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Ask HN: In mid 40s. What non-tech job can I do?

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Re: Ask HN: In mid 40s. What non-tech job can I do?

#71

Post by visarga »

factsarelolz wrote: post #38
nopenopenopeno wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A close friend just moved across the country and back because what he thought would be his dream teaching job turned out to be laced with dramatic and patently insane identity politics as described. He is himself a socialist passionate about helping poor working class people, but his coworkers were snotty out-of-touch liberals with no conception of class divisions at all. They were intent on dividing society along ge…

> but his coworkers were snotty out-of-touch liberals with no conception of class divisions at all. They were intent on dividing society along gender lines. Unfortunately I have heard the same. I know 3 male high school teachers and the stories I hear are unfathomable, you could never convince me to teach at a high school.

Hard to understand such activism aiming at dividing society, they emphasise the issues while almost completely forgetting to mention cooperation that exists between the various groups.

Re: Ask HN: In mid 40s. What non-tech job can I do?

#72

Post by solardev »

loeg wrote: post #34
im_down_w_otp wrote: post #33

Bicycle mechanic. At least that's what I'll probably do next whether my current startup is a wild success or colossal failure. Either way... bike mechanic. :-)

Expect way less than 1/3 pay, though.

Is it really that bad? Where I live, I earn about $50 an hour as a dev. The McDonald's here pays around $20/hr. Hopefully bike mechanics don't earn less than fast food...?

Re: Ask HN: In mid 40s. What non-tech job can I do?

#73

Post by solardev »

goostavos wrote: post #67
ww520 wrote: post #41

Farming? Modern farming is more like project management, hiring management company, hiring operation company, corps planning, taking to banks, managing finance, managing subcontractors, sales, etc.

I imagine the upstart costs are astronomical (especially when weighed against the low returns) here for anything other than personal garden level? Or is that perception wrong? Is it possible to start a new farming operation and be minimally viable / profitable?

Weed?

Re: Ask HN: In mid 40s. What non-tech job can I do?

#75

Post by ljf »

leethomas wrote: post #60
ljf wrote: post #36

There are so many non-technical jobs in tech companies, which are so much better in the hands of someone that understands technology. Consider the skills and knowledge you have, and see where else you can apply them. Often these roles are far less stressful

> Often these roles are far less stressful What did you have in mind specifically? I can’t think of anything myself that doesn’t seem just as or more stressful and with less flexibility.

Product Owner, Product Manager can be loads of fun and very creative at the right company - though both can be high stress in the wrong team/company.

Project Management can be fun if you are organised, Programme Manager if you want it to be a more senior role

Business Analyst can be great - and can get pretty senior.

In some companies the step out of programming and into architecture can be a very different pace, but all companies will vary. In my current company it seems full on but at the last it seemed a great role.

Strategy is really important and loads of people and companies do it poorly - great opportunities to do it well! Can be a lot of board papers and socialisation of ideas, but the pace will be very different, and while there can be some stress, will not be consistent.

Obviously ymmv - find a good company that you like and things will be a lot easier. Important jobs don't have to be high stress.

Re: Ask HN: In mid 40s. What non-tech job can I do?

#76

Post by im_down_w_otp »

loeg wrote: post #34
im_down_w_otp wrote: post #33

Bicycle mechanic. At least that's what I'll probably do next whether my current startup is a wild success or colossal failure. Either way... bike mechanic. :-)

Expect way less than 1/3 pay, though.

True. Though honestly I'd definitely end up taking my technical & entrepreneurial experience into it and doing something with it in that field.

When I was a teenager, 25 years ago, I used to CNC my own bike parts and also worked as a local bike mechanic. I've only accumulated a lot more fabrication, software, and business experience since then.

Though of course I'd vastly prefer this particular industry transition to happen on the tails of https://www.auxon.io being wildly successful than not.

Re: Ask HN: In mid 40s. What non-tech job can I do?

#77

Post by quijoteuniv »

pcurve wrote: post #32
quijoteuniv wrote: post #29

Start looking in how you do things rather in what you do.

would you mind elaborating?

You can change the circumstances in your life but often the same problems will follow to the “new” circumstances. If you look into why and how you are in the circumstance you are, you might not even need to change it. Mindfulness, meditation, anything to bring you to the present moment. Warning: you might find things you do not want to see and you might have ignore for long time.

Re: Ask HN: In mid 40s. What non-tech job can I do?

#78

Post by blowski »

pcurve wrote: post #70
tda wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What helped for me was switching from a 5000 employee company to a 50 employee one. I really loved my previous job, but just witnessing the politics made me want to quit, and I'm glad I did.

Anything you miss about the 5000 employee company?

I've done a similar move, so for my part, I'd say that I miss the learning opportunities.

Large companies usually have people with a deep knowledge in one particular skillset, whereas small companies are more likely to be made up of generalists. One person, for example, had worked for 2 decades only in securing IT processes for insurance companies. Another was a project manager with a real gift for spinning a positive story from what I saw as a disaster. I learned a lot, even from people who otherwise mostly frustrated me.

That being said, I've filled that gap with meetups and deliberate networking. I have no regrets about making the trade-off.

Re: Ask HN: In mid 40s. What non-tech job can I do?

#79

Post by guenthert »

hunter-gatherer wrote: post #58
hackyhacky wrote: post #10

I took some time off to teach. Years later, I'm still doing it. I teach computer science and programming. This is a good field to go into, because (a) it applies my knowledge acquired from my earlier life as a developer, and (b) is always in demand. If you want to teach this, you will have no trouble getting a job at a high school, community college, or university. I would also argue it's not, strictly speaking, a te…

I seem to have a different definition of "tech work" than most people here. When I dream of taking a sabatical I think about being a baker or barrista for $10/hour.

I inquired at a local bakery and was told that the bakers start their shift at midnight (!) so that the products can be sold by 4 or 5am. Mad respect for all bakers!

Re: Ask HN: In mid 40s. What non-tech job can I do?

#80

Post by curun1r »

pcurve wrote: post #70
tda wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What helped for me was switching from a 5000 employee company to a 50 employee one. I really loved my previous job, but just witnessing the politics made me want to quit, and I'm glad I did.

Anything you miss about the 5000 employee company?

Not the person you’re responding to, but having worked both…

The obvious thing is the perks. When I worked in an 8000 person company, I got to go to any tech conference I wanted, got to attend leadership training courses, had more $200/person meals than I’d ever had before in my life, they’d rent out large venues like the Academy of Sciences for company events and just a lot higher comp.

At the 30-person company, there just wasn’t the budget for that stuff. Which isn’t to say that large corporate job is better…none of that stuff makes up for the soul-sucking parts of those big companies, but that doesn’t mean you don’t miss all that excess when you no longer have it.

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