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The article talks mostly about being self employed. I made a career transition. The hardest thing for me has been the constant comparisons my brain does. Some

The article talks mostly about being self employed. I made a career transition. The hardest thing for me has been the constant comparisons my brain does. Some examples below, it’s exhausting. The best advice I have is to prepare for it, and know what will work for you. For me, it’s been reminding myself of why I made the shift, and to focus on my growth path…have I continued to learn and grow, at the pace that’s right for me? Person 1 just got the promo I’m working toward…and they’re x years younger than me. My mgr is 3 levels above me, but only x years older. My friends stuck with one path and are further ahead / making more money Etc

nwiswell 4y ago
Yeah, I worry about this a lot, honestly. Perhaps it's my biggest mental block for taking the plunge and changing careers into software. I'm a senior engineer, but doing something very niche that is only software-adjacent. There's definitely a very real feeling of being trapped. If I transition, it seems I would almost necessarily take a pay cut, even though I might enjoy the new work more. Possibly it would work out better financially in the long run, but it's very hard to get over that initial financial activation energy. The only saving grace is that software salaries are so ludicrous that if I do transition, the cut to joining at a junior level would probably not be too bad for me. I can only imagine what it's like for folks going the other direction.
sillysaurusx 4y ago
My friend tried to get me to mine Bitcoin. I was worried my gpu would die, so I didn’t. He’s a multi millionaire now. The key to happiness is to not compare yourself to others. Everyone has their own path. Easier said than done, but it’s a habit that you can consciously work on. Eventually it becomes automatic.
- caminante 4y ago
  Further, there were other "BTC millionaire" offramps not limited to Mt. Gox or the landfill HDD guy. I like "The only person you should compare yourself is the person you were, yesterday."

nwiswell 4y ago

Yeah, I worry about this a lot, honestly. Perhaps it's my biggest mental block for taking the plunge and changing careers into software. I'm a senior engineer, but doing something very niche that is only software-adjacent. There's definitely a very real feeling of being trapped. If I transition, it seems I would almost necessarily take a pay cut, even though I might enjoy the new work more. Possibly it would work out better financially in the long run, but it's very hard to get over that initial financial activation energy. The only saving grace is that software salaries are so ludicrous that if I do transition, the cut to joining at a junior level would probably not be too bad for me. I can only imagine what it's like for folks going the other direction.

sillysaurusx 4y ago

My friend tried to get me to mine Bitcoin. I was worried my gpu would die, so I didn’t. He’s a multi millionaire now. The key to happiness is to not compare yourself to others. Everyone has their own path. Easier said than done, but it’s a habit that you can consciously work on. Eventually it becomes automatic.

caminante 4y ago
Further, there were other "BTC millionaire" offramps not limited to Mt. Gox or the landfill HDD guy. I like "The only person you should compare yourself is the person you were, yesterday."