7 ms·

Great story, and a thought-provoking title. I LLOLed at "We’ll just tell Steve you did move." I'm 45, so I'll mark my 2nd quarter-century in the not-too-distan

by jpm_sd 2y ago

Great story, and a thought-provoking title. I LLOLed at "We’ll just tell Steve you did move." I'm 45, so I'll mark my 2nd quarter-century in the not-too-distant future. Very approximately, so far: 0-25: learning 25-50: doing 50-75: TBD

onlyrealcuzzo 2y ago
75-100: Hopefully not dead.
- jpm_sd 2y ago
  Depends on how 50-75 goes!
  - BadHumans 2y ago
    I'm a couple years into that range and I'm not dead yet! Only 90% of a quarter-century to go!
- nine_k 2y ago
  Not dead but disabled and dimwit, an annoyance to those who used to love the person you previously were, likely also short on money all the misery which that entails? No, this is seriously worse than death to me. Either it's a life worth living, or forced shutdown for me, while I still have a say.
  - candidafighter2 2y ago
    [flagged]
  - onlyrealcuzzo 2y ago
    Wow - what a bleak answer. You can't imagine being healthy at 75? Most of my family members 75+ are still doing quite well. My great grandma lived to 99 and wasn't particularly unhealthy until 98. My mom's best friend's dad is 98 now, and was in pretty good health until 96. None of them were poor and burdens on society.
    - nine_k 2y ago
      Of course it's best to stay healthy at 75 and beyond! My bleak answer is a refutation of the idea that merely "staying alive" is a goal. Staying physically alive is not enough.
Gualdrapo 2y ago
> I LLOLed at "We’ll just tell Steve you did move." It made me remember about that rumor of Musk firing people at random, but afterwards their immediate superiors just make them to move to another office whatsoever - Musk won't remember the next time he'd be there.
- turnsout 2y ago
  They told the same exact yarn about Steve back in the day. I think both are probably exaggerated.
  - codazoda 2y ago
    I worked at Iomega (Zip Drive) from 1994 to 1998. The VP was rumored to fire people on the spot for the smallest thing. One day we worked an all nighter. The entire department. The next day we were still there. Having solved the problem, most of us were asleep at our desks. The VP made an unannounced visit and walked through the office. None of us noticed him. He walked to my bosses bosses office and asked him to assemble us in the meeting room. He walked into the meeting, said he was impressed with how hard we were working, pointing out that our heads were down in deep thought. Then he left. These days, I think he was trolling us. I got to know him quite well later in my career. I never saw him fire anyone.
  - knuckleheadsmif 2y ago
    Musk firing people at random was not an exaggeration. My friend was head of all software at Tesla for the original car and much of the Model S development. Musk would routinely fire random folks in his department and he’d have to go to musk to get it undone. Often he had to put his job on the line threading to quit if he did not change his mind. Eventually musk took him up on it and my friend quit.
jwr 2y ago
That timescale… got me thinking. In my case it was closer to: 0-25: dicking around, with some incidental learning 25-35: learning how one gets screwed in business deals (by getting screwed in business deals) 35-40: dicking around pretending to work and thinking this is called "startups" 40-50: actually doing stuff, working on meaningful things that people pay for and making a good living off that I am looking forward to the future :-)
- y1n0 2y ago
  You’ve peaked. The rest is just the same story in reverse.
  - j45 2y ago
    Or you can never stop peaking and growing in different ways :)
  - jwr 2y ago
    That is certainly possible, I don't know yet. But what I have noticed is that it is only past 40 that I started doing things that matter, and I learned to recognize things that do not need doing or that should not be done. This goes across the spectrum: from knowing what to do (and more importantly what NOT to spend time on) to build a business that earns money, to avoiding jumping onto the latest and greatest JavaScript framework. Incidentally, one amusing side effect is that I tend to disagree with >90% of HN commenters and often regret posting my comments, because I get downvoted or criticized into oblivion. I might of course be wrong. But then again, when I look at the depressing comments even in this discussion, or at comments from people worrying about their job, securing income, etc, and compare this to my situation, which I've ended up in by following my own compass — I stop worrying, take a deep breath and continue to do my thing :-)
- bitwize 2y ago
  I'm 47. 50+ is looking a lot like "struggling to run the red queen's race to keep my wife and furbabies safe, sheltered, and provided for, while watching the eventual deterioration of my body into uselessness and decrepitude begin, and watching ageism diminish my opportunities in the field". Affordable rejuvenation therapy in the next couple of decades is pretty much my only hope. Maybe then I could claw back another decade or two of vigorous life with my wife with greater wisdom than I had the first time around.
purple-leafy 2y ago
Ha for me its been: 0-25: Arrogance, ignorance, stupidity, delusions, boring normal person 25-50: Obsessive learning/study, application, and passion, finding myself 50-75: Not there yet I just turned 30 and I'm having a blast learning graphics and audio programming, mostly in C! Found my passion, raycasting, audio engineering, and building desktop software
- BriggyDwiggs42 2y ago
  Yeah the only thing i dont love about the framing is that it implies you cant still be in the learning phase later in life. Neuroplasticity can be encouraged and cultivated.
  - interludead 2y ago
    Learning has no expiration date
peterlada 2y ago
Or as Shakespeare would have put it: 0-25: Act I 24-50: Act II 50-75: Act III, the final act.
- dasloop 2y ago
  I`m pretty sure that most of us will be alive after that final act ;)
scarface_74 2y ago
For me: 0-22 - I’m someone else’s responsibility - graduated college degree in CS 22-36 - shuffled aimlessly between two meaningless jobs, a horrible mistake of a marriage (and divorce), got into real estate too heavily and the crash of 2008, taught fitness classes on the side as my only outlet. 36-46 - got remarried and became an instant father to a 9 and 14, rebuilt my career from scratch and hopped between 5 jobs, got my finances under control after walking away from 5 mortgages, built a strong marriage and both (step)sons graduated. “Retired my wife” when she was 44. 46 - present - transitioned into consulting, got first and only job at BigTech, (working remotely cloud consulting department), moved permanently into what was a vacation home in Florida, and start traveling extensively post Covid including doing the digital nomad thing. Left BigTech and enjoying a nice balanced life with my wife while I work remotely and she enjoys her passion projects.
- VoidWhisperer 2y ago
  What does 'retired my wife' mean in this context?
  - asdf6969 2y ago
    She’s unemployed and he pays for her lifestyle
    - scarface_74 2y ago
      The official definition of “unemployed” is you are out of work and looking for a job. Honestly, though her spending money was a matter of selling 2 shares of AMZN pre split every six months when I was getting RSUs. We cut our fixed expenses dramatically after Covid and our younger son graduated, downsizing and moving to a state tax free state.
      - joseda-hg 2y ago
        "not engaged in a gainful occupation"[1] "not having a job that provides money"[2] Maybe not official as in dictionary definition, but official as in political / statistical lingo? [1] Kagi's response provided by WordsAPI, I'm not sure if linking a technically paywalled would be the reasonable thing https://kagi.com/search?q=unemployed+meaning https://kagi.com/search?q=unemployed+meaning [2] https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/unemployed https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/unemploy...
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]
throwaway657656 2y ago
suggested edit: 0-25: learning 25-50: earning 50-75: returning
sudhirj 2y ago
Old Hindu philosphies have a similar split. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C4%80%C5%9Brama_(stage) https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C4%80%C5%9Brama_(stage) 0-25y grow and study 25-50y develop your household, your family, your community and gain wealth (non-extractive, provide value). 50y-75y hand over all worldly things to the next generation, advise, teach and help those around you. Focus on your spiritual enlightenment. 75y- renounce the world and disappear into the forest as a monk / hermit.
- beebmam 2y ago
  I hope more people read comments like these and ask themselves: "What warrants these life suggestions? Are they justified? What would make them justified? What alternatives are there?"
  - apocadam 2y ago
    Indeed, why wait till 50 to start giving back. Edit: Not talking purely about financially giving back, but also volunteering your time.
    - joseda-hg 2y ago
      There's an argument to holding on X money will let you make more money, therefore making your actual contributions larger / more valuable You can more easily invest your second million than your first (Because you probably need that (Or at least a portion of that to live) There's also no significant reason to start earlier (or later), unless you factor in dying as your stopping point, worthwhile causes aren't going anywhere
    - jpm_sd 2y ago
      Because by then you've mostly finished spending money on raising your own children.
      - sincarne 2y ago
        I turn 49 tomorrow, and my kid’s next birthday will be her 11th. I have a lot more spending on her ahead!
kamaal 2y ago
I hope there was something like a fun quarter some where in there. Perhaps whatever we might call it. 0 - death -> Doing things. This is just how it unfolds.
cmrdporcupine 2y ago
Just turned 50. Unfortunately I already feel like a theme of 50-75 is "forgetting." I remember very well the stuff I learned from 0-25 but damned if I remember last month.
- neilv 2y ago
  [flagged]
  - cmrdporcupine 2y ago
    Pretty sure your potential future employers are not reading my self-deprecating humour on HN before considering your application.
    - neilv 2y ago
      YC started by funding 20 year-olds with no experience, and telling them they were the best people to be doing startups. We know that our field already has a lot of age discrimination. Why reinforce that message with grassroots chatter that impressionable new startup founders and young engineers will see on HN? AFAIK, representatives of other discriminated-against groups aren't coming to HN to voice silly negative stereotypes directly related to workplace performance.
      - candidafighter2 2y ago
        [flagged]
      - BriggyDwiggs42 2y ago
        Anyone who can’t see the value in hiring someone with some wisdom is really damn stupid imo. Easily worth it even under a cynical, money-focused outlook.
ronyeh 2y ago
Denzel’s Learn, Earn, Return. https://youtube.com/clip/Ugkx1T-qoilkYC6vZ48N8US2aM9nHiFTq2IT?si=6zSACOrd_RE0Fy4u https://youtube.com/clip/Ugkx1T-qoilkYC6vZ48N8US2aM9nHiFTq2I...
safety1st 2y ago
I think it's interesting that everyone's timeline here stops at 75, meanwhile we're about to inaugurate a 78 year old President, who is replacing an 82 year old President. As much as everyone loves to hate these guys, they're the most powerful men in the world and they clearly didn't get there by fading into retirement from the age of 50 onward. I guess it depends on what you want in life but I wouldn't mind taking a hint from them. You clearly don't need to stop when you're old. For some, life appears to be a continual doubling down for higher and higher stakes. I'm in my mid 40s and as my resources expand all I want to do is ante up and wrestle with bigger demons. Every decade for me is one more chance, maybe the last, to reclaim the stolen aspirations of my youth. The ticker will give out someday, but until then I don't want to ever stop. I'm the healthiest and probably also the angriest I've been in 20 years. Whatever else may transpire I hope to be a bit like those croaking old fuckers and never go gently.
- vnce 2y ago
  effin' a :)
- kelseydh 2y ago
  Reminds me of that old guy in the documentary Ren Faire who absolutely refuses to step down and pass power down to the next generation.
yzydserd 2y ago
0-25: learning 25-50: doing 50-75: enjoying 75-100: leaving
leoc 2y ago
> Fiche bliain ag fás, > Fiche bliain faoi bhláth, > Fiche bliain ag meath > Agus fiche bliain gur cuma ann no as. "Twenty years growing, Twenty years in bloom, Twenty years in decline, And twenty years when it makes no difference if you're there or gone."
- generic92034 2y ago
  > And twenty years when it makes no difference if you're there or gone. That does not seem to picture today's reality all that well, considering that most power in the world is concentrated in the hands of 60+ year old people.
pchristensen 2y ago
Some describe the three phases of your career as learn, earn, return (e.g. philanthropy, advising, etc).

by jpm_sd 2y ago

onlyrealcuzzo 2y ago

75-100: Hopefully not dead.

jpm_sd 2y ago
Depends on how 50-75 goes!
- BadHumans 2y ago
  I'm a couple years into that range and I'm not dead yet! Only 90% of a quarter-century to go!
nine_k 2y ago
Not dead but disabled and dimwit, an annoyance to those who used to love the person you previously were, likely also short on money all the misery which that entails? No, this is seriously worse than death to me. Either it's a life worth living, or forced shutdown for me, while I still have a say.
- candidafighter2 2y ago
  [flagged]
- onlyrealcuzzo 2y ago
  Wow - what a bleak answer. You can't imagine being healthy at 75? Most of my family members 75+ are still doing quite well. My great grandma lived to 99 and wasn't particularly unhealthy until 98. My mom's best friend's dad is 98 now, and was in pretty good health until 96. None of them were poor and burdens on society.
  - nine_k 2y ago
    Of course it's best to stay healthy at 75 and beyond! My bleak answer is a refutation of the idea that merely "staying alive" is a goal. Staying physically alive is not enough.

Gualdrapo 2y ago

> I LLOLed at "We’ll just tell Steve you did move." It made me remember about that rumor of Musk firing people at random, but afterwards their immediate superiors just make them to move to another office whatsoever - Musk won't remember the next time he'd be there.

turnsout 2y ago
They told the same exact yarn about Steve back in the day. I think both are probably exaggerated.
- codazoda 2y ago
  I worked at Iomega (Zip Drive) from 1994 to 1998. The VP was rumored to fire people on the spot for the smallest thing. One day we worked an all nighter. The entire department. The next day we were still there. Having solved the problem, most of us were asleep at our desks. The VP made an unannounced visit and walked through the office. None of us noticed him. He walked to my bosses bosses office and asked him to assemble us in the meeting room. He walked into the meeting, said he was impressed with how hard we were working, pointing out that our heads were down in deep thought. Then he left. These days, I think he was trolling us. I got to know him quite well later in my career. I never saw him fire anyone.
- knuckleheadsmif 2y ago
  Musk firing people at random was not an exaggeration. My friend was head of all software at Tesla for the original car and much of the Model S development. Musk would routinely fire random folks in his department and he’d have to go to musk to get it undone. Often he had to put his job on the line threading to quit if he did not change his mind. Eventually musk took him up on it and my friend quit.

jwr 2y ago

That timescale… got me thinking. In my case it was closer to: 0-25: dicking around, with some incidental learning 25-35: learning how one gets screwed in business deals (by getting screwed in business deals) 35-40: dicking around pretending to work and thinking this is called "startups" 40-50: actually doing stuff, working on meaningful things that people pay for and making a good living off that I am looking forward to the future :-)

y1n0 2y ago
You’ve peaked. The rest is just the same story in reverse.
- j45 2y ago
  Or you can never stop peaking and growing in different ways :)
- jwr 2y ago
  That is certainly possible, I don't know yet. But what I have noticed is that it is only past 40 that I started doing things that matter, and I learned to recognize things that do not need doing or that should not be done. This goes across the spectrum: from knowing what to do (and more importantly what NOT to spend time on) to build a business that earns money, to avoiding jumping onto the latest and greatest JavaScript framework. Incidentally, one amusing side effect is that I tend to disagree with >90% of HN commenters and often regret posting my comments, because I get downvoted or criticized into oblivion. I might of course be wrong. But then again, when I look at the depressing comments even in this discussion, or at comments from people worrying about their job, securing income, etc, and compare this to my situation, which I've ended up in by following my own compass — I stop worrying, take a deep breath and continue to do my thing :-)
bitwize 2y ago
I'm 47. 50+ is looking a lot like "struggling to run the red queen's race to keep my wife and furbabies safe, sheltered, and provided for, while watching the eventual deterioration of my body into uselessness and decrepitude begin, and watching ageism diminish my opportunities in the field". Affordable rejuvenation therapy in the next couple of decades is pretty much my only hope. Maybe then I could claw back another decade or two of vigorous life with my wife with greater wisdom than I had the first time around.

purple-leafy 2y ago

Ha for me its been: 0-25: Arrogance, ignorance, stupidity, delusions, boring normal person 25-50: Obsessive learning/study, application, and passion, finding myself 50-75: Not there yet I just turned 30 and I'm having a blast learning graphics and audio programming, mostly in C! Found my passion, raycasting, audio engineering, and building desktop software

BriggyDwiggs42 2y ago
Yeah the only thing i dont love about the framing is that it implies you cant still be in the learning phase later in life. Neuroplasticity can be encouraged and cultivated.
- interludead 2y ago
  Learning has no expiration date

peterlada 2y ago

Or as Shakespeare would have put it: 0-25: Act I 24-50: Act II 50-75: Act III, the final act.

dasloop 2y ago
I`m pretty sure that most of us will be alive after that final act ;)

scarface_74 2y ago

For me: 0-22 - I’m someone else’s responsibility - graduated college degree in CS 22-36 - shuffled aimlessly between two meaningless jobs, a horrible mistake of a marriage (and divorce), got into real estate too heavily and the crash of 2008, taught fitness classes on the side as my only outlet. 36-46 - got remarried and became an instant father to a 9 and 14, rebuilt my career from scratch and hopped between 5 jobs, got my finances under control after walking away from 5 mortgages, built a strong marriage and both (step)sons graduated. “Retired my wife” when she was 44. 46 - present - transitioned into consulting, got first and only job at BigTech, (working remotely cloud consulting department), moved permanently into what was a vacation home in Florida, and start traveling extensively post Covid including doing the digital nomad thing. Left BigTech and enjoying a nice balanced life with my wife while I work remotely and she enjoys her passion projects.

VoidWhisperer 2y ago
What does 'retired my wife' mean in this context?
- asdf6969 2y ago
  She’s unemployed and he pays for her lifestyle
  - scarface_74 2y ago
    The official definition of “unemployed” is you are out of work and looking for a job. Honestly, though her spending money was a matter of selling 2 shares of AMZN pre split every six months when I was getting RSUs. We cut our fixed expenses dramatically after Covid and our younger son graduated, downsizing and moving to a state tax free state.
    - joseda-hg 2y ago
      "not engaged in a gainful occupation"[1] "not having a job that provides money"[2] Maybe not official as in dictionary definition, but official as in political / statistical lingo? [1] Kagi's response provided by WordsAPI, I'm not sure if linking a technically paywalled would be the reasonable thing https://kagi.com/search?q=unemployed+meaning https://kagi.com/search?q=unemployed+meaning [2] https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/unemployed https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/unemploy...

deleted 2y ago

[deleted]

throwaway657656 2y ago

suggested edit: 0-25: learning 25-50: earning 50-75: returning

sudhirj 2y ago

Old Hindu philosphies have a similar split. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C4%80%C5%9Brama_(stage) https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C4%80%C5%9Brama_(stage) 0-25y grow and study 25-50y develop your household, your family, your community and gain wealth (non-extractive, provide value). 50y-75y hand over all worldly things to the next generation, advise, teach and help those around you. Focus on your spiritual enlightenment. 75y- renounce the world and disappear into the forest as a monk / hermit.

beebmam 2y ago
I hope more people read comments like these and ask themselves: "What warrants these life suggestions? Are they justified? What would make them justified? What alternatives are there?"
- apocadam 2y ago
  Indeed, why wait till 50 to start giving back. Edit: Not talking purely about financially giving back, but also volunteering your time.
  - joseda-hg 2y ago
    There's an argument to holding on X money will let you make more money, therefore making your actual contributions larger / more valuable You can more easily invest your second million than your first (Because you probably need that (Or at least a portion of that to live) There's also no significant reason to start earlier (or later), unless you factor in dying as your stopping point, worthwhile causes aren't going anywhere
  - jpm_sd 2y ago
    Because by then you've mostly finished spending money on raising your own children.
    - sincarne 2y ago
      I turn 49 tomorrow, and my kid’s next birthday will be her 11th. I have a lot more spending on her ahead!

kamaal 2y ago

I hope there was something like a fun quarter some where in there. Perhaps whatever we might call it. 0 - death -> Doing things. This is just how it unfolds.

cmrdporcupine 2y ago

Just turned 50. Unfortunately I already feel like a theme of 50-75 is "forgetting." I remember very well the stuff I learned from 0-25 but damned if I remember last month.

neilv 2y ago
[flagged]
- cmrdporcupine 2y ago
  Pretty sure your potential future employers are not reading my self-deprecating humour on HN before considering your application.
  - neilv 2y ago
    YC started by funding 20 year-olds with no experience, and telling them they were the best people to be doing startups. We know that our field already has a lot of age discrimination. Why reinforce that message with grassroots chatter that impressionable new startup founders and young engineers will see on HN? AFAIK, representatives of other discriminated-against groups aren't coming to HN to voice silly negative stereotypes directly related to workplace performance.
    - candidafighter2 2y ago
      [flagged]
    - BriggyDwiggs42 2y ago
      Anyone who can’t see the value in hiring someone with some wisdom is really damn stupid imo. Easily worth it even under a cynical, money-focused outlook.

ronyeh 2y ago

Denzel’s Learn, Earn, Return. https://youtube.com/clip/Ugkx1T-qoilkYC6vZ48N8US2aM9nHiFTq2IT?si=6zSACOrd_RE0Fy4u https://youtube.com/clip/Ugkx1T-qoilkYC6vZ48N8US2aM9nHiFTq2I...

safety1st 2y ago

I think it's interesting that everyone's timeline here stops at 75, meanwhile we're about to inaugurate a 78 year old President, who is replacing an 82 year old President. As much as everyone loves to hate these guys, they're the most powerful men in the world and they clearly didn't get there by fading into retirement from the age of 50 onward. I guess it depends on what you want in life but I wouldn't mind taking a hint from them. You clearly don't need to stop when you're old. For some, life appears to be a continual doubling down for higher and higher stakes. I'm in my mid 40s and as my resources expand all I want to do is ante up and wrestle with bigger demons. Every decade for me is one more chance, maybe the last, to reclaim the stolen aspirations of my youth. The ticker will give out someday, but until then I don't want to ever stop. I'm the healthiest and probably also the angriest I've been in 20 years. Whatever else may transpire I hope to be a bit like those croaking old fuckers and never go gently.

vnce 2y ago
effin' a :)
kelseydh 2y ago
Reminds me of that old guy in the documentary Ren Faire who absolutely refuses to step down and pass power down to the next generation.

yzydserd 2y ago

0-25: learning 25-50: doing 50-75: enjoying 75-100: leaving

leoc 2y ago

> Fiche bliain ag fás, > Fiche bliain faoi bhláth, > Fiche bliain ag meath > Agus fiche bliain gur cuma ann no as. "Twenty years growing, Twenty years in bloom, Twenty years in decline, And twenty years when it makes no difference if you're there or gone."

generic92034 2y ago
> And twenty years when it makes no difference if you're there or gone. That does not seem to picture today's reality all that well, considering that most power in the world is concentrated in the hands of 60+ year old people.

pchristensen 2y ago

Some describe the three phases of your career as learn, earn, return (e.g. philanthropy, advising, etc).