Does taking a break end your career? | Hacker News Reader

Does taking a break end your career?

7 pointsBurntOutFANG7 comments

So I've been working as a SRE in FAANG companies for the past 8 years and I'm just totally burnt out. I joined the last company a little over a year ago and just can't perform at the level I'm at (Principal).

I'm considering taking a break for a year or so. I desperately need to work on my health.

I'm concerned that if I take that break that I'll never be able to get another job, especially with the economy tanking and all the layoffs.

Is this a valid concern?

I've been trying to find a less stressful position, but I haven't had a single phone screen for the past 47 applications I've submitted these past 6 weeks.

Any advice would be wonderful. Thank you.

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I just searched on LinkedIn. 52k people whose status has “career break” in it. So, you aren’t alone.

As a principal SRE at a FAANG you are highly desirable. I can’t imagine that would change too much in a single year.

Take a break for your health. You can always get a new job but you only have one body and one mind.

https://www.linkedin.com/mwlite/search/results/all?keywords=...

> Principal

> I haven't had a single phone screen for the past 47 applications I've submitted these past 6 weeks.

That sounds very weird. Perhaps they're all worried that they won't be able to meet your salary expectations?

Regarding taking a break, my CV has almost as many breaks as jobs [1] and I'm still somewhere in top 10-20% of earnings for Western Europe, while contracting remotely out of Poland. So, it hasn't hurt me in the slightest. I dunno about US culture, with FAANGs and tier-2/wannabe unicorns over there though, maybe they expect people to demonstrate more single-minded devotion to their careers that is expected over here in Europe.

[1] Meaning, I almost always take a 6-18 months break between quitting one job and starting in another.

My career is more than half “break” at this point. It has never been an issue in finding work.

Would the people around you let you take a break? Would you still self-sabotage in other ways if you took a break? Will a break actually fix you burning out? In your case, my guess is, 'no'.

I've taken lots of breaks, and my career isn't over yet. Relax.

I've known a number of devs who've taken a year or more off and were able to return to the field. It certainly isn't a career-killer.

Can you go to your management/HR and ask for an unpaid sabbatical? If I was a manager I'd say yes, rather than lose someone.

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