Ask HN: Should I take a job to pay the bills or keep pursuing the career I want? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: Should I take a job to pay the bills or keep pursuing the career I want?

1 pointfemtoscale5 comments

It has been weighing on my mind quite a bit lately as to whether I should take a job in web development when I really want to go into application security. I've read through a number of similar posts on HN, and been lurking the forum looking for an answer.

I am soon to be a CS graduate from a non-brand state school, and have been putting out my resume to job boards and a few application security firms. I am hoping to find a good job to start my career in infosec. I have done a few years of freelance work, and even had a web dev gig at my school for a couple years (the two overlapped a bit).

What I really want to do is move out of the town I am in, and get started with a career in application security. I have bills to pay, and a bit of debt, but should I let that stop me from taking the risk of going for a career in app sec? Would taking a low-paying development gig hurt my career opportunities?

I just don't really know what I should expect from the market. My fear is that taking a dev gig that isn't a good fit will sap my motivation and energy to pursue what I really want.

I am contributing to open-source projects, and doing my own projects to sharpen my skills at development and app sec. Should I take a less desirable job to pay the bills, or just continue to pursue what really interests me and be broke for a little longer?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Live simple, create the life you want, then live the life you created.

I spent a couple of years eating Kraft macaroni and cheese (my generation's ramen noodles) five days a week, driving a $200 car (country boy - no public transportation) and worked 12 hours a day, six days a week to get my business off the ground. For much of those two years I worked nights to buy the little we had. I had two kids at the time I quit my paycheck. I gave them more than I gave myself.

In 1981 I received the last paycheck that was signed by anyone other than myself. A year later I was living fairly comfortably. I put my kids through college with no student loans. Today I live on the ocean, have any car I want, never worry about money, travel where and when I want.

You can work to get a large paycheck, I'm sure. But in exchange for that paycheck someone else owns your life.

I am by no means smarter than most, I have no real education, no one gave me financial support in the beginning, I was just doggedly persistent in pursuing my vision.

Hangout with people who are smarter, more successful and more diligent than you. You want to be the dumb kid in the company of great rather than the top of a group of underachievers. Meetups or trade organizations are a great start. But also seek out the people in your industry that you admire the most, tell them your interest and offer to buy them lunch to hear their story.

Personally I feel that this generation's pivoting is often just giving up too soon. Decide what you want to do and then move mountains with a teaspoon if that is what it takes to make it happen. Others will disagree and they are just as right.

But if you truly want to do something, quit reading Hacker News and get on with doing the job at hand. If for no other reason than HN exposes you to a wealth of choices, which makes it harder to focus on one. Once you succeed come back and read the cool new stuff that is out there.

Best of luck.

It depends on the nature of your being broke. If you have dependants - pets, relatives, etc. - then you have a responsibility to take a job and pay the bills.

Otherwise, it looks like you're in exactly the right point in life to risk being broke for a while in order to gain the type of job you want.

I don't know about the specifics of your local job market, but one thing I would do is find a reputable recruiter (i.e. one held in high esteem by progammers; such creatures are rare but they do exist) and ask for advice. Explain your goals, and see if they're realistic in your area.

Also, attend meetups in your area, and speak to developers and recruiters there. Most old hands will be more than willing to share advice and experiences, and some of them will even be correct and relevant :)

Consider the words of Roark in The Fountainhead (great motivational book, by the way): "If you want my advice, Peter, you've made a mistake already. By asking me. By asking anyone. Never ask people. Not about your work." My guess is that you already know, deep down, what you want to do :)

Thanks for the advice, I currently don't have any dependants which is a plus.

Locally there are a few meetups for developers, I've gone to a few of their meetings. I'll make sure to ask around to see if they know of good recruiters to talk to.

There is almost no security scene in my area. That's why I wanted to ask on HN, since there seems to be a fair number of people on here that are in the security space.

My area is honestly pretty lacking in a good developer scene in general, which is one of the big reasons I want to get out. Thanks again for the words of encouragement and advice.

> My area is honestly pretty lacking in a good developer scene in general

Definitely, definitely leave then. There's exactly zero point in sticking around somewhere that won't support you in your desired career.

Now's the time to take be broke, take risks, to try and pursue what you love. If you're like most people, you'll have dependents, hiring costs, new obligations before you know it. Better knowing now than kicking yourself down the road!

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