I left tech at 49 and became a lecturer. It's a bank holiday here in Ireland and I write this from a cafe, following a nice walk. Enough said.
Ask HN: What's the best way to exit tech?
61–70 of 71 posts
Re: Ask HN: What's the best way to exit tech?
#62so, like, what do you want to do? I've posted here before about a friend who went from STEM to Cheese Making as a full-time job -- he loved it, and was already deep in the scene before he made the jump.
if you don't have something like that, see a career counselor, take some tests, think about whatchu want to do. don't say "restaurant or maybe a cafe" since those are going to be hard and will probably fail badly.
Re: Ask HN: What's the best way to exit tech?
#63I'm 48 and I'm seriously considering nursing school. The tough part will be not working for 16 months or so while in school. Perhaps I can get part time work. I'm at a director level position and I am just tired of the field and don't want to be an aging tech worker.
i know 2 people that made the transition from other fields to nursing. one was a GIS programmer, the other a paralegal. both women, both pretty intense, type-A people, both named some permutation of Catherine / Kathleen.
both seem to like it. one married a doctor she met during training, and is a surgical ICU nurse. the other works for the WHO and injects vaccines in the 3rd world.
Re: Ask HN: What's the best way to exit tech?
#64so, like, what do you want to do? I've posted here before about a friend who went from STEM to Cheese Making as a full-time job -- he loved it, and was already deep in the scene before he made the jump. if you don't have something like that, see a career counselor, take some tests, think about whatchu want to do. don't say "restaurant or maybe a cafe" since those are going to be hard and will probably fail badly.
Disagree about restaurant. Yes, they’re hard but there’s literally hundreds of thousands of successful examples of restaurants and cafes in the US. I know plenty of people who have this dream and a few who have pressured it successfully. It’s as valid as any other career pivot.
Re: Ask HN: What's the best way to exit tech?
#65Earlier quoted context omitted.
How are you planning on affecting the industry at large?
Increasingly bigger conferences and meetups that remain 100% indie and sponsor-free. It’s going to take years, if not a decade. But let’s not underestimate the power of independent organizing. We haven’t seen much of it in our industry because us worker bees are historically well-paid.
I desperately hope you’re right.
Not to be a downer, but I just don’t see how you could convince a business to go slower for the sake of a better technical foundation.
Re: Ask HN: What's the best way to exit tech?
#66I use tech to do non-tech things. There's a huge demand for that. In my case I help people settle in Germany. It's just a website plus a few widgets that support the content. There's just enough tech to scratch an itch, but without the meetings, the sprints and the other corporate annoyances. I started the website 7 years ago out of frustration with local bureaucracy, and it became my full time job 3 years ago. I don…
How does your website generate revenue? I'm assuming it more of a online service platform for new immigrants rather than a immigration blog or guide?
Affiliate links. Immigrants need certain things. I'm affiliated with pretty much all available options, so I can be honest without torpedoing my income.
Re: Ask HN: What's the best way to exit tech?
#67Earlier quoted context omitted.
There are also states in the US where this nonsense is not a thing.
Could you elaborate? I'm from Europe and did some brief research as this is a new topic for me and it seems all states have squatters rights. Are you referring to those that have the longest time until adverse possession? Easiest eviction? Gun laws to deal with it yourself?
If you go to a red state, you are very unlikely to face this problem. Now, if you go to Washington, California, New York, etc, it is scary out there!
Re: Ask HN: What's the best way to exit tech?
#68Earlier quoted context omitted.
Increasingly bigger conferences and meetups that remain 100% indie and sponsor-free. It’s going to take years, if not a decade. But let’s not underestimate the power of independent organizing. We haven’t seen much of it in our industry because us worker bees are historically well-paid.
I desperately hope you’re right. Not to be a downer, but I just don’t see how you could convince a business to go slower for the sake of a better technical foundation.
With enough collective anger, social pressures will factor into business decisions.
It's a nebulous proposition, I get that, because you can't precisely engineer an outcome. My hope is there's enough of us organizing together to trigger the right shifts.
We'll see.
Re: Ask HN: What's the best way to exit tech?
#69let's talk! I'm in the same spot
Re: Ask HN: What's the best way to exit tech?
#70Science could really use your expertise. Have you considered a job in a research group or facility? See what jobs your university has.
Only if you are really lucky with the lab. The overall academic culture is toxic, especially to people without academic credentials.
In the public health sphere (not research), it's more likely to find good positions that are respected.