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I was wiped out back in 2017. I was a web developer living in Dallas and making 90K a year. My manager and I didn't get along and I eventually ended up on a PIP

by f34 8y ago

I was wiped out back in 2017. I was a web developer living in Dallas and making 90K a year. My manager and I didn't get along and I eventually ended up on a PIP. After 30 days I realized I wasn't going to meet the PIP goals and resigned before being fired. I wasn't worried, I had about 50K in cash and 20K in credit, and I surly could find a job before it ran out. I was wrong. I got very few interviews and when I did, they were more fit than technology focused. I might as well have picked a number between 1 and 100 to decide the interview. There comes a point when you go into emergency mode and start planning for the worst. We made it to tax season and got our return. we bought a used car and moved to Tulsa, Ok for the cheaper rent. I had also spent 20 years there when I was younger and felt confident I could find a development or any job. It didn't go as planned. I got plenty of interviews, but none panned out. Many employers questioned my time without a job and I think that and my rusting skills keep me unemployed. Hell, I can't even get a blue-collar job. And it didn't help that the used car broke down and I had to walk and ride public buses every where. Now my wife works for $8.50 an hour at a diner and that's what we make it on. I'm in a worse position than before I went to college and it makes me bitter about life, people, hiring practices, and that so much depends on luck and timing. So yeah, you never know what's coming. Save all you can and keep working towards financial independence, which is the only real guarantee.

driverdan 8y ago
How are you applying for jobs? Are you spraying and praying or are you going to meetups and such to network and get recommendations? Cold resumes won't get nearly as far as a recommendation. Have you applied to remote jobs? Contract jobs? Looked for freelance work?
- thatoneuser 8y ago
  I'll be real, it sounds like you're giving the generic "I just Googled how to get a job" advice and in my personal experience - this kind of advice rarely accomplishes anything and leaves you more distraught than before.
  - dabockster 8y ago
    >I just Googled how to get a job It’s worse than that. It reads like something a LinkedIn “influencer” who hasn’t had to actively look for a job in 30 years would write. Here’s some insights from my current job search: >Meetups I live 45 minutes away from Seattle. On a good day, it’s a 1.5 hour round trip commute. With Seattle traffic factored in, it can balloon to 3-4 hours round trip. The last two meetups I did go to were full of boot camp students and very few actual employed devs. (Side note, only one of the five boot camps that were there had the WA state technical school accdredidation.) The Meetup talks were glorified sales pitches for B2B AI analytics products (with one company admitting that its AI was actually third world upwork contractors in an news interview a week later). >Remote work Not in a position to negotiate that unless you mean 1099 freelance work. 1099 is a hardship since I’d have to basically set up my own business at that point. (I will never do a sole proprietorship since the personal risk is too high if the business fails or I get sued for something.) >contact and freelance jobs Did you read what I just said? Anyways, I’m logging off HN again and working on my blog. I really need to block this site since all I see here anymore are innane comments like these.
    - driverdan 8y ago
      Sorry if I came of condescending, that wasn't my intention. I was trying understand the situation in case there was something I could do to help. >Remote work Not in a position to negotiate that There are many remote jobs available now. Check out https://github.com/lukasz-madon/awesome-remote-job#job-boards https://github.com/lukasz-madon/awesome-remote-job#job-board... for a list of boards that show remote jobs. Remote work isn't for everyone but it opens up a much wider selection if you're having trouble finding something local.
      - thatoneuser 8y ago
        Didn't mean to be hard on you! It's just frustrating as someone who's sought those avenues before only to fine people who want to underlay, sketchiness, people who just wanna feel the waters or even people who are trying to catfish for recruiting. It just came off as tho you had never tried to do those things before because they're so generic and rarely produce results. But thanks for that link I'll be looking through it later!
MarvelousWololo 8y ago
Jesus. I almost had a panic attack reading your story mate. I'm so sorry I hope your life turn better soon. Where did you go to college if you don't mind me asking?
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
DegreeChamp 8y ago
Just wanted to give 4 quick suggestions to help you get a job: 1) Add your email in your HN profile in the “about” section. I’m certain there’s a lot of people who really resonated with your story and potentially interested in hiring you, but have zero ways of contacting you. You have to do everything you can to increase your “luck quotient”. 2) Post in “Ask HN: Who wants to be hired” when it comes up again. Mention either remote or local depending on what you’re looking for. Be very honest with your story and what you’re looking for. 3) Reach out to founders in startups in the Oklahoma area if you want to work locally. I know a lot of founders and almost all of them are desperate to hire good developers. Even if your skills are "rusty" the smartest ones will realize it won’t take long for you to get up to speed. 4) Send me an email with a resume. I might be interested or know someone who is.

by f34 8y ago

driverdan 8y ago

How are you applying for jobs? Are you spraying and praying or are you going to meetups and such to network and get recommendations? Cold resumes won't get nearly as far as a recommendation. Have you applied to remote jobs? Contract jobs? Looked for freelance work?

thatoneuser 8y ago
I'll be real, it sounds like you're giving the generic "I just Googled how to get a job" advice and in my personal experience - this kind of advice rarely accomplishes anything and leaves you more distraught than before.
- dabockster 8y ago
  >I just Googled how to get a job It’s worse than that. It reads like something a LinkedIn “influencer” who hasn’t had to actively look for a job in 30 years would write. Here’s some insights from my current job search: >Meetups I live 45 minutes away from Seattle. On a good day, it’s a 1.5 hour round trip commute. With Seattle traffic factored in, it can balloon to 3-4 hours round trip. The last two meetups I did go to were full of boot camp students and very few actual employed devs. (Side note, only one of the five boot camps that were there had the WA state technical school accdredidation.) The Meetup talks were glorified sales pitches for B2B AI analytics products (with one company admitting that its AI was actually third world upwork contractors in an news interview a week later). >Remote work Not in a position to negotiate that unless you mean 1099 freelance work. 1099 is a hardship since I’d have to basically set up my own business at that point. (I will never do a sole proprietorship since the personal risk is too high if the business fails or I get sued for something.) >contact and freelance jobs Did you read what I just said? Anyways, I’m logging off HN again and working on my blog. I really need to block this site since all I see here anymore are innane comments like these.
  - driverdan 8y ago
    Sorry if I came of condescending, that wasn't my intention. I was trying understand the situation in case there was something I could do to help. >Remote work Not in a position to negotiate that There are many remote jobs available now. Check out https://github.com/lukasz-madon/awesome-remote-job#job-boards https://github.com/lukasz-madon/awesome-remote-job#job-board... for a list of boards that show remote jobs. Remote work isn't for everyone but it opens up a much wider selection if you're having trouble finding something local.
    - thatoneuser 8y ago
      Didn't mean to be hard on you! It's just frustrating as someone who's sought those avenues before only to fine people who want to underlay, sketchiness, people who just wanna feel the waters or even people who are trying to catfish for recruiting. It just came off as tho you had never tried to do those things before because they're so generic and rarely produce results. But thanks for that link I'll be looking through it later!

MarvelousWololo 8y ago

Jesus. I almost had a panic attack reading your story mate. I'm so sorry I hope your life turn better soon. Where did you go to college if you don't mind me asking?

deleted 8y ago

[deleted]

DegreeChamp 8y ago

Just wanted to give 4 quick suggestions to help you get a job: 1) Add your email in your HN profile in the “about” section. I’m certain there’s a lot of people who really resonated with your story and potentially interested in hiring you, but have zero ways of contacting you. You have to do everything you can to increase your “luck quotient”. 2) Post in “Ask HN: Who wants to be hired” when it comes up again. Mention either remote or local depending on what you’re looking for. Be very honest with your story and what you’re looking for. 3) Reach out to founders in startups in the Oklahoma area if you want to work locally. I know a lot of founders and almost all of them are desperate to hire good developers. Even if your skills are "rusty" the smartest ones will realize it won’t take long for you to get up to speed. 4) Send me an email with a resume. I might be interested or know someone who is.