I'm out. Leaving tech behind forever.

In 2023 after around ~6 months grinding it out and interviewing to land a senior software engineering job, I got laid off after only 6 months at the job. This was the last straw that broke the camel's back. I'm done with software engineering and the tech industry. I'm out and here is my 5 reasons.

0:57 - reason #1: not passionate
3:21 - reason #2: day-to-day
4:27 - reason #3: job market & demoralizing interview process
5:52 - reason #4: burn-out
7:05 - reason #5: not my strength

[TheDanielRubio]

It's over 9000! I can't believe this video reached over 9000 people. I really thought this was only going to get a couple dozen views reaching over 150+ max. Thank you all for watching and sharing your thoughts. It's always nice to know that there are others that feel the same, we'll pull through though!

[youreale]

I've been in software engineering for 20+ years, and I'm still passionate about this job. I think most people get burned out in this industry because they aim to work at big companies, where they are often dependent and work like slaves. In my opinion, the best jobs are at medium-sized or small companies, where you are recognized as a person and can do meaningful work. It also means you'll have a life and time to do other things.

[robotinthebrain]

I left tech and went farming and has never been happier than now !

[gesghversieugrfyer]

So true. It's one thing the interview process is so hideous; it's another thing the job is so unstable. It's like, why am I working so hard to end up jobless at the end

[TheRightWay]

I've realised that the reason why I got into tech in the first place was really only so I could make things for myself, and share it so others may also find value in it. Not necessarily to slave away for a company.

[LionKimbro]

0:57 -- reason #1: not passionate
3:21 -- reason #2: day-to-day
4:27 -- reason #3: job market & demoralizing interview process
5:52 -- reason #4: burn-out
7:05 -- reason #5: not my strength

[Mr.Coffee]

Same here. Done with tech. I hate technology. I hate sitting behind a screen. I hate how the internet has become. I hate building stuff only to be copied by a big tech startup with buggy features. I hate how coding has become less about creativity and more about "requirements". And lastly, I hate that the work I do is creating more screen addicts. And this is coming from someone who used to be passionate about tech once upon a time. The question is, now what ? Where do I go from here ?

[st]

I thought technology would be with forward thinking people who wanted to do great things. I found the opposite. Same politics, same beaurocracy and same ignorant people who get jealous or abuse you. I've been yelled at in front of 20 people by a manager, had rumours and lies spread about me, had one girl tell me I was a threat to her and her job without even meaning to be. The last straw for me was when my manager decided to try and gatekeep me from people because people liked me and spread lies about me going out to see my friends, my family and my background. Went freelancing instead and trying to see how I can transition to psychology/counselling to help people. I am NEVER going back.

[yayinternets]

I'm a Staff Software Engineer my 40s, creeping closer to 30 years in this industry (started at 18). I have very current skills and aging well, but gah the interview processes now are just insane. I've been out of work for 1.75 years and running on fumes.

It's an absolutely brutal career to work in. Especially in the past 10 years, the job stability has gone to crap.

I only have a small window of time to find another job to save my house. I am just thinking about making some huge changes like short selling my house but not sure what after that. I am just tired of the highs and lows, would rather live in a smaller area and have a more steady and enjoyable life.

[Nova-TechnoLAB]

Im painting houses! Big CASH IN HAND, solo work, easy, relaxing. Listening to podcasts and music all day! No alarm clock ever again!

[LeChuck.x]

With over 15 years of experience in IT and web development, I've found the market to be dreadful lately. Companies are overloading roles with excessive requirements, and the interview processes at many firms are quite absurd. The projects we're assigned are often uninspiring, filled with bad practices and spaghetti code. Lately, many of the projects I've worked on have been truly disappointing... I am also considering leaving the industry altogether or perhaps transitioning to another field within IT and moving away from web development.

[RushHours]

in India, every now n then one software engineer dies due to heart attack, work pressure. Worst career to consider now a days..
EDIT- for my fellow engineers, please follow this rule which I follow at office - you put at max 75%-80% of your effort only for work, never beyond that, rest 20% you keep for yourself, for your self learning. Whenever any requirement comes, if it takes 2 days for me, I say it 'll take 7 days and team lead comes to me asking why u need so much time, I argue with him until he accepts, okay 7 days fine. I know either I have to spend my energy to convince him or get the job done in short time by taking the extra pressure on me. Either way I have to put same energy so I choose to follow the former.

[ragama]

I know engineering is also not for me.
I hate deadlines. I hate forcing myself to grind in front of a computer screen.
Ive actually been doing my work and meetings in random starbucks, parks, and sometimes just in my car because sitting at my desk gives me anxiety now.
Its just I dont know what else to do.
I dont want to go back to school. Why would i go to school to get a career that doesnt pay as much. It would feel like a downgrade.
I really want to open a restaurant, but the people i know who have restaurants are doing really bad right now because of the economy.

I think i need to take a break, go out and meet random people, just so I get more ideas because right now I know nothing except technology

[Ragnar]

The problem is that the field is getting more and more demanding but less and less rewarding. The pay is getting bad, the job market is getting bad, etc. I am passionate about tech but it feels less and less rewarding.

[akuskus]

This resonates very deeply with me. I loved programming when I did it out of curiosity. Started with creating games and moved towards getting to know the ins and outs of computers and now have been a software engineer for about 20 years, but what is taking the toll on me is that the work itself in corporate environments has gone so far from actual software engineering to just using all kinds of slow and hardly usable internal bug reporting tools to report defects in dependent systems and finding people who know someone who know something about the issue at hand. Everything depends on some other systems and these systems are completely defect-ridden and people who are developing these systems understand only simple sentences, one at a time. Like talking with toddlers. Everything around the actual "creating things" just takes so much time that it is not possible to focus on what really matters. And playing the corporate game has sucked the soul, life and motivation out of me, making me numb and emotionally tired. I would feel much better just staring at a blank wall the whole day than do this thing they call work. You are lucky to realize that this work is not for you in sufficiently early stage. Not sure what I am going to do with my life, because this "software engineering" as it is right now, is a dead end job.

[memnon]

Laid off from Microsoft after 10 years. Industry has definitely changed, perks have dried up and applying for new roles is hell. It’s hard for me to have to accept that I’ll probably have to take a lower salary at 44.

That being said, at my age I’m not sure what other options there are career wise.

[Leon]

I feel the same... 27 y/o, graduated with a CS degree 6 years ago but worked on non-IT jobs instead. Somehow discovered data science & thought it was cool, so studied for a master's and worked as an ML Engineer for 1 year and a Data Scientist for 1 year. I quit my last job 3 months ago to leave the toxic workplace, but now the job market is a mess & I feel like companies are only looking for elites, which I am not (I'm just hard-working & a bit clever but definitely not "gifted"). I just feel like the job landscape changes too rapidly & somehow I lost interest in my field (not sure if I got burnout from constantly learning new tools/revising statistics/preparing for interviews/grinding leetcode/reading tech news). I do have some career-switching ideas in my mind but the sunk cost has been bothering me

[stachycodes]

I am mostly angry about the recruitment process, but not the job itself.

Startup companies are asking you to write motivational letters... CMON. Or 5 interviews and 3 months to land that job where you move margins around the button is crazy.

[techbeauty]

In the same position, after 7y in FAANG, and grinding Leetcode/System design, passing Meta/Google only to get rejected at team matching phase (while jobs are outsourced to India) pissed me off so much I decided to exit the industry altogether. Going for my private pilot license, and then later for commercial.

[zim]

The amazing fact is that after passing all that absurd interviews where they ask you about how Facebook amd Amazon works, you find out that most of the codebase is legacy mess, deploying is done using tools which where updated 10 years ago