Live data from Hacker News

Does life end after 35?

kzhu.net

91–100 of 228 posts

Re: Does life end after 35?

#91
post #74
post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Experience still matters, as unsexy as it is. Absolutely. I think what really makes the difference is whether people also carry the youthful mindset of always being ready to spot problems, and do something about it. I have seen plenty of people with more experience than I have, who have lost the sense that they can actively make things better. It's the people who have experience, and still feel they can shape the w…

> whether people also carry the youthful mindset of always being ready to spot problems, and do something about it. I don't think that's a particularly youthful mindset. Indeed, much of the trend of Silicon Valley right now is the opposite: spot places where you can apply a "social something" even if there's no real underlying problem. As a practical matter, people who are young tend to lack the experience to know wh…

also, 20-somethings won't complain when you work them to death

Re: Does life end after 35?

#92
post #11

I turned 40 last year, and I am loving it. I miss the physical resilience of being in my 20s, but I wouldn't trade where I am now to go back to my 20s. I grew up relatively sheltered in New England, and moved to NYC to teach as soon as I graduated from college. I spent my 20s teaching in the city and bicycling around North America in the summers. At 29, I moved to Alaska. I spent my 30's climbing mountains, doing mou…

Getting 40 made me just feel old. I no longer have as much energy, keeping my weight got harder and let's not forget the annoying loss of hair. Additional experience is somewhat nice, but doesn't make up for it. Then again I spend most of my 30's getting out of debt because of a failed startup. Which might have given me a more negative view on life (last time I could afford traveling around was ~10 years ago).

Nothing saps your energy like mulling over past mistakes/mis-steps/shouldas-couldas. We all have more of these as we get older, but if you do your best to let go of them you'll free yourself up quote a bit.

Easier said than done, but I speak from experience.

Re: Does life end after 35?

#93
post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Getting 40 made me just feel old. I no longer have as much energy, keeping my weight got harder and let's not forget the annoying loss of hair. Additional experience is somewhat nice, but doesn't make up for it. Then again I spend most of my 30's getting out of debt because of a failed startup. Which might have given me a more negative view on life (last time I could afford traveling around was ~10 years ago).

Shave your head. That's one problem solved.

I've gotten buzz cuts since I was little. I used to do it for simplicity. Now I do it because I think it looks better. Some people tell me I look younger than I am (29), so that's a nice byproduct.

Re: Does life end after 35?

#94
post #34

Great reminder. I am turning 32 early next year and started teaching myself programming this year. Sometimes doubt creeps up on me and makes me feel like I am wasting my time, but stuff like this helps. Onward!

Yes, just keep going!

I started programming relatively late (at age 26), after becoming unemployed during the recession, for a govt agency in a small town in Florida. But now, at my current age of 30, I have a very lucrative job working for a major movie studio in LA as a software engineer. I have a lot of ambition at 30 than I ever did at 20 and that has been motivated by my failures. I might of missed my "startup years" and hacker culture in general but I'm definitely on track for big things. I hope to soon finally settle down and raise a family as well.

Re: Does life end after 35?

#95
post #93
post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Shave your head. That's one problem solved.

I've gotten buzz cuts since I was little. I used to do it for simplicity. Now I do it because I think it looks better. Some people tell me I look younger than I am (29), so that's a nice byproduct.

I used to have crewcuts as a kid, then went longer on top in my 20's, and now I just go for grade 0.5 all over.

It looks better and saves so much time..

Re: Does life end after 35?

#97
In terms of start-ups, career etc I don't think it's impossible to do it in your 40s, but I'd say you're more explicitly aware of the sacrifices involved and typically have more to lose.

Re: Does life end after 35?

#98
post #22

I used to look at those "guitar player wanted (under 30 only)" ads on craigslist when I was in my late 20s and be confused about why there was such a hard line on the people's rock band aptitude. When I got to be around 35 I realized that if you want to be in a rock band, you need to be ok with working a lot for no money and spending your weekends in a van and those are things I just didn't want to do anymore and pro…

"Never trust anyone over 30" is a bit of a rallying cry among musicians. It's often attributed Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Jerry Rubin and a few others during the 1960's, but I'm not sure anyone really knows who said it first. I would guess that people are actually referencing that whole movement when they put it in the Craigslist ads rather than setting a hard and fast restriction. Or maybe it's a bunch of 22-year-olds…

I wonder what kind of rationalization Bob Dylan, The Beatles, et al went through once they reached 30 years of age. Do they move the goal posts to not trusting anyone over 40? Or do they admit that they were youthful and wrong and state that untrustworthy people, at any age, are the only people that shouldn't be trusted.

Re: Does life end after 35?

#99

Very inspiring article. Being 24, almost half-way to 30, these past few months I've been thinking to myself "what have I really accomplished outside of work and school"? I think this is due partly to the high expectations I set for myself, but I also believe part of it is due to the current tech culture, where it's easy for those new to the field to misinterpret that if they aren't moving as fast as everyone else, th…

+10 galfarragem's comment.

End of the day, focus on building strong relationships and you'll find that business gets easier. Don't be a 2D person.

Post reply on HN