask HN: How did you like your job in 2017?

#61

Post by matt_the_bass »

steve_adams_86 wrote: post #33
twayamznacct wrote: post #30

"Awful" would be the first word that comes to mind. I've spent three years at my current position at one of the "big 5", and after the first 9 months there were reorgs and I haven't been doing the things I was hired to do since. Instead I work on things that I have zero interest towards, and can feel my soul being sucked out of me daily. It has gotten to the point where I cannot even imagine heading in to work each m…

Is it really disappointing to get hired at one of these places so many people admire and desire, only to find it's nothing special at all? Or is the problem something else? I've wondered about that. My job isn't spectacular, it's pretty good. I used to want to strive for a spot in a bigger/high impact/significant company like Amazon or Apple for example, but eventually came to realize I'd probably never do anything i…

What city?

Re: Ask HN: How did you like your job in 2017?

#62

Post by matt_the_bass »

aennyta wrote: post #23
SirLJ wrote: post #22

I love it! which is actually bad for me, because otherwise I would retire early and travel the world... maybe next year :-) 12 years and counting at this position...

Wow, must be a great job:) I always get surprised when I see someone at the same company for 10+ years in IT.

I have a small company and have found that in general 5 years is the shortest stints for our technical employees. Our dept managers have been with us for over 15 years. Our college interns also report hands down that their internships were the best of their peers.

I’ve taken this as a compliment to the environment and culture I’ve fostered. My “secret”: treat everyone the way I’d like to be treated and work the way I’d like others to work.

I’m always surprised when others are surprised at our retention. To me this seems like an easy accomplishment. Maybe this is only possible at a smaller company who’s doing interesting work?

Re: Ask HN: How did you like your job in 2017?

#63

Post by neofrommatrix »

Not too much; The job was oversold to me during interviews (or I did not ask the right questions) and that means, I've gone from working on massive scale distributed systems infrastructure to network automation configuring a handful of devices every now and then. I think my skills may have atrophied even though I have been keeping up on the side - not sure how I can sell this in my next interviews. What's keeping me here? An awesome manager (learned how to lead from him, just by observation), and my green card application is in the final stages.

Re: Ask HN: How did you like your job in 2017?

#64

Post by zapperdapper »

twayamznacct wrote: post #56
zapperdapper wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would talk to someone directly. You sound very unhappy. I wasn't quite clear if the problem was the work or the company? It's something that needs to be dived into and had a good look at because there could be imbalance in your life leading to depression. So you need to look at things like diet, sleep, exercise, relationship etc. It's possible you need to rebalance - it's possible you need a new career. A career br…

> I wasn't quite clear if the problem was the work or the company? I honestly don't have a complete answer for this. I mean, I know the work is a major problem, but it's not the only factor by far. It's definitely the one front and center, however. As for other "life" things, I believe I do well there. I get 8 hours of sleep, I exercise 4 days a week, eat healthy, etc. No relationships but I'm antisocial to a tremend…

> No relationships but I'm antisocial to a tremendous degree so there's not much helping me there.

That may be partly the issue. Studies into "happiness at work" often show it's not the work itself that necessarily determines happiness, but the quality of the relationships you have at work. For example, some work that may seem tedious and dull can become quite interesting if you are working on it together with someone you like and respect - and it's even better if you can have a blast with them. On my last gig for example I was doing dreadfully tedious work, but it was made better because several people I worked with were just awesomely nice people and we tried to have some fun too. Perhaps there's someone at work that you can buddy up with, and your manager might be able to help you there.

Having a relationship can be an important factor too - apart from anything it helps you get out of your own head and relax. Do you do any social activities on the weekend? It might be worth joining a cycling club, a running club or even a Crossfit box - you say you like exercise, something where there are other people to talk to. Just being around other people and talking to them will help - I know this is like hell on Earth if you are basically shy, so this is something you are going to have to ease into gently and get support if you need it - it will get easier.

Having said all that this is a difficult thing to diagnose and remedy via HN! As mentioned before you might find it worth talking to a career coach or perhaps even a counsellor. Feel free to email me if you want.

Re: Ask HN: How did you like your job in 2017?

#65

Post by SirLJ »

matt_the_bass wrote: post #62
aennyta wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wow, must be a great job:) I always get surprised when I see someone at the same company for 10+ years in IT.

I have a small company and have found that in general 5 years is the shortest stints for our technical employees. Our dept managers have been with us for over 15 years. Our college interns also report hands down that their internships were the best of their peers. I’ve taken this as a compliment to the environment and culture I’ve fostered. My “secret”: treat everyone the way I’d like to be treated and work the way I…

Great stuff, it is also possible in big corporations, you just have to work on interesting projects with like minded people, be flexible as a manager and lead by example...

Essentially you can turn your team into small company with it's own culture within the corporation, threat the rest as customers, etc...

Re: Ask HN: How did you like your job in 2017?

#67

Post by John_Cena »

aennyta wrote: post #52
John_Cena wrote: post #38

I spent 3/4 of 2017 trying to land a job. I've been at the company for a quarter. Its a big corporate monstrosity and they literally made me "train" for a month on how to do sales, customer service, and technician roles... Yeah I sat on a phone for 2 straight days taking phone calls with an engineering degree from the best school in the SE USA. Just trying to put that in perspective. I overlooked it because the oppor…

If you don't mind me asking, were you actively looking for a new job for 3/4 of 2017, without being employed anywhere? Finding a job in tech shouldn't be that hard, I would think. Your situation sounds quite like any other big corporate. Lots of people not doing anything or working very little and manages that can be really picky and hard to get along. I am not sure what I would do, getting into that team seams like…

The man is not a manager, he is just the most tenured of the team by a decade. We mesh very well.

I made wrong moves applying for part of the year most likely a full quarter, but by middle of the summer I was applying to around a dozen a day with researched applications and taking phone screens every other day. I was taught as a EE so for entry level jobs I think I was being beat out by objectively better investments. I also spent half the year trying to land a hardware design job and then moved to embedded software since all the offers I had for the former would have literally made me homeless or foodless in California.

It pains me not to use much of what I was taught. Honestly I just want to be in a job where I actually work in the embedded space. Every place I went it seemed like it was going to be a job of fighting legacy code, reserved and silent experts, and high turnover of said experts.

I hate interviews but I was planning on taking at least one every 6 months to keep ready.

Re: Ask HN: How did you like your job in 2017?

#68

Post by John_Cena »

aennyta wrote: post #52
John_Cena wrote: post #38

I spent 3/4 of 2017 trying to land a job. I've been at the company for a quarter. Its a big corporate monstrosity and they literally made me "train" for a month on how to do sales, customer service, and technician roles... Yeah I sat on a phone for 2 straight days taking phone calls with an engineering degree from the best school in the SE USA. Just trying to put that in perspective. I overlooked it because the oppor…

If you don't mind me asking, were you actively looking for a new job for 3/4 of 2017, without being employed anywhere? Finding a job in tech shouldn't be that hard, I would think. Your situation sounds quite like any other big corporate. Lots of people not doing anything or working very little and manages that can be really picky and hard to get along. I am not sure what I would do, getting into that team seams like…

I appreciate your time to give me your advice. You may not think it matters much but I benefit greatly from hearing it from another human. If you have anything else to add I will check back
Post reply on HN