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Ask HN: Anyone doing some absurd stuff after getting laid off?

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Re: Ask HN: Anyone doing some absurd stuff after getting laid off?

#21

Post by sdiacom »

frereubu wrote: post #10
tester756 wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>This is very extreme take but imagine if companies are capped at 20-50 employees. Will it work? I think it will. What do you guys think? I don't think. I cannot imagine companies doing GPU, CPUs, Windows, etc. with just 20-50ppl.

Presumably you would, only what are different departments within a single company now would be separate companies. Probably similar kinds of blessings and curses as microservices.

The once CEO of Sears tried splitting the corporation into thirty to forty companies: https://www.versobooks.com/blogs/4385-failing-to-plan-how-ay... (I recall reading a more entertaining and detailed write-up, but this is what I could find on a quick Google Search)

In short, turns out aligning thirty to forty competing profit motives is hard.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone doing some absurd stuff after getting laid off?

#22

Post by yafbum »

jeniwren wrote: post #3

Love this question! My husband was laid off recently and it feels like his free time instead has been accosted by our young children and house renovation:/ Related note, I came across this newsletter which goes into more detail about our “work” identity and how your employer doesn’t (to your point!) “care about you” ( https://wokescientist.substack.com/p/work-life-balance-is-a-... )

Why the :/ ? Spending time with young children and renovating a house sounds like a smart choice. The time with children you will never be able to make up for later. Renovating a house is full of interesting challenges and rewards that are all to yourself.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone doing some absurd stuff after getting laid off?

#24

Post by generalizations »

_gabe_ wrote: post #15
tester756 wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>This is very extreme take but imagine if companies are capped at 20-50 employees. Will it work? I think it will. What do you guys think? I don't think. I cannot imagine companies doing GPU, CPUs, Windows, etc. with just 20-50ppl.

Valve would like to disagree with this sentiment ;) Sure valve isn't making GPUs or CPUs, but they did make the steam deck, in addition to the largest online game store, and several high quality AAA games, and the valve index. They apparently have around 250 people according to a quick Google search, but that still goes against the mindset that you need 10s of thousands of employees to make a successful large scale t…

A 250 person organization assembling semi-off-the-shelf components and gluing mostly-preexisting software together is a very different proposition than 20-50 people building a modern CPU from scratch. That's an order of magnitude more complexity than the steam deck, and an order of magnitude fewer people.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone doing some absurd stuff after getting laid off?

#26

Post by ExxKA »

thewopr wrote: post #19

I'm going to finally try to start my own company. Will it be a "startup"? I don't know. But it will be technical and it will go from 0-1 (or from 0-0). After years of lurking here, watching on the sidelines, working for larger companies, having kids, buying a house, I'm finally going to take the dive. I'm excited, nervous, lost, all at the same time. But I have enough savings and an accommodating spouse, so I don't h…

DM you how? What's your twitter handle?

Re: Ask HN: Anyone doing some absurd stuff after getting laid off?

#27

Post by LesZedCB »

anthropodie wrote: post #5

I am happy with my current employer but I always liked Paul Graham's idea of not having a boss[0]. I had read it quite a while back but here's the gist of it: Paul mentions that we work best when we work in a group of 8-20 people in a flat structure like our hunter gatherer ancestors use to do. Each member have their own roles and responsibilities and each individual contributes the well being and future security of…

in a cooperative framework instead of competitive framework, i think this would be the ideal structure.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone doing some absurd stuff after getting laid off?

#28

Post by dfraser992 »

thewopr wrote: post #19

I'm going to finally try to start my own company. Will it be a "startup"? I don't know. But it will be technical and it will go from 0-1 (or from 0-0). After years of lurking here, watching on the sidelines, working for larger companies, having kids, buying a house, I'm finally going to take the dive. I'm excited, nervous, lost, all at the same time. But I have enough savings and an accommodating spouse, so I don't h…

There is no way to DM on HN, as far as I am aware. I would be interested in talking - I have some Ml/NLP based ideas and some free time... See my profile info for my website/email

Re: Ask HN: Anyone doing some absurd stuff after getting laid off?

#29

Post by ExxKA »

jeniwren wrote: post #3

Love this question! My husband was laid off recently and it feels like his free time instead has been accosted by our young children and house renovation:/ Related note, I came across this newsletter which goes into more detail about our “work” identity and how your employer doesn’t (to your point!) “care about you” ( https://wokescientist.substack.com/p/work-life-balance-is-a-... )

I would recommend that we rents a desk in a coworking space. Get out of the house every day, cause there's always more to do at home.

Re: Ask HN: Anyone doing some absurd stuff after getting laid off?

#30

Post by doubleg72 »

_gabe_ wrote: post #15
tester756 wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>This is very extreme take but imagine if companies are capped at 20-50 employees. Will it work? I think it will. What do you guys think? I don't think. I cannot imagine companies doing GPU, CPUs, Windows, etc. with just 20-50ppl.

Valve would like to disagree with this sentiment ;) Sure valve isn't making GPUs or CPUs, but they did make the steam deck, in addition to the largest online game store, and several high quality AAA games, and the valve index. They apparently have around 250 people according to a quick Google search, but that still goes against the mindset that you need 10s of thousands of employees to make a successful large scale t…

One specific example you agree isn’t even a good comparison does not make a case.
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