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

Over 10 years at FAANGs (mostly working in ML) I've lost the joy of software engineering, and I've been at some level of burnout for a few years. I'm considering leaving tech, but I wonder if a change of focus could reignite my motivation. Can you suggest some options, or share any relevant advice?

I figure I could take a sabbatical and explore some new areas, try to transition to contracting, or look for jobs outside of the big tech/web startup scene. Ideally I'd like something that requires rigor, with a focus on software architecture or algorithms/optimization. I'd also like to minimize the type of workplace politics I've experienced at FAANG. I'm open to suggestions that don't exclusively have to do with software. Part of me is tired of spending so much of my life in front of a computer.

Here are some disorganized ideas that might give a sense of my interests:

- Cryptography and security (not cryptocurrency/blockchain): I have a math background and I was always an algebra/discrete math person, so this seems a potential fit.

- Formal verification / theorem proving

- Open messaging standards (e.g., Matrix): I find the current state with siloed proprietary messengers a travesty

- Open repositories of knowledge (e.g., Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap)

- "User-empowering" software (e.g., Emacs, Ableton Live)

- Distributed systems

- Programming language development (compilers, libraries)

- Graphics (though the gaming industry isn't exactly the place to recover from burnout)

- Research in cognitive science, psychedelics (lots of hype here though), complex systems, physics

- Studying music composition or audio engineering

- Helping out with homelessness, loneliness, the elderly or disabled

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

In 2018, I took a year-long sabbatical from a FAANG company (FYI, I was principal level and it required VP approval). I had previously taken a few 1-3 month breaks between positions prior to the sabbatical. Although am I grateful for the extended breaks, they are far from a panacea and downright stressful if you set your expectations too high :).

Feel free to reach out if you want to discuss further.

The passionate people that started all these companies wouldn't take most jobs in them today. The bureaucrats have taken over, even surprisingly in "startup" culture, not just FAANG. I don't think programming will retain value as a profession without being actively defended.

I did something similar and stopped working for over a year. I just took on some basic contracting and just let my curiosity drive me. The whole idea was to just not plan and let things happen naturally because I was tired of trying to minmax everything I did. I tried many things, shared it with people, and then ended up finding my passion as well as a new job in an area that I haven't considered before.

As a reminder, what you are passionate about and what you do for work does not have to be the same. I would say it's best to keep it separate. Keeping it separate helped ground myself and care less about my career. At the end of the day, I can't say the last 10 years of my career was something I am proud of sharing with my friends and family. No one cares that you built a dashboard that saved the organization a million dollars; I certainly don't. People care about your passions and what drives you, and I care about working on something that I can be proud of.

My suggestion would be to just pick anything you are interested in and just go with the flow. When you get to a point where you are no longer interested, next.

Let yourself be and you'll see.