4 ms·

I’ll add another reason why these scenarios are ridiculous: they assume that the time that goes into the side hustle is “free” and that it’s impossible to advan

I’ll add another reason why these scenarios are ridiculous: they assume that the time that goes into the side hustle is “free” and that it’s impossible to advance any faster in one’s “primary” career. I don’t know how things work in medicine, but in software engineering at a high-level tech company a bump up in pay grade blows away the $250/month you’d make fiddling with a vending machine. And wasting time on the vending machine makes it that much harder to get the vastly more valuable promotion. I wonder if these stories are appealing because it seems like an “easy” path to wealth, whereas “work hard at a demanding job” seems hard.

bigyikes 5y ago
This is the same conclusion I arrived at after considering starting an AirBnB side business. It would be very difficult for my time to be better spent doing anything besides advancing my career. That makes me wonder though: how would I even determine if an opportunity or side hustle is worth pursuing? If every SWE followed our logic, Silicon Valley would be a very different place. I guess, there’s a big difference between starting an AirBnB and starting AirBnB: the latter has much higher potential reward. So if you’re going to start a side hustle, it better have the potential for fast growth. In programming terms, choose a side hustle where O(Side Hustle) >= O(Career)
thujlife 5y ago
5k more a month just for switching jobs is pretty sweet. Even less responsibility too.
theandrewbailey 5y ago
That $250/month happens regardless of your employment. If you retire/get laid off/fired/startup fails, that promotion doesn't get you income anymore, but that $250/month still happens. Granted, you likely have the privilege of working in an in-demand field so you won't be out of a job for long, but not everyone is like that.

bigyikes 5y ago

This is the same conclusion I arrived at after considering starting an AirBnB side business. It would be very difficult for my time to be better spent doing anything besides advancing my career. That makes me wonder though: how would I even determine if an opportunity or side hustle is worth pursuing? If every SWE followed our logic, Silicon Valley would be a very different place. I guess, there’s a big difference between starting an AirBnB and starting AirBnB: the latter has much higher potential reward. So if you’re going to start a side hustle, it better have the potential for fast growth. In programming terms, choose a side hustle where O(Side Hustle) >= O(Career)

thujlife 5y ago

5k more a month just for switching jobs is pretty sweet. Even less responsibility too.

theandrewbailey 5y ago

That $250/month happens regardless of your employment. If you retire/get laid off/fired/startup fails, that promotion doesn't get you income anymore, but that $250/month still happens. Granted, you likely have the privilege of working in an in-demand field so you won't be out of a job for long, but not everyone is like that.