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Ask HN: Burnt-out, directionless but want to turn it around
441–450 of 521 posts
Re: Ask HN: Burnt-out, directionless but want to turn it around
#442Earlier quoted context omitted.
It depends entirely on the company and how many other candidates they have. If I receive 200 resumes and 30% of them are picture perfect - Sorry, I can’t interview or even screen everyone. The resume with unexplained gaps isn’t getting sorted into the top of the pile simply because I have to be aggressive with filtering. On the other hand, if I’m hiring for a difficult position at a less popular company and I’m only…
> If I receive 200 resumes and 30% of them are picture perfect First, what software company hiring developers is in this position? Second, isn't the definition of "picture perfect resume" the exact thing the GP is arguing to change? Third, a month is not a unexplained gap; resumes (even LinkedIn) typically aren't fined-grained below the month level with dates, so there's nothing to hide or explain.
> A month is not a unexplained gap;
Honestly the whole thread seems mad to even suggest such a thing is true. "Gaps" start at about 1 year and I'm dubious anyone is using it as a filter before it's 2-3 years (ie when you might claim skills would start to degrade if unused).
Re: Ask HN: Burnt-out, directionless but want to turn it around
#443Earlier quoted context omitted.
Prison, at least that's how it was explained to me in the mid 90s when I started out.
Obviously this depends on the job and what someone did that landed them in prison, but that shouldn't be an automatic dealbreaker. If they are applying for a job after being released from prison, then they're trying to reintegrate and should be given a fair shake. If a criminal record is an insurmountable hurdle for a specific role, then it would come up in a background check (which would almost certainly be a requir…
The current landlord for my shop has several businesses and mentioned that he specifically hires guys getting out of prison (presumably selectively of course). He said that they tend to be grateful and incredibly loyal. He had one on my site doing some setup construction who was very good, worked very hard (including driving 1.5hrs to get here around other work), and did really good work, so can confirm to the extent of that anecdata. It's enough for me to seriously consider it for some roles. People really do need to get a leg up.
Overall, for me hiring, I never considered a resume gap to be a problem, and think that employers who do are literally stupid (sadly, nothing prevents such stupidity). At most, it is a potentially interesting interlude for a person's life and career - what did they do with it?
For OP, I'd definitely recommend rearranging your work situation so you are not so exploited and pressured. Either get your employer to hire more people so you can work on something other than a constant firefighting basis, or leave. It very much looks like the main reason you have not yet "come up with a solution from scratch of my own and provide any value" is because you aren't given a moment to breathe (and your assessment of not adding value is wrong - you are obviously adding value, it's just that you can see some left on the table).
Seems what you need, at almost any cost, is to get perspective.
Good that you see it and here's to your future success!
Re: Ask HN: Burnt-out, directionless but want to turn it around
#444Earlier quoted context omitted.
Hang on, you are going to penalise someone for taking time off to get clean... presumably on the basis that it's better they come to work hiding the fact that they are high, than that they get help?
Companies do not like risk. That kind of time off has high potential recidivism. If there are 2 candidates then lower risk one wins. Years ago I had HR decline a candidate because of a messy divorce because of perceived risk that I still don't understand.
Yet companies turn a blind eye towards people who abuse alcohol, even throwing parties where people are encouraged to drink alcohol. If your chosen substance is alcohol, you can even be an alcoholic and still keep your job if it doesn't affect performance.
Every hire is full of risks. Nobody knows whether they'll get into a car crash, get cancer, or get shot, or become a substance abuser. Whether they admit their medical history or not. That's because they are human beings. Humans are inherently risky. If you want to eliminate risk, then hiring humans is not for you.
All you do by punishing people who are honest about their history, is to encourage even more people to lie in interviews. Those people are only the tip of the iceberg, and a significant number of people companies hire already have such history but they just keep their mouths shut.
Re: Ask HN: Burnt-out, directionless but want to turn it around
#445Earlier quoted context omitted.
> No-one will care about a month or two gap on your resume. On a related note, this "gap in resume" thing needs to stop being a thing at all. I don't know when it became a thing, but it feels distinctively like forcing a wage slave class to keep their head down and continue wageslaving. Why would an employer care whether I took time off to pursue other things otherwise?
Aside from the "fired and couldn't find another job" and "had personal problems that prevented him from working angles," there's also the possibility that said employee lives well within his means and can take large blocks of time away from full-time work if he chooses. Which means that said employee could walk away from the company if he's dissatisfied. The company would rather have someone who needs the paycheck— h…
I am not saying that you necessarily endorse this line of reasoning or justification but if this is what passes for talent retention strategies at these firms, they're really in for a lot, lot of pain.
Re: Ask HN: Burnt-out, directionless but want to turn it around
#446You can't see the forest through the trees right now, so picking a direction will be meaningless. Best way is to take an extended break a month or more and let the fog clear. The first week, just do basic things like get up eat breakfast, make your bed and take a walk. The next week start re-engaging with friends who you haven't spoken with in a while. Third week, do something fun. Fourth week start "thinking" what you'd like to do next - type of company - small, med, large - what you want to learn. Week after that work on your resume. Slow and steady, take care of yourself
Re: Ask HN: Burnt-out, directionless but want to turn it around
#447Similar story for me, started programming at 12, I'm 44 now, never had a win. So I'm not one to listen to for advice on success, but, I feel that studying what NOT to do can be just as valuable. Here are some insights that I find helpful:
- The industry is designed so that one guy wins and gets rich and the other 99% lose. Go into battle knowing you will lose, and create a different kind of success for those around you and humanity at large. (Borrowed from Fight Club).
- This is not forever. You'll be paid to solve problems at the bleeding edge of technology, which means that you're solving something that corporations have likely already solved, which isn't opened sourced yet, that someone will open source the year after you build it. (Try anyway, be kind anyway, love anyway).
- The universe will support you in any mode you choose to live in. This one took me a really long time to figure out - well into the pandemic. There's nobody at the wheel above you, you're in control. Or to rephrase, any external definition of God is incomplete until you reconnect with your own personal divinity. So someday we all have to learn to let go and give the universe a chance to help. That's the only way to level up that I've found, and the only explanation other than sheer greed that aligns with how people build wealth beyond their personal contribution. (Applies to all wealthy people).
Expanding on that last point: being on call was the main thing that triggered my burnout in 2019. It's something I won't do again, because I've experienced how it's not rewarded. In other words, me overextending myself made my situation worse. Cognitive dissonance is our subconscious (body's) way of alerting us that something is wrong so that we can try opposite approaches. Those messages only come in simple forms. If you're tired, rest. If you're lonely, go out and talk to people so you can go on a date. If you're not paid well, set a boundary on yourself to work 40 hours or less so that you and your boss can discover who isn't pulling their weight. If you can't do any of these things, then you don't have a job, you have a commitment to something. Align with that and peace will follow.
Re: Ask HN: Burnt-out, directionless but want to turn it around
#448Earlier quoted context omitted.
I would agree for small gaps. But I think it's at least somewhat understandable why a significant gap would be a concern. With the pace technology moves at, if you have not been working for an extended period of time, it's reasonable that you might have fallen behind. Certainly this shouldn't be reason in itself to reject a candidate and it at least somewhat depends on what you were doing during that time, but I find…
I worked a corporate job for several years where I pretty much learned nothing. As far as my skills go, the end result was almost no different to not working at all.
Same. I think my skills may have regressed because they were working with legacy tech. I did get to go to a ton of zoom meetings, though.
Re: Ask HN: Burnt-out, directionless but want to turn it around
#449Earlier quoted context omitted.
just curious - if someone is "fired for cause" (don't feel that this term is universally accurate in its implications but thats another discussion), do you feel they should never get a job again? its some sort of Scarlett letter or brand on them?
The argument I've seen and heard many times is that someone who was been fired before is likely to get fired again. Also applies to medical conditions. You don't want an employee who might get sick and not be able to work.
it's illegal to ask about or discriminate on medical conditions though, unless there's a strong, concrete reason to ask - e.g. you don't have to hire someone with uncontrolled epilepsy to be a bus driver, but you can't refuse to hire a receptionist because her lupus might make her call in sick occasionally.
I'm terrified of all this, since I started using a wheelchair. a friend told me she did 10 interviews with no offers, when they were in person, but got a great offer when she interviewed on Zoom. my current job values me a lot, but do I stay there forever? what if I try to switch jobs and nobody wants to hire the cripple?
Re: Ask HN: Burnt-out, directionless but want to turn it around
#450Could you please point me to your CV? Thanks