For me it was after 50, but maybe it'll apply to you. Nonprofits are desperate for knowledgeable workers. If you can afford the pay-cut the reward is worth it.

For me it was after 50, but maybe it'll apply to you. Nonprofits are desperate for knowledgeable workers. If you can afford the pay-cut the reward is worth it. From my experience: Pros: * The environment is more laid back. * More people over 40 there already compared to lots of other places. * Weirder people too, which I like. * Smaller non-profits can't afford AI-powered HR B.S., so you can worry less about gaming them. * Somebody of your experience and talents would be a star. * You get to pick an industry you believe in, and maybe even influence. * Tech is in a period of rapid change, and if you have the skills you can multiply those changes for your non-profit. * You feel like less of a cog since many non-profits are smaller. Cons: * As somebody said to you, "Google is the place you go to retire after 40", I feel the same is for non-profits but more so. * Weird politics by mission-driven people vs corporate politics which can at least almost always be attributed to money. * It takes forever to change things. * Shoestring budgets don't just mean lower salary, but often crappier hardware and fewer retreats and stuff. I miss big, hedonistic corporate retreats.