Comment by carsongross | Hacker News Reader

Comment by carsongross | Hacker News Reader

Option 1: Play the managerial game. It's soul crushing and the farther you get up the more concentrated sociopathy you will encounter, but it is the lowest risk/highest expected value path.

Option 2: Startup. You will probably fail and this has far more to do with factors beyond your control than anything else, but you have a shot at being your own boss on your own term. Very low expected value, tons of stress, but potentially the best outcome.

Option 3: Academia. Go back and get a PhD in something you love and teach. You will probably be an instructor, as tenured positions are rare and highly competitive. There is also a lot of nepotism and favoritism in the more subjective fields. Low reward (financially) but relatively low risk and lots of lifestyle benefits if you aren't materialistic.

Option 4: Low cost lifestyle. Move to a low cost country and consult via online work. I don't have any experience with this option, so I don't know how risky it is.

As a meta-observation, only option 1 makes any sense for someone wishing to form a family, which is psychotic.

But finding a job as a manager is much harder than being a programmer. By the way this comment is very thoughtful and sad at the same time.

Finding a job as a software engineering manager is actually pretty easy assuming you can still build software. At least it is in my experience. Most great engineers don't want to be a manager...

Option 5: Buy a small plot of land in the wilderness and live in a trailer, cabin, or tent. Almost no bills or stress.

Is it sad that none of those options appeal to me at all?

I just want to be a 9-5 mid-level software engineer until the day I die.

maybe that's possible if you manage to stay current in a sane niche, frontend js is not, and build your own base of clients. it will be hard to allow for a consumeristic life-style.

> maybe that's possible if you manage to stay current in a sane niche, frontend js is not

Good thing my career has nothing to do with frontend js. Most of my background is in platform & infrastructure, and I'm currently in NMS... I'll be happy if I never touch web/social/mobile.

I can see myself doing NMS for a telecom for many more years.

> build your own base of clients

That's incompatible with the idea of being a 9-5er working for a large company, which is specifically what I want to do for the rest of my life.

> it will be hard to allow for a consumeristic life-style.

Well, I'm currently living a pretty consumeristic lifestyle right now... I just want to keep sustaining it till I die.

Ha I get this sentiment. My dad was a barber. He didn't love it, but it was just a stable part of life for 30+ years. It was a means to pay bills, and enjoyment came from elsewhere.

I'm coming to the conclusion that while work can contribute to happiness, it can also siphon so much willpower that I've got nothing left for kids, other pursuits, etc.

It took me a while to realize most happy people don't love their work, but nearly all happy people love their family and friends.

That works fine, but make sure you switch jobs every couple of years and keep yourself up on tech.

The danger of that path is you spend 10-15 years at one company, get laid off, and all your real value is in the internals of a company you no longer work for. You don't even know how to look for a job.

I am very interested in option 4 or 5. Any ideas for a good location?

Generally, http://nomadlist.com is a good source for this question.

Personally, for 4 I'd recommend Spain (Barcelona specifically) as a remote working location. Reasonably cheap cost of living, but European and not too cheap, so you still have fairly good common infrastructure, easily available fast internet etc. Plus there's loads of other expats, amazing weather & food, and Spanish is a useful, fun and relatively easy language to learn (as opposed to, say, Thai). And the Spanish lifestyle fits with the relaxed remote working lifestyle fantastically.

Nearly every country has an expat neighborhood somewhere. Lonely Planet will probably have the info. There's a cost vs safety tradeoff. Figure out the risk/reward you're looking for.

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