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I left out remote work. I do not consider it an option for many reasons: 1. I have tried it a couple times, and I did not do well. It's kind of like that advic

I left out remote work. I do not consider it an option for many reasons: 1. I have tried it a couple times, and I did not do well. It's kind of like that advice where people say your bedroom should only be for two things: sleeping and sex, well home to me is only for home-y things: family, cooking, relaxing, house-chores. When I am at home, my mind is home. If I had the luxury of affording a bigger house with a separate office that feels detached from the rest of the house, I think it could work, unfortunately I won't know. 2. I am a little traditionalist in my thinking that having a presence in the office can only help you, and only being a remote worker can only hurt you. When it comes to job cuts for example, I think the people that are there day in and day out and have curated relationships with people are more likely to stay - it's human nature right? Also, getting a raise usually comes down to office politics. If you aren't there to understand how things work, it's going to be very difficult. Software engineers have pretty great starting salaries, but as we all know, they seem to get hard capped, depending on your market around the 150k to 200k mark. To be a 250k engineer must mean you are truly remarkable, something I am comfortable with admitting I am not. 3. To kind of restate #1, the separate of work and home is important to me. When I tried working remote, I always never felt that crossover from being home to being at work. Some people suggested that I actually get ready like I was driving to an office, and go out for a 15 minute drive to maybe a coffee shop or something to start my day, and if I ever get another chance at remote work, I may give that a shot. I think as remote work becomes more pervasive, some of these issues I face may be solved, but I don't think we are there yet.

ci5er 10y ago
For a time, I worked about 10 hours/day in a coffee shop[0]. It worked for me, but you say upthread that you have a difficult time tuning out irrelevant buzziness - so it may not work for you. [0] Actually, there were several coffee-shops, one with an outdoor patio on the lake.
artursapek 10y ago
OK, let me just respond with my experience because it might be helpful to you or someone else. 1. Agreed 100%, I also cannot work from home. Especially with a toddler running around. I need to physically separate myself, so I rent an office space that's a 10 minute walk away (I'm in NYC). It worked out really nicely. 2. This might be the case if you're the odd one out. I can see how that would be isolating. Look for companies that have a remote culture, eg 50% or more of the employees are remote. I wouldn't want to be the guy working remotely as an exception. Also, I have tried the "working out of a coffee shop" thing and couldn't stand it. It's very uncomfortable. I felt like a freeloader and I need a large, permanent workspace.

ci5er 10y ago

For a time, I worked about 10 hours/day in a coffee shop[0]. It worked for me, but you say upthread that you have a difficult time tuning out irrelevant buzziness - so it may not work for you. [0] Actually, there were several coffee-shops, one with an outdoor patio on the lake.

artursapek 10y ago

OK, let me just respond with my experience because it might be helpful to you or someone else. 1. Agreed 100%, I also cannot work from home. Especially with a toddler running around. I need to physically separate myself, so I rent an office space that's a 10 minute walk away (I'm in NYC). It worked out really nicely. 2. This might be the case if you're the odd one out. I can see how that would be isolating. Look for companies that have a remote culture, eg 50% or more of the employees are remote. I wouldn't want to be the guy working remotely as an exception. Also, I have tried the "working out of a coffee shop" thing and couldn't stand it. It's very uncomfortable. I felt like a freeloader and I need a large, permanent workspace.