Assuming you write code for a living, most hiring managers (even big 5 hiring managers) care far less about your work history than you'd imagine- it's merely a

Assuming you write code for a living, most hiring managers (even big 5 hiring managers) care far less about your work history than you'd imagine- it's merely a means to an end, the end being how well it applies to the skill sets (keywords) needed for the job you're applying for. Assuming you're not living in a backwater, getting to phone screens should be pretty easy; if you're willing to commit 4-5 hours onsite per opportunity, the odds favor your landing one in the first 10 onsites. Big co's are different from startups, but not as much as you might think going in. I like how some people consider 100 people a small startup (kind of like how 250 employees is still according to the US government a small business). Maybe my views are out of the mainstream, but I'd say 20 is a better threshold for small.