4 ms·

Instead of calling people you never met bad, maybe you can share your techniques of tweaking the resume? I've never in my life worked for more than $110K annua

Instead of calling people you never met bad, maybe you can share your techniques of tweaking the resume? I've never in my life worked for more than $110K annually and I have 22 years of experience. Can do practically anything on the backend and quite a lot in terms of system administration. This is also VERY sensitive to location, even if I'm working remote ever since 2011.

reaperman 3y ago
I’d be very curious about which schools you both went to. That seems to make a large difference in career trajectory. Probably the #1 differentiator for first 5-8 years of career path. Edit: Other than country of residence.
- pdimitar 3y ago
  I am not from the USA. Never studied programming officially either, was just a hobby and I winged it and got good fast. I am also from Eastern Europe. These things make a huge difference. But I admit I get ticked off by privileged people who think that all you have to do is pick up the phone. No, for 99% of all programmers everywhere and who didn't go to the prestigious schools in USA, it's definitely much harder than that.
gamblor956 3y ago
There are only a handful of companies in the U.S. willing to pay 200k+ for contract programmers, and these invariably involve highly specialized needs. And if they're in a specialized niche, then their numbers and experience aren't relevant outside of that niche. Note that the parent poster was saying he is a "low level" programmer, meaning close to the hardware, which is niche role. If you know someone claiming to make 200k+ as a non-specialized programming contractor, they're probably just making numbers up to impress the internet. Regular (non-tech) companies don't pay those sorts of rates to non-specialized programmers, and startups can't afford those rates. That leaves primarily FAANG or large tech companies, in which case YOE is irrelevant; they hire based on pedigree and who you know.
- dnissley 3y ago
  200k is just 100/hr, no? Seems like there are many more than just a handful of companies willing to pay that rate
  - gamblor956 3y ago
    I know a lot of people who claim to make 200k+ as contract programmers doing vaguely web-related stuff. But as a tax guy, I generally see the actual financial data (i.e., the actual 1099-reportable payments), and I rarely see anyone who actually does make 200k+ as a contractor. And all of those positions are always niche positions, and almost all of these roles are for less than a year: meaning: the 200k is the amount they would make if the role lasted a full year. So if they're making 200k+, it involves multiple gigs, which is a very different situation from making 200k+ at a single gig.
    - karmajunkie 3y ago
      yeah when i was contracting i based my assumptions on half-time employment… so to make 200/yr, i would need to charge 200/hr. over five years that was pretty close to an accurate measure.
    - birdlogic 3y ago
      I’ve done this for the past 3 years - two startup clients for 20 hrs/week each, just over 500k total pretax. Mostly staff-eng work, lots of independence, got to run some projects, pretty indistinguishable from full-time except for fewer meetings and no health care or equity. I’ve loved it - and so have the startups - they get a staff-level eng for the cost of a mid-level, just for half the hours. I think there’s value there. Just wanted to put out a data point that it is possible and enjoyable.
      - pdimitar 3y ago
        Are you open to discuss how did you do it, here or over email? I don't have a network and I wouldn't even know where to start. I am quite capable and this has been recognized by people in the past but I am basically stealth mode (never invested in blogs, proper LinkedIn presence or any other really) so I am wondering how does a capable senior dev finally get to the big bucks?
PartiallyTyped 3y ago
> This is also VERY sensitive to location I made the mistake of moving to Eastern Europe, and it is very difficult to get out of here due to relocation.

reaperman 3y ago

I’d be very curious about which schools you both went to. That seems to make a large difference in career trajectory. Probably the #1 differentiator for first 5-8 years of career path. Edit: Other than country of residence.

pdimitar 3y ago
I am not from the USA. Never studied programming officially either, was just a hobby and I winged it and got good fast. I am also from Eastern Europe. These things make a huge difference. But I admit I get ticked off by privileged people who think that all you have to do is pick up the phone. No, for 99% of all programmers everywhere and who didn't go to the prestigious schools in USA, it's definitely much harder than that.

gamblor956 3y ago

There are only a handful of companies in the U.S. willing to pay 200k+ for contract programmers, and these invariably involve highly specialized needs. And if they're in a specialized niche, then their numbers and experience aren't relevant outside of that niche. Note that the parent poster was saying he is a "low level" programmer, meaning close to the hardware, which is niche role. If you know someone claiming to make 200k+ as a non-specialized programming contractor, they're probably just making numbers up to impress the internet. Regular (non-tech) companies don't pay those sorts of rates to non-specialized programmers, and startups can't afford those rates. That leaves primarily FAANG or large tech companies, in which case YOE is irrelevant; they hire based on pedigree and who you know.

dnissley 3y ago
200k is just 100/hr, no? Seems like there are many more than just a handful of companies willing to pay that rate
- gamblor956 3y ago
  I know a lot of people who claim to make 200k+ as contract programmers doing vaguely web-related stuff. But as a tax guy, I generally see the actual financial data (i.e., the actual 1099-reportable payments), and I rarely see anyone who actually does make 200k+ as a contractor. And all of those positions are always niche positions, and almost all of these roles are for less than a year: meaning: the 200k is the amount they would make if the role lasted a full year. So if they're making 200k+, it involves multiple gigs, which is a very different situation from making 200k+ at a single gig.
  - karmajunkie 3y ago
    yeah when i was contracting i based my assumptions on half-time employment… so to make 200/yr, i would need to charge 200/hr. over five years that was pretty close to an accurate measure.
  - birdlogic 3y ago
    I’ve done this for the past 3 years - two startup clients for 20 hrs/week each, just over 500k total pretax. Mostly staff-eng work, lots of independence, got to run some projects, pretty indistinguishable from full-time except for fewer meetings and no health care or equity. I’ve loved it - and so have the startups - they get a staff-level eng for the cost of a mid-level, just for half the hours. I think there’s value there. Just wanted to put out a data point that it is possible and enjoyable.
    - pdimitar 3y ago
      Are you open to discuss how did you do it, here or over email? I don't have a network and I wouldn't even know where to start. I am quite capable and this has been recognized by people in the past but I am basically stealth mode (never invested in blogs, proper LinkedIn presence or any other really) so I am wondering how does a capable senior dev finally get to the big bucks?

PartiallyTyped 3y ago

> This is also VERY sensitive to location I made the mistake of moving to Eastern Europe, and it is very difficult to get out of here due to relocation.