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I suppose anyone leaving Apple's ID team (especially Jony Ive's inner circle) would get the equivalent of Jony Ive's job at any number of companies around the w

by atonse 8y ago

I suppose anyone leaving Apple's ID team (especially Jony Ive's inner circle) would get the equivalent of Jony Ive's job at any number of companies around the world. And companies would be happy to have that calibre of talent on board. Some of it might be better career prospects, and some of it might really be "I've been at the pinnacle of my profession, I think I'm done"

Waterluvian 8y ago
Or something as human as, "I'm tired of designing laptops, phones, and peripherals. I want to try designing something very different for a while." Life is fleeting. Go start new careers every 5-10 years if you have the luxury of that option. You decide what "career" means. Maybe you go become a stand up comedian. Maybe you just go program something different than you have been.
- rocky1138 8y ago
  Just wanted to say I love this advice.
- Taniwha 8y ago
  Yup, that's the best thing about working in this field - every 5-10 years you get to reinvent yourself so that the job doesn't go stale
  - germinalphrase 8y ago
    When you say “this field”, do you mean design or tech more generally?
    - Taniwha 8y ago
      tech in general, I've variously: ported unix kernels, designed graphics cards, did low level chip design, chil design tools and a cloud startup, cable/satellite crypto, embedded RF/voip .....
      - Roritharr 8y ago
        How did you make these jumps?
- puzzle 8y ago
  In a commencement speech, Jeff Hoefer goes a little bit into why he left the team four years ago and how he's changed his job each year since: https://youtu.be/a7cJHTpW4Tg https://youtu.be/a7cJHTpW4Tg (jump to 49:00 or so for the more relevant bits) Note also that he had a quarter century of experience before Apple, having worked on anything from the (RotJ?) Darth Vader helmet to the Oral B CrossAction, which is, a bit surprisingly, the product he thinks defines his career.
- kilroy123 8y ago
  That's what I'm going to try to do. After being paid to code for over 10 years, I simply don't want to do it anymore. I'm going to start an aerospace company and try something radically different. I'm single, I have no kids, and don't own a home. Why not? You know?
  - cloudwalking 8y ago
    I know. Do it! You don't have anything to lose.
  - deleted 8y ago
    [deleted]
  - grigjd3 8y ago
    I mean, know what you're walking into, but if you have that, then yeah. My family makes me risk averse. No complaints. Happy as is, you can chase after whatever, as long as you're vaguely relevant in the field.
  - nexuist 8y ago
    Very interesting. I'm just beginning my dev career (still in college) but I've always fantasized about doing something in aerospace. I'm in no position to start up something like that now, but maybe (hopefully) in a decade or two. Would you mind expanding on what your goal is with your company?
- cortesoft 8y ago
  Eh, I don’t really think I want to do that. I like my job, where it is comfortable and familiar, and I can do it easily 9-5. They pay me well, keep giving me more money and incentives to stay, and they like me. I like having an easier time at work, and then being able to spend my hours and brainpower relaxing with my kids and wife. Yes, life is fleeting. I don’t want to spend all my creativity and brainpower on work.
  - ido 8y ago
    I like my work & field (including subfield), and even aside from not wanting to make my life about work I enjoy the incremental improvements as I hone my skills year after year. And honestly there is so much to learn that I dont think I'm anywhere close to hitting the skill ceiling.
- baybal2 8y ago
  At the same time, Apple quietly opened a design centre in Shenzhen half a year ago. It felt to me that they wanted to do this with the least publicity possible. They don't even have their company name at the index at first floor.
chime 8y ago
As long as they don’t try to replicate their Apple-specific tactics. https://www.forbes.com/sites/marketshare/2013/04/09/ron-johnson-ousted-as-jcpenney-ceo/#5ffde056363b https://www.forbes.com/sites/marketshare/2013/04/09/ron-john...
Spooky23 8y ago
Yet they’ve been there forever. People don’t simultaneously decide that they’ve hit their peak. They do get pissed off in clusters though. The more straightforward guess is that perhaps there are problems with some aspect of working on this team.
- village-idiot 8y ago
  “People do get pissed off in clusters” is the best description of a team/company meltdown that I’ve ever seen.
pvg 8y ago
I'm sure most of these people have exceptional career options but there really isn't an equivalent of Jony Ive's job at other companies.

by atonse 8y ago

Waterluvian 8y ago

Or something as human as, "I'm tired of designing laptops, phones, and peripherals. I want to try designing something very different for a while." Life is fleeting. Go start new careers every 5-10 years if you have the luxury of that option. You decide what "career" means. Maybe you go become a stand up comedian. Maybe you just go program something different than you have been.

rocky1138 8y ago
Just wanted to say I love this advice.
Taniwha 8y ago
Yup, that's the best thing about working in this field - every 5-10 years you get to reinvent yourself so that the job doesn't go stale
- germinalphrase 8y ago
  When you say “this field”, do you mean design or tech more generally?
  - Taniwha 8y ago
    tech in general, I've variously: ported unix kernels, designed graphics cards, did low level chip design, chil design tools and a cloud startup, cable/satellite crypto, embedded RF/voip .....
    - Roritharr 8y ago
      How did you make these jumps?
puzzle 8y ago
In a commencement speech, Jeff Hoefer goes a little bit into why he left the team four years ago and how he's changed his job each year since: https://youtu.be/a7cJHTpW4Tg https://youtu.be/a7cJHTpW4Tg (jump to 49:00 or so for the more relevant bits) Note also that he had a quarter century of experience before Apple, having worked on anything from the (RotJ?) Darth Vader helmet to the Oral B CrossAction, which is, a bit surprisingly, the product he thinks defines his career.
kilroy123 8y ago
That's what I'm going to try to do. After being paid to code for over 10 years, I simply don't want to do it anymore. I'm going to start an aerospace company and try something radically different. I'm single, I have no kids, and don't own a home. Why not? You know?
- cloudwalking 8y ago
  I know. Do it! You don't have anything to lose.
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]
- grigjd3 8y ago
  I mean, know what you're walking into, but if you have that, then yeah. My family makes me risk averse. No complaints. Happy as is, you can chase after whatever, as long as you're vaguely relevant in the field.
- nexuist 8y ago
  Very interesting. I'm just beginning my dev career (still in college) but I've always fantasized about doing something in aerospace. I'm in no position to start up something like that now, but maybe (hopefully) in a decade or two. Would you mind expanding on what your goal is with your company?
cortesoft 8y ago
Eh, I don’t really think I want to do that. I like my job, where it is comfortable and familiar, and I can do it easily 9-5. They pay me well, keep giving me more money and incentives to stay, and they like me. I like having an easier time at work, and then being able to spend my hours and brainpower relaxing with my kids and wife. Yes, life is fleeting. I don’t want to spend all my creativity and brainpower on work.
- ido 8y ago
  I like my work & field (including subfield), and even aside from not wanting to make my life about work I enjoy the incremental improvements as I hone my skills year after year. And honestly there is so much to learn that I dont think I'm anywhere close to hitting the skill ceiling.
baybal2 8y ago
At the same time, Apple quietly opened a design centre in Shenzhen half a year ago. It felt to me that they wanted to do this with the least publicity possible. They don't even have their company name at the index at first floor.

chime 8y ago

As long as they don’t try to replicate their Apple-specific tactics. https://www.forbes.com/sites/marketshare/2013/04/09/ron-johnson-ousted-as-jcpenney-ceo/#5ffde056363b https://www.forbes.com/sites/marketshare/2013/04/09/ron-john...

Spooky23 8y ago

Yet they’ve been there forever. People don’t simultaneously decide that they’ve hit their peak. They do get pissed off in clusters though. The more straightforward guess is that perhaps there are problems with some aspect of working on this team.

village-idiot 8y ago
“People do get pissed off in clusters” is the best description of a team/company meltdown that I’ve ever seen.

pvg 8y ago

I'm sure most of these people have exceptional career options but there really isn't an equivalent of Jony Ive's job at other companies.