2 ms·

Is it possible this has things backwards? When I was in high school 25 years ago, unless you got lucky with an IPO, tech didn't pay all that well. (I worked i

Is it possible this has things backwards? When I was in high school 25 years ago, unless you got lucky with an IPO, tech didn't pay all that well. (I worked in software while I was in high school, so I know some of this first hand). It was office space. It didn't matter how smart you were, if you didn't go into management, or join Apple/Microsoft at just the right time, you weren't going to live a rich lifestyle. Not only that, you'd probably be reporting to some MBA type biz guy who has no idea how software works, you'd not be well respected, and your perks were drip coffee and occasional donuts on friday. Of course brilliant, hard working, talented engineers said "fuck that" and go build something awesome themselves. Things have changed drastically. Now, brilliant hard working people can literally make millions at dozens of companies . You will report to another engineer who has slightly optimized for soft skills, you get lavish perks (except amazon, but at least you get paid well there), and real equity. There's a whole spectrum of options for ambitious software folk that didn't texist ~25 years ago.

hn_throwaway_99 6mo ago
I was a software engineer 25 years ago, and tech paid very well - and in a non-Bay area location, and I'm only counting my cash comp as my stock options ended up being worthless (dot com bust and all). I made more my second year out of college than a family member's first year as a physician post-residency.
- VirusNewbie 6mo ago
  Can you tell me more? 25 years ago I was only a high school getting paid minimum wage 'cosplaying' as an office worker writing SQL and VBScript. So, my view is skewed, but I got the impression software engineering was not a place people were retiring 'early' from, unless you made it in management. It seemed like a pretty standard office job, maybe with a little more perks due to the eccentric nature of the majority of workers. Do I have the wrong impression?

hn_throwaway_99 6mo ago

I was a software engineer 25 years ago, and tech paid very well - and in a non-Bay area location, and I'm only counting my cash comp as my stock options ended up being worthless (dot com bust and all). I made more my second year out of college than a family member's first year as a physician post-residency.

VirusNewbie 6mo ago
Can you tell me more? 25 years ago I was only a high school getting paid minimum wage 'cosplaying' as an office worker writing SQL and VBScript. So, my view is skewed, but I got the impression software engineering was not a place people were retiring 'early' from, unless you made it in management. It seemed like a pretty standard office job, maybe with a little more perks due to the eccentric nature of the majority of workers. Do I have the wrong impression?