Speaking for those of us who were born and raised here, please don't come. We have enough. Nobody who has been here for any reasonable period actually left.
Ask HN: Does it still matter to be in the Bay Area?
21–30 of 87 posts
Re: Ask HN: Does it still matter to be in the Bay Area?
#22I would continue living in the Bay Area even if I changed my career. I love the vibe and culture. Oakland First Friday is a fun street fair. The multiple rode gardens in about every city are fantastic. I lived an eight minute walk from the Oakland garden during the pan and I was there every day. SF is one of a small number of cities that almost every musical act will play when they tour. And there are lots of art gal…
You just described a lot of cities in the US though
Re: Ask HN: Does it still matter to be in the Bay Area?
#23Possibly unpopular opinion: there was always plenty of room for individuals to have a fulfilling tech career outside of the Bay Area, and those opportunities have if anything grown in recent years. Bay Area folks always talk like all the opportunities are concentrated there but that's never really been true and will just be less and less true as VC money dries up. I'm sure some of it depends on what you're trying to…
Moving to the Bay Area was the best thing I've ever done for myself financially. The network of companies, developers, and investors/advisers (in good times) is unparalleled and enough to make you a career if you can hack it, and give you the exposure to people to mentor you and teach you how to hack it.
Moving away from the Bay Area was the second best thing I've ever done for myself financially, because once you have the skills and network there's not much gains to be had by staying in that dystopian hellhole where the only positive quality of life is the weather.
Re: Ask HN: Does it still matter to be in the Bay Area?
#24Matter for what? You can find super interesting communities of all different kinds of people and interests in cities all around the world. I think the communities in Bay Area lean more tech, more intentional living, more left; certainly if you want to hang out with some of the best people doing ai, you will find a bunch of those people there.
New York is an amazing spot because there’s just so much more density and diversity that there’s a bazillion more niche communities doing all sorts of stuff, including tech scenes, tech-art stuff, whatever you want.
You need to decide what you’re looking for, and if you can find it wherever you already are.
Re: Ask HN: Does it still matter to be in the Bay Area?
#25Did it ever really matter?
I was in half a dozen SV companies, mostly startups but a couple big ones, between 1985 and 2004 when I moved away, so I have no idea what it is like now. But since you asked "did it ever really matter," here is my experience. I interviewed for my first job when I was wrapping up college. Two weeks after arriving for that job in Sunnyvale, they announced layoffs, so I had to interview again. Luckily, there were hundreds of companies within 15 minutes who were doing similar work, and found employment without interruption. Since then I have never had to really apply for a job again, and I've never been unemployed.
Back then, one recruiter or another called me about once every three weeks about some opportunity or other. People I worked with who had moved on would call to see if I was interested to join them. Or if I thought it was time to move on, there were many dozens of former coworkers I could call for leads. Those interviews were perfunctory -- that contact had already sold me to their boss, so it was really more about convincing me to join their company.
In 2004 I moved to Austin and things have been very different. I've never had a single recruiter call, and if I did decide to change jobs, I would have far fewer options than when I lived in SV. I'm nearing retirement age so I don't expect to ever interview again.
Re: Ask HN: Does it still matter to be in the Bay Area?
#26I moved here ~2 years ago to join an early stage startup and while its "not what is used to be"[1] I have personally benefited a lot from being exposed to the business and engineering culture here. I'm starting my own company now and have access to much more networking events and people who "get it" than I think I could have access to if I lived anywhere else. I haven't though so its hard to say. There is an incredib…
> The open minded attitudes and culture around risk is something that you can really internalize when you are around other people who give you the correct social proof.
Never lived in the Bay Area, but even when Bay Area people visit or show up in my career orbit, the difference is pretty massive.
Especially when compared to Canadians on risk taking. Bay Area will spend a week to try something. Canadians will take a few months to consider it.
Even observing from afar, it is pretty evident why Canadians tend to lose.
Re: Ask HN: Does it still matter to be in the Bay Area?
#27It’s not a binary factor, but being in a tier-1 city makes it substantially easier to get good jobs.
It doesn’t mean you have to move to the Bay Area, nor does it mean you can’t find a great job outside of a tier 1 city (Seattle, NYC, etc). However, the amount of opportunity is drastically different.
Re: Ask HN: Does it still matter to be in the Bay Area?
#28Possibly unpopular opinion: there was always plenty of room for individuals to have a fulfilling tech career outside of the Bay Area, and those opportunities have if anything grown in recent years. Bay Area folks always talk like all the opportunities are concentrated there but that's never really been true and will just be less and less true as VC money dries up. I'm sure some of it depends on what you're trying to…
No one has ever said that 100% of software engineers need to be in the Bay Area. Yes there are plenty of people living elsewhere who have had fulfilling careers in the industry. Yet it is undeniable that – just like being an actor in LA or an investment banker in New York – your opportunities for job search, networking, career growth etc. are significantly higher by being where the ecosystem is concentrated.
Re: Ask HN: Does it still matter to be in the Bay Area?
#29Possibly unpopular opinion: there was always plenty of room for individuals to have a fulfilling tech career outside of the Bay Area, and those opportunities have if anything grown in recent years. Bay Area folks always talk like all the opportunities are concentrated there but that's never really been true and will just be less and less true as VC money dries up. I'm sure some of it depends on what you're trying to…
I've had to move for my wife's job a bunch. I've had a very good career, entirely outside of the Bay Area.
That being said, I essentially have no connections or network in the Bay Area. I've worked for companies where most of my peers are not in the Bay Area. This puts me at a huge disadvantage for continuing to level my career. I'm largely subject to the whims of remote. While COVID dramatically increased the number of remote positions, it also exponentially increased competition for those positions.
I recently left to be a stay-at-home-dad, but I'm dreading the day I attempt to get back into the workforce. I just don't really see it being feasible.
Re: Ask HN: Does it still matter to be in the Bay Area?
#30I would continue living in the Bay Area even if I changed my career. I love the vibe and culture. Oakland First Friday is a fun street fair. The multiple rode gardens in about every city are fantastic. I lived an eight minute walk from the Oakland garden during the pan and I was there every day. SF is one of a small number of cities that almost every musical act will play when they tour. And there are lots of art gal…
You just described a lot of cities in the US though
Exactly, Pittsburgh PA checks all those boxes with a fraction of cost of living and crime. Also, way way way more artists - because they can afford to live there.
The art scene in the bay is actually really bad.