From an old guy.
Stay just a little a bit longer. Another year or maybe two.
Don't stay 10.
Stack up a little more cash, get a better plan.
Don't go away from something. Go towards something.
Ask HN: Why shouldn't I leave Google?
61–70 of 130 posts
Re: Ask HN: Why shouldn't I leave Google?
#62Change careers like tarzan: https://sivers.org/tarzan
where I live this joke is used for people that change relationships in that way
Re: Ask HN: Why shouldn't I leave Google?
#63From someone who's been there done that: former Googler, now running engineering at a startup. It doesn't get any easier to come up with a startup idea once you leave mothership. I know it seems counterintuitive, since once you leave you have nothing else to do but come up with ideas, but you could find that after 6-9 months you still don't have anything you really believe in. That's what happened to me circa 2008. I…
> So your mentor seems to be right, even though what he's suggesting is not 100% ethical: if you read your contract you'll see that all of your software related ideas are property of Google. It is most definitely not unethical to not comply with a bullshit authoritarian contract like that.
Wouldn't that ethically be wage theft? The employer is claiming ownership of your ideas when your off the clock, thus they should be paying you overtime if they want ownership of those ideas.
Nevermind the salary/overtime exempt scam that has been popular as of late, which is also wage theft.
Re: Ask HN: Why shouldn't I leave Google?
#64From someone who's been there done that: former Googler, now running engineering at a startup. It doesn't get any easier to come up with a startup idea once you leave mothership. I know it seems counterintuitive, since once you leave you have nothing else to do but come up with ideas, but you could find that after 6-9 months you still don't have anything you really believe in. That's what happened to me circa 2008. I…
> So your mentor seems to be right, even though what he's suggesting is not 100% ethical: if you read your contract you'll see that all of your software related ideas are property of Google. It is most definitely not unethical to not comply with a bullshit authoritarian contract like that.
I agree with you in principle, but I've seen shit you wouldn't believe when there's a few million dollars at stake: otherwise fine, ethical, upstanding human beings can turn into the worst weasels you can imagine if you don't hold the sword of legal retribution over their heads to assure their good faith. You won't quite understand that until you actually work on something you have a vested interest in succeeding, as in, a substantial financial stake, not some bullshit koolaid they feed you as you're slaving away on an irrelevant product #24554 at a Megacorp Inc.
Re: Ask HN: Why shouldn't I leave Google?
#65I left Google as well.
Not many workplaces will match Google in terms of overall lifestyle, but there are companies that come close. And others can beat it in terms of pay (Google's base pay, for example, sucks).
I'd recommend leaving. The company is becoming more boring to work at all around. I've heard this from many friends. More enterprise focused, short-term money driven and less willing to innovate, mostly monetizing internal technologies or playing catch-up to other companies. It's a good time to try something else.
Re: Ask HN: Why shouldn't I leave Google?
#66yes, google is too good a salary to leave. for most people. or at least that's what i understand. I consider it unlikely your startup would succeed as like 9/10 do not. being at google is prestige and money. so if you want the most prestige or money, i recommend staying.
but money as they say is not everything. the amount you saved up counts for more the further away you get from the place you are now. perhaps there are places you could happily live out the rest of your life with the money you have now. so in that case and it sounds like you want this, yeah go have some fun :)
Re: Ask HN: Why shouldn't I leave Google?
#67I can't imagine you'll enjoy working elsewhere if you're not happy at Google. If you're an entrepreneur at heart, you'll likely not feel fulfilled until you're working on your own product. I'd say stick around Google (at least for the paycheck) as your mentor suggested until you have an execution plan. Also, if you decide to find another employer in the future, it will be more difficult to explain that you quit becau…
I have never regretted leaving a job. The only regrets are not leaving sooner.
This was me when I left my last job, I have to say I do not regret leaving one bit.
Re: Ask HN: Why shouldn't I leave Google?
#68Earlier quoted context omitted.
Junior SWEs don't get a sabbatical, unpaid or otherwise.
How long before they can?
It's been a few years since I left, I don't remember. I do remember there are level and performance requirements, too, and there's no guarantee that they hold your old spot for you when you come back. So you do very much depend on the benevolence of your corporate masters.
Re: Ask HN: Why shouldn't I leave Google?
#69Re: Ask HN: Why shouldn't I leave Google?
#70Earlier quoted context omitted.
> So your mentor seems to be right, even though what he's suggesting is not 100% ethical: if you read your contract you'll see that all of your software related ideas are property of Google. It is most definitely not unethical to not comply with a bullshit authoritarian contract like that.
I agree with you in principle, but I've seen shit you wouldn't believe when there's a few million dollars at stake: otherwise fine, ethical, upstanding human beings can turn into the worst weasels you can imagine if you don't hold the sword of legal retribution over their heads to assure their good faith. You won't quite understand that until you actually work on something you have a vested interest in succeeding, as…
Are they being properly compensated for their time? By that, I mean is the employee being directly compensated for all of the non-work hours the company is claiming ownership of ideas over?
Otherwise, if its a classic "Here is a salary and package, we own all your relevant ideas from here on" deal, I'd say that is highly unethical behavior on the company's part, and is a case of wage theft.
Should the employee be barred from moonlighting too? Not unless the company is willing to pay for said time.