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I quit the tech industry (2015)

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Re: I quit the tech industry (2015)

#201

Post by jseban »

barrysteve wrote: post #181
jseban wrote: post #125

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, but I'm arguing that it's very unreliable, often fully backfires and becomes actually destructive, and that in our modern society there are other factors that are much more relevant to people's success in life, and blood relations I would say is fully arbitrary. It's also just as natural for people to branch out and leave their families, as it is to stay close to their families. And I think it's irrelevant to the…

> so that people can go to church more, and church is healthy. Really? That's highly debatable, and obviously another power structure which is also old fashioned This one is so debatable because the definition and theological implications of Church 'healthiness' depend upon many different variables and can differ subtly across all Churches. Church isn't a 'power structure' though. It relies on voluntary participation…

Haha ok so church has no power. And people can never be free, they must be institutionalised, and we should use shortening of working hours to just move them to a different institution that is even more old fashioned and increasingly failing, than then ones we are freeing them from.

Well I guess we can say that we have a fundamentally different view on what constitutes development and improvement of life and society.

Re: I quit the tech industry (2015)

#202

Post by ryandrake »

robotburrito wrote: post #137

Seems like a huge # of techies I meet out here are trying to reach a million dollars in savings in a job they hate so that they can "go live in a cabin in the woods." I try to tell them that my Cousin has been doing that for 40 years, and he dropped out of high school and worked at a gas station.

The difference between these "FIRE" techies and your cousin is your cousin has to keep working to live. I guess I fit right into your stereotype: My family's end state is almost certainly in that cabin, away from the insanity of California, the insanity of proximity to the city, the insanity of hustle culture. I have a sign above my office that says "THE GOAL IS TO NOT HAVE TO WORK". If I ever get to the point where the magic 4% draw-down pays for my family to live, I'm considering myself retired that minute! It just so happens that moving to a lower-cost area can dramatically accelerate that time frame.

Re: I quit the tech industry (2015)

#203

Post by bckr »

slategruen wrote: post #84

So, what could you advice for people who's about to enter the tech industry? I've been having extreme senioritis for more than two years and one of the reasons, I think, is fear of entering this industry. Don't get me wrong, I love tech and all, it's just that I don't think my personality fits the standard employers look for. I don't want to constantly learn new skills just to prove my worth. Yes, most jobs nowadays…

Just don't put too much of your heart and soul into your job. Don't believe in your employer's mission too much. Don't tie up your identity with your job too much. Don't work too many hours.

In other words have boundaries.

Have a life. Do stuff on the weekends and evenings. Hell, have a remote job? Do things in the middle of the day.

Do just enough at work to get a raise and not screw over your coworkers and no more.

Re: I quit the tech industry (2015)

#204

Post by jseban »

barrysteve wrote: post #165
jseban wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You assign an enormous amount of special status to certain people who you happen to be related to by blood, and that's arbitrary. It works when it works, and it doesn't work when it doesn't. What natural law says it's better to spend time with/live only with people who are related to by blood? The only necessity for reproduction is sexual intercourse. A family is susceptible to the same abuse and corruption as any ot…

What "special status"? It simply is how the world is, as we've seen over all of history. Yes some marriages end in divorce and families disconnect in some cases, with various outcomes. The family still exists even if no-one participates in it. The guy is being overworked and unable to see his kids, I'm all for that guy seeing his kids. It can have huge knock on effects if it's ignored. You aren't forced to participat…

> What "special status"? It simply is how the world is, as we've seen over all of history.

And we are trying to move into the future, not the past.

Are nuclear families really so important and successful that we need more of it? Is this really an undebatable absolute truth that should be forced on people? Let people decide on their own if they want to spend their new found free time on families or something else.

Edit: the "special status" is loyalty, and loyalty is bad if we are trying to live in a meritocracy.

Re: I quit the tech industry (2015)

#205

Post by colinmhayes »

robotburrito wrote: post #137

Seems like a huge # of techies I meet out here are trying to reach a million dollars in savings in a job they hate so that they can "go live in a cabin in the woods." I try to tell them that my Cousin has been doing that for 40 years, and he dropped out of high school and worked at a gas station.

Then you gotta work at a gas station though.

Re: I quit the tech industry (2015)

#206

Post by dasil003 »

oldandboring wrote: post #103
napolux wrote: post #15

“Rich kid cash stocks and stops working in tech to do whatever he likes” Come on.

Yeah it really snowballs at the end too, when he talks about opening a Patreon ("Yelp thought what I did was worth some cash, so maybe other people will too). Could you imagine a construction worker quitting her job and opening a Patreon, thinking it's realistic that people give her free money because she used to be productive on a job site? That all being said, the first part of the post is relatable. Tech jobs real…

The wording is unfortunate, but the ask is not free money for past work, it's to support upcoming work which she does wants to release for free and not be dependent on ad-driven monetization schemes. Frankly, I think this is something to be applauded. I'd very much prefer to see more indie and small studio creators versus big gaming and tech with their free-to-play shenanigans and bottom-line mentality sanding down all the interesting edges.

Judging people because they had a windfall that enabled them to do something good is crab mentality.

Re: I quit the tech industry (2015)

#207

Post by pesfandiar »

ryandrake wrote: post #202
robotburrito wrote: post #137

Seems like a huge # of techies I meet out here are trying to reach a million dollars in savings in a job they hate so that they can "go live in a cabin in the woods." I try to tell them that my Cousin has been doing that for 40 years, and he dropped out of high school and worked at a gas station.

The difference between these "FIRE" techies and your cousin is your cousin has to keep working to live. I guess I fit right into your stereotype: My family's end state is almost certainly in that cabin, away from the insanity of California, the insanity of proximity to the city, the insanity of hustle culture. I have a sign above my office that says "THE GOAL IS TO NOT HAVE TO WORK". If I ever get to the point where…

I'm curious about the viability of that 4% draw-down scheme. Does it hold up in a high-inflation, high-interest economy?

Re: I quit the tech industry (2015)

#208

Post by jmathai »

PragmaticPulp wrote: post #179
SenHeng wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you absurdly reduce it down to that point then, yes, anyone can live cheaply in a rural area. But that's not the point. Financial independence is about the ability to live a good life without having to worry about next's day food.

> Financial independence is about the ability to live a good life without having to worry about next's day food. Worrying about paying for food day to day isn’t why people seek out high-stress, high-pay jobs that are often in expensive cities. If people just want enough financial security to reliably put food on the table there are a million ways to do that without getting a demanding career. The people throwing them…

> The people throwing themselves into demanding jobs and chasing promotions to maximize their salary aren’t doing it just to put food on the table.

It is in order to put food on the table. Not today but for the next 20 years after you're no longer earning an income. Also, other hobbies that cost money.

Early retirement is very expensive. Even if you reduce your expenses.

In theory, the higher your income the sooner you can get there.

Financial Independence / Early Retirement is not about having a low stress job.

Re: I quit the tech industry (2015)

#209

Post by nonrandomstring »

WJW wrote: post #57
21723 wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Usually, when the money runs out, they return with their tails between their legs, often in shittier jobs that they'd have had if they'd stuck with it. You're right about the grass being greener. The tech industry is an absolute plague, but most other industries are just as bad. In the long term, and for most of us, the only way to escape this garbage system is to blow it up.

> the only way to escape this garbage system is to blow it up. How so? Countries with blown-up systems typically become more shitty, not less.

> > the only way to escape this garbage system is to blow it up.

> How so? Countries with blown-up systems typically become more shitty, not less.

1775 [1]

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Revolutionary_War

(I'm not saying anything one way or t'other, just pointing out a little history)

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