Ask HN: Joining Big Tech in One’s 40s

Hi HN — I'm 43, and at a bit of a crossroads. I sold my share in a company last year and have been taking time off to figure out my next move, and while I've mostly done startups my whole career, I am considering going for a job at a big tech company (FAANG/Lyft/Stripe/etc.). Does anyone have any experience doing this? I can still keep up coding, but should I do that, or try for management? What skills should I brush up on particularly? Mostly, I am a bit fed up with the stress and uncertainty of startups and looking for something more stable, at least for a while.

That's a pretty broad question, isn't it? Besides your age and that you used to work at startups and dislike the stress, there isn't much to go on for guidance. Who knows if you're suited for management, would be better as a code monkey, or what skills you need to brush up on?

Not to be disrespectful, but your response sounds like those arrogant Stack Overflow responses that are simply not helpful. There is enough in his question for anyone to provide a proper answer.

What do you enjoy ?

> I am a bit fed up with the stress and uncertainty of startups and looking for something more stable, at least for a while.

I think you have answered your own question there for the most part, and I don't think its too much to ask for a bit of stability.

Personally, I would advise you take some time to think about what areas & roles you enjoyed the most, as you're looking for something possibly long term, don't make it difficult `WORK`, instead make it something you enjoy.

Then you can dedicate your time looking for the projects/companies you really are excited about.

Sounds like a dream, but theres no reason why you can't suit yourself!

Best of luck!

PS: I don't think you should worry about your age, if thats why it was in the title; but if you're like me, over time I lose patience with people who wonthave a genuine discussion & be open to being wrong. But this is a maturity thing that you can asses at interview time I guess.

i'm at the same spot. I've found the team lead role in the consulting industry to be enjoyable. I mentor junior devs (whole career mentoring in addition to technical mentoring) and try to setup Sr. devs to do their best work. I still get to write code and scratch that itch too.

Consulting is nice because projects/customers come and go so every few months you're on to something different. Of course, consulting has down sides too but i seem to have a knack for it.