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Game Programmer Quits Job To Sell Street Food, Doubles Salary

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Re: Game Programmer Quits Job To Sell Street Food, Doubles Salary

#101

Post by silencio »

jasonkester wrote: post #46
tocomment wrote: post #17

What are other promising businesses programmers in the US can start?

Programming Computers For Money. Seriously, it's bordering on the most lucrative profession in the US. If "Selling Hotdogs" sounds like it might make you even 1/10 as much, you're simply not charging enough. So if you're looking for a business that doesn't involve selling your time for money, your best option is Software Product Company. Build something people need enough to pay you $50/month for it. The math works o…

> If "Selling Hotdogs" sounds like it might make you even 1/10 as much, you're simply not charging enough.

Actually, my side biz is selling food. Unless you propose that I make way over a million dollars a year while contracting (no thanks to that stress)...I think my restaurant does okay. If I sunk the same amount of time in my restaurant that I did for contracting, then I'd definitely make more money with the restaurant than with contracting. I'm fairly confident I can compete with many bay area salaries at those numbers, and I could sink more effort and money into opening more restaurants and.... you see where I'm going with this, right?

My business is fairly small fry anyway. Had I a couple million bucks in the bank, I'd be looking at running restaurants with $40k+/month net profit. (How many engineers make that, before stock options and ignoring the value of the business itself?)

There are a LOT of other ways to make bank and saying being a developer is the only way to do it is incredibly narrow.

Re: Game Programmer Quits Job To Sell Street Food, Doubles Salary

#102

Post by bluekite2000 »

JPKab wrote: post #3

The streetfood business is awful in the long term. I hope he can quickly move into a brick and mortar restaurant. Depending on the municipality, streetfood vendors get nailed by all sorts of random fines, get shunted around to various "permitted areas" which may or may not have lots of foot traffic, and the worst part: the low barrier to entry. Competitors can come in super quickly, and when they do, they can lower t…

A vendor moving from a street stand to a restaurant is essentially what lean startup is. I wrote a post about a coconut man on the steamy sidewalk of saigon here. http://datdiary.wordpress.com/2012/03/21/lean-startup-vietna...

Re: Game Programmer Quits Job To Sell Street Food, Doubles Salary

#103

Post by latj »

freyr wrote: post #6
Spooky23 wrote: post #4

This is just the upside of running your own business. Summer food trucks have been a fixture in my city for decades around the state capitol. Some folks make a great living doing it. My favorite was an older couple operating a small hotdog stand... they made a ridiculously delicious meatsauce and basically worked a 35 hour week in the summer in the Northeast, and a similar schedule for a couple of months down South.…

> But... they faced all of the downside risks of small business owners. Rain == slow or no sales. Big vacation weeks for the workforce == slow sales. Get sick? No pay. That said, it's probably still a better gig than being a game programmer. Small business owners should be able to plan ahead for rainy days and the slow season. Squirrels can do it. Humans can too.

I should do what squirrels do.

Re: Game Programmer Quits Job To Sell Street Food, Doubles Salary

#104

Post by LekkoscPiwa »

rdouble wrote: post #75
LekkoscPiwa wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

just google the figure. Jim Rogers uses it in the interviews all the time, so when you are at it, google him and his stand on the future of the agriculture too. As easy as supply & demand. App Store Supply & Demand is such that you get apps for free. Food industry Supply & Demand is such that a cup of coffee can be at 3-5 bucks. Just paid 20usd for an organic chicken. And that's cheap! Really does taste different (mu…

It's important to watch what trader/pundits like Jim Rogers actually do, not just listen to what he says. He's made a big deal about the current and future commodities boom, but he's also running a group of commodities funds. He makes bold claims about how Balliol MBAs should be buying farms instead of going into other industries, but he does not own any farms. He moved his young daughter to Singapore so that she cou…

one doesnt need to own land to participate in the agriculture industry. It seems that food stand might be all it takes. Jim rogrrs moved to singapore and not minesota because he participates in the agriculture industry using his brokerage skills. probably much mire effective given his background. my claim is this: write software that has to do with agriculture. might be a great niche. and if you are young enough dont waste your time studying IT to compete with bazolion others to write apps for free. rather help in an industry likr agriculture where supply is very weak and demand is very strong. ever heard of restaurants giving out food for free on a regular basis to lure in customers?

Re: Game Programmer Quits Job To Sell Street Food, Doubles Salary

#105

Post by Spooky23 »

freyr wrote: post #6
Spooky23 wrote: post #4

This is just the upside of running your own business. Summer food trucks have been a fixture in my city for decades around the state capitol. Some folks make a great living doing it. My favorite was an older couple operating a small hotdog stand... they made a ridiculously delicious meatsauce and basically worked a 35 hour week in the summer in the Northeast, and a similar schedule for a couple of months down South.…

> But... they faced all of the downside risks of small business owners. Rain == slow or no sales. Big vacation weeks for the workforce == slow sales. Get sick? No pay. That said, it's probably still a better gig than being a game programmer. Small business owners should be able to plan ahead for rainy days and the slow season. Squirrels can do it. Humans can too.

Oh absolutely.

I just point out that many people are programmed to be risk-averse. A shitty job with a steady paycheck is perceived as lower risk than a potentially more lucrative job with a big company.

When I was in college, I sold extended warranties with computers. People would buy a PC for $2,000, and 80% of them would buy an extended warranty for $400. They felt like they were winning, because their liability was now limited.

Re: Game Programmer Quits Job To Sell Street Food, Doubles Salary

#108

Post by RHSeeger »

bandy wrote: post #87
pcl wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Long-term disability coverage has been part of all the insurance plans I've had over the years in the US. I assume that it's pretty common across US insurance plans, at least for full-time employees. Such coverage pays some percentage of your salary for many years from the beginning of a long-term disability. I think that both of those numbers vary widely from plan to plan.

Provided you have insurance in the first place. (The rest of this post is seemingly invalid in California:) Contractor? No, you don't get insurance. Don't you have COBRA? You can't afford that? Well, golly, better hope that you don't get sick.

If you're a contractor w/o insurance, you're doing it wrong. You should be setting rates so that you can afford insurance.

Health insurance, business insurance, vacation time, holiday time, sick time, equipment, etc. All of these things go into the calculations for your rates.

Re: Game Programmer Quits Job To Sell Street Food, Doubles Salary

#109

Post by dmlorenzetti »

parfe wrote: post #62

I really dislike these type of stories. Basically saying "Investor buys lotto ticket; outperforms DJIA by 5 billion percent." Or a more realistic example, the stories that flow when gas prices spike. Like the person with the diesel engine running off waste grease from restaurants. It's nice this person found a profitable niche but the concept itself doesn't lend itself to even linear growth.

Also annoying: the focus on money.

The article basically says he wrecked his body working punishing hours, so he quit, found a girlfriend, started collaborating with her on a mutual goal, and plans to get married. Headline says "he doubled his salary!"

If he doesn't care whether he's on the path to linear growth, why should we?

Re: Game Programmer Quits Job To Sell Street Food, Doubles Salary

#110

Post by bearwithclaws »

A nitpick about its translation of "Ma Nong" (码农): it doesn't mean "Number Cruncher". Although the "Ma" is the same character with "Hao Ma" (number), in describing the profession of programmer, it means "Code".

"Nong" means farmer ("Nong Fu"). It implies laborious work.

The closest translation to it should be "Code Farmer".

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