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Ask HN: Feel bad about working in crypto, what to do?

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Re: Ask HN: Feel bad about working in crypto, what to do?

#12
I also work in this area. More in a trading context but still crypto only. I do not think that your current choice of employment will have any negative impact on your future. I would even argue that it would be rather positive. Not everybody is open for new ideas. Working on a Defi protocol shows your commitment to learning new stuff. I would still suggest you should switch your job, since you said it yourself, your are not really into it. IT will get difficult for you to defend yourself since you do not believe in the tech.

Re: Ask HN: Feel bad about working in crypto, what to do?

#13
Don’t worry about future employability, surely some people won’t hire ex-crypto guys. But no more than people won’t hire ex-amazon or ex-whatever.

Just make sure your company isn‘t scammy.

It looks like higher interest rates is going to burst a lot of bubbles. So maybe the industry will go back to its non-speculative roots soon.

That said, the environmental aspect is an issue that will linger.

Re: Ask HN: Feel bad about working in crypto, what to do?

#14

> I also see true potential in the technology and ideology A good reason to continue on your path.

Also crypto isn't going anywhere, in fact its about to be adopted by the FED with a CBDC, FedCoin. The price is down today, but the price isn't what is important about the technology

I 100% disagree. Crypto is essentially a fad like beanie babies.

Re: Ask HN: Feel bad about working in crypto, what to do?

#15
post #4

> will I be unemployable because I spend several years in the scammy crypto industry? People that worked at Enron, Lehman, LTCM, et al all got new jobs quite easily. You'll be fine. > the constant backlash from the public is nagging me The public is mostly angry that they paid too much. They were speculative gamblers that bought into the bubble extremely late. This is no different than people who aggressively took lo…

> People that worked at Enron, Lehman, LTCM, et al all got new jobs quite easily. You'll be fine.

A lot of them probably struggled quite a bit to recover.

Also, you don't know which opportunities you don't have access to anymore. People won't tell you: "I don't want to work with you because you worked for an obnoxious ad tech company", but quite a few people will think this very hard in their head.

Don't underestimate the ethical questions in your career choices.

Re: Ask HN: Feel bad about working in crypto, what to do?

#16
post #2

I have dedicated the majority of my professional career to crypto. I am deeply passionate about the industry and its potential to disrupt the global financial system, and IMO it has already in significant and profound ways. Whether you agree or not, it has certainly brought the discussion of fiat currencies, central banks, and the philosophy of monetary systems from the backwater of forgotten academics to a real deba…

No post body was provided.

Re: Ask HN: Feel bad about working in crypto, what to do?

#17
post #4

> will I be unemployable because I spend several years in the scammy crypto industry? People that worked at Enron, Lehman, LTCM, et al all got new jobs quite easily. You'll be fine. > the constant backlash from the public is nagging me The public is mostly angry that they paid too much. They were speculative gamblers that bought into the bubble extremely late. This is no different than people who aggressively took lo…

> People that worked at Enron, Lehman, LTCM, et al all got new jobs quite easily. You'll be fine. A lot of them probably struggled quite a bit to recover. Also, you don't know which opportunities you don't have access to anymore. People won't tell you: "I don't want to work with you because you worked for an obnoxious ad tech company", but quite a few people will think this very hard in their head. Don't underestimat…

> A lot of them probably struggled quite a bit to recover.

The ones that were a party to fraud or extreme folly, sure, but competent people generally had the same difficulty finding a new position as anyone else after their company goes under. I knew people at Enron and Lehman that had new jobs within days and weeks of the blowup. It isn't a big deal and no reasonable person is going to hold normal employees responsible for the blowups of executives or tides of the market. Especially when useful developers are in extreme demand.

> but quite a few people will think this very hard in their head.

Not having to work with people who think this about potential colleagues is a blessing in itself.

Re: Ask HN: Feel bad about working in crypto, what to do?

#18
> However, the constant backlash from the public is nagging me.

There isn't a constant backlash from the public - most people don't care, the ones that like it buy and the ones that don't write grumpy blog posts about it. The people who do care have split into the aye and nay camps and are arguing the situation out. The usual anti-capitalist types will hate it, but they hate everything financial.

Although any specific crypto is probably a mad idea that will eventually go bust, it is pretty clear at this point that the industry as a whole is here to stay. It has been more than a decade now, it is hard to come up with a scenario where all the money goes away.

Re: Ask HN: Feel bad about working in crypto, what to do?

#19
post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Also crypto isn't going anywhere, in fact its about to be adopted by the FED with a CBDC, FedCoin. The price is down today, but the price isn't what is important about the technology

I 100% disagree. Crypto is essentially a fad like beanie babies.

No post body was provided.

Re: Ask HN: Feel bad about working in crypto, what to do?

#20
If you worked for Amazon, Facebook, Google, or a similar social media / adtech company, I think you’d be doing more real damage to society. The only difference is that these organizations have a better PR department.

Crypto has pluses and minuses and you should determine whether it’s a technology you believe in or not. I think basing your opinion of it on “the public” or (notoriously uninformed about crypto) HN opinion is just a bit mentally weak. Either believe in what you’re doing, or do something else. But don’t base your feelings on what the mob thinks.

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