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Reddit IAMA. An ex Google programmer switched to a job in the lumbering industry

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Re: Reddit IAMA. An ex Google programmer switched to a job in the lumbering industry

#11

I have a story to share: I started programming computers when I was very young. Because of the skills I developed, and because of some connections I had, I got a very high paying job in the data processing department of the Livermore School District while I was still a junior in high school. (I was on independent study at the time.) I literally made more money than I knew what to do with, unfortunately. A couple of y…

Mark Suster would not approve of your career choices! :)

Re: Reddit IAMA. An ex Google programmer switched to a job in the lumbering industry

#12
post #2

Are most programmers even capable of this sort of physical work? Also, what happens if you get injured on the job?

Are most programmers even capable of this sort of physical work?

Muscles grow faster than hacking skills. And if you're used to hacking skills, you probably find a way to do it better and safer.

Also, what happens if you get injured on the job?

What happens if you subject your body to sitting 100 hours a week in front of a computer for decades?

Re: Reddit IAMA. An ex Google programmer switched to a job in the lumbering industry

#13

I have a story to share: I started programming computers when I was very young. Because of the skills I developed, and because of some connections I had, I got a very high paying job in the data processing department of the Livermore School District while I was still a junior in high school. (I was on independent study at the time.) I literally made more money than I knew what to do with, unfortunately. A couple of y…

The value of a programmer is not in what he has learned but in that he can learn fast.

Re: Reddit IAMA. An ex Google programmer switched to a job in the lumbering industry

#14
post #6
post #2

Are most programmers even capable of this sort of physical work? Also, what happens if you get injured on the job?

You're human, aren't you? We haven't sat at desks long enough to affect us as species. You've got everything you need to be a hunter-gatherer or a farmer apart from the skills.

I don't - ignoring that I would have been dead four times without modern medicine by now, I couldn't hunt much without glass.

And I don't recall any hunter-gather tribe that had those.

Re: Reddit IAMA. An ex Google programmer switched to a job in the lumbering industry

#15
I have this ambition to move into the middle of a forest some where. I'd love to spend my day tending to a garden, and maybe a few animals supporting myself. To live life the way it used to be. At night i'd hack on code again, or actually spend time with my girlfriend (maybe wife?). At least in that case if I worked 70 hours a week, I personally would receive the value from 70 hours of work. Right now I'm just getting fatter, my cloths smell because i'm too tired to do laundry, though I see my girl friend every day I'm too tired to do anything.

Re: Reddit IAMA. An ex Google programmer switched to a job in the lumbering industry

#16
The only problem I have with this is that he left a job where he had the potential to make a net positive change in the world to one where he is a tool in destroying the environment.

Sure personally he feels less obligation, but it just seems like eventually that will catch up with him, i know it would to me... especially for someone who professes to love the outdoors, and then contributes to its destruction. The motivation is a little hypocritical...

Re: Reddit IAMA. An ex Google programmer switched to a job in the lumbering industry

#17

I have a story to share: I started programming computers when I was very young. Because of the skills I developed, and because of some connections I had, I got a very high paying job in the data processing department of the Livermore School District while I was still a junior in high school. (I was on independent study at the time.) I literally made more money than I knew what to do with, unfortunately. A couple of y…

> It taught me so much that I couldn't have learned by staying behind a computer desk all day long. It taught me how to relate to people, for one.

The topic of relating to people always fascinates me. Would you say it is more about not facts but sharing feelings? What would you want to tell and teach your future son or daughter about relating to others? Thanks in advance.

Re: Reddit IAMA. An ex Google programmer switched to a job in the lumbering industry

#19
post #9

It sounds like this guy thinks his job at Google was as good as it gets. This is like a musician thinking their job at a marketing agency writing jingles is the best they can hope for. My feeling is he probably gave up too early on finding a way to integrate money making and his passion. Maybe this works best for him though.

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Re: Reddit IAMA. An ex Google programmer switched to a job in the lumbering industry

#20

I have a story to share: I started programming computers when I was very young. Because of the skills I developed, and because of some connections I had, I got a very high paying job in the data processing department of the Livermore School District while I was still a junior in high school. (I was on independent study at the time.) I literally made more money than I knew what to do with, unfortunately. A couple of y…

I did hang-gliding and spent a year building wooden boats. It's interesting how doing a deep dive into something totally different helps giving perspective on things.
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