Can you start a successful tech career later in life?
1–10 of 56 posts
Re: Can you start a successful tech career later in life?
#2damn this is like the complete opposite of me. I want to get out of the whole tech game once I make enough money to not have to work a 9 to 5 job. I wrote a quick rap verse about it.
Jus trying to make a quick buck
get outta this tech game but still no luck
need to make it before i turn thirty
before i end up old and dirtyRe: Can you start a successful tech career later in life?
#3Later in life? You mean like after 18?
Re: Can you start a successful tech career later in life?
#4 Absolutely, but because of ageism you'll probably have to prove yourself in some way a little more than others. I suspect someone in their 20s can get by without having some github and/or webapps on their LinkedIn but if you're ...say...40+ with no tech-work to show anyone, you're going to have a tougher time. You really ought to have something that shows what you can do. I'd argue that just about anyone, regardless of age, gender or race would do well to have some URLs showing some kind of work they've done. I know the door-opener for all my jobs beyond my first one(AT&T) was because of all the hacking & coding on my blog and youtube channel that I linked to on my LinkedIn. I know this because they told me in the interview and/or the email when they first reach out to me. The material tells them, at the minimum, that they're not completely wasting their time evaluating me. Or, based on the content maybe they know immediately I'm not qualified and never contact me.
For the record, besides AT&T I've never used my social-network to get a job. All of them since have been cold-calls from them based on my public-LinkedIn, or me sending a company I'm interested in my LinkedIn profile... then I cross my fingers.
Re: Can you start a successful tech career later in life?
#530 is when you finally get it though.
Re: Can you start a successful tech career later in life?
#6damn this is like the complete opposite of me. I want to get out of the whole tech game once I make enough money to not have to work a 9 to 5 job. I wrote a quick rap verse about it. Jus trying to make a quick buck get outta this tech game but still no luck need to make it before i turn thirty before i end up old and dirty
So what do you want to do instead?
Re: Can you start a successful tech career later in life?
#7When did longform start discussing things posted 5 hours ago? This, more than anything, makes me feel old.
Re: Can you start a successful tech career later in life?
#8I was 32 when I got my first programming gig. I had programmed a lot as a teen then did other things in my 20's. Went back to school and got a BS. I think my grad date being 10 years after a pipeline students makes people assume i'm younger than I am :)
Re: Can you start a successful tech career later in life?
#9I think there is an additional question here, which is if you can return to a tech career that you started early on but abandoned when you forayed into management. But one day you realize that your hobby of programming is so much more satisfying. I am trying this right now, but it's not easy, especially since people think that you are moving downwards if you're going back into tech.
Re: Can you start a successful tech career later in life?
#10I think there is an additional question here, which is if you can return to a tech career that you started early on but abandoned when you forayed into management. But one day you realize that your hobby of programming is so much more satisfying. I am trying this right now, but it's not easy, especially since people think that you are moving downwards if you're going back into tech.
I spent about 6 months in management and it was the worst experience in my career. I will never do that again. I'm back to writing code. I don't know why anyone would want to be a manager.