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What will you do after tech?

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Re: What will you do after tech?

#21

Post by pedalpete »

I'm curious why you think tech would be any different from any other industry? People definitely retire from tech.

Yes, there is lots of burn out as well. I suspect much of the burn out is due to lack of having a reason to do what they do.

For the last 40 years, tech has been a tool of creation. It's becoming a utility. Part of the fabric of everything we do.

Almost every company has tech, just like every company has accounting.

I believe burn out is often a result of a lack of purpose. If you are on a mission, you are less likely to burn out. This also assumes you are taking good care of yourself, taking breaks, being well rounded, etc.

Re: What will you do after tech?

#22

Post by rdegges »

I was considering "retiring" from tech after leaving my last job. I had a plan to hack on fun side projects and (hopefully) eventually transform one of them into a lifestyle business -- something I've done before and previously enjoyed.

When I took a few months off, however, my perspective changed. After the 2nd month of doing nothing, I started to really miss the intellectual stimulation of hanging out with other engineers, working on shared goals, etc., so I decided to go back to work at a new company.

I'm now happily employed full-time, working with a larger team, and still building things in my free time. Life is busy, but I enjoy it.

I still think this may be my eventual destiny, but for now I'm happily working with other people and just trying to enjoy life as much as possible.

Re: What will you do after tech?

#24

Post by sarora27 »

awillen wrote: post #5

Oooh, I know this one! I spent about a decade as a PM in early-stage enterprise software companies (Box and Talkdesk, among others) and left in 2019 to open a dog boarding business! I found real estate, had plans drawn up, got permits, found a contractor and ways a few days away from closing my SBA loan. Then the bank called and said they were putting a hold on new underwriting because of this COVID thing... this was…

Hello ex-coworker (Talkdesk). Recognized you immediately!

Re: What will you do after tech?

#27

Post by greedo »

doubled112 wrote: post #12
jleyank wrote: post #10

I’ve cut code since ‘71. Now that I won’t be doing it professionally I’m going back to how I started by hacking stuff that interests me. Retirement merely means I tell me what to do.

That last sentence sums up why the home server is still a hobby, even though I pay the bills administering systems. People ask me how I do both without going nuts. It's simple. At home, the things that annoy me about the job don't exist. If it's broken and I don't feel like fixing it, it stays broken. No due dates, no planned outages, no SLAs. If I like an app it stays, if not it disappears. No processes or approvals…

It's the same with being a chef in a Michelin restaurant, and cooking at home.

Re: What will you do after tech?

#28

Post by greedo »

I plan on reading non-technical stuff more often, gardening/yard work, and woodworking. I've found that while IT pays the bills, doing things with my hands provides more enjoyment, creating tangible things. I love the mental challenges of solving IT puzzles, but that's faded over the years.

Oh, and I'm going to travel much more than I've done for the last 30 years.

Re: What will you do after tech?

#29

Post by 5350-uiop-1130 »

Wish I could do something meaningful.

Right now, I'm just a cog in the machine, iterating on the same boring products for consoomers and to maximise shareholder value and increase executive salaries and bonuses whilst earning just enough money to keep me motivated for another day.

When I think about my work and life it's incredibly depressing, but I have no idea how to create monetary value doing something meaningful and productive.

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