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Also, startups are more financially risky in unexpected sudden failure than most big-company jobs. Startups generally don't pay severance. There might be nothin

Also, startups are more financially risky in unexpected sudden failure than most big-company jobs. Startups generally don't pay severance. There might be nothing to pay out. Additionally, if you are unemployed you must get at least 45 minutes of exercise every day, and spend at least 4-6 hours on something career focused (skill building during the annoying latent periods of job searching) as if you were FT employed. Depression can turn what should be a 21-day gap into 21 weeks.

sillysaurus 14y ago
Additionally, if you are unemployed you must get at least 45 minutes of exercise every day, and spend at least 4-6 hours on something career focused (skill building during the annoying latent periods of job searching) as if you were FT employed. Depression can turn what should be a 21-day gap into 21 weeks. I didn't exercise. I don't regret it. I was unemployed in St Louis for 7 months. It was the most intellectually creative period of my life. I chose to pursue physics of my own accord and with no prior experience. I now have a clear idea of what, precisely, I want my life to be, and close to a six-figure salary. I'm saving up money for at least 6 months while I study very hard in my free time to get high marks on ACT/SAT and (hopefully) earn scholarships to attend a decent undergrad university, with the long-term goal of attending a graduate program at a top university. It's doable with about six years of work, which is no problem at all now that I know who I am and what I want out of life. It's important to realize that it isn't necessarily best to choose to continue to work regardless of what you could be doing with those extra 50 hours per week. More than that, realizing that "choosing to work" is, in fact, a conscious decision rather than a given, is liberating. It has a way of making your life come into focus. Your advice is good. I just wanted to share an alternative viewpoint. It's also important to note that I was incredibly lucky to have the opportunity to not-work without becoming homeless. (On the other hand, it was because I had saved up enough money to do that. And if I can, then you certainly can. Consider it.)
- readme 14y ago
  >I'm saving up money for at least 6 months while I study very hard in my free time to get high marks on ACT/SAT and (hopefully) earn scholarships to attend a decent undergrad university This tells me you're young. Depression didn't creep in on me due to a sedentary lifestyle at that age either. Our bodies age, and as you get older if you don't exercise or eat a healthy diet (for a very strict definition of healthy) you'll find lethargy creeping in. You'll have a harder time staying up, you'll find your body takes sleep when it craves it. When I was 18, I used to be able to stay up for 2 straight days and it wasn't a big deal. I'd spend a whole night coding, then go to work, no problem. Those days are over, though. Now if I stay up all night coding, I have to crash for a couple hours before I start again.
  - sillysaurus 14y ago
    Good point. Thank you for your insight.
- saraid216 14y ago
  The key isn't exercise so much as it's constant, positive activity. Exercise is one of the most reliable and fundamental forms of this, but there are plenty of non-physical ways to do it, too. > And if I can, then you certainly can. Be very stingy with this platitude. It is highly audience-dependent and false for a surprisingly large number of audiences.
philbarr 14y ago
The best advice I ever had was: do something physical, something mental, and something spiritual every day. For the physical, that can be as much as walking the dog at night or taking a brisk walk at lunch. For the mental, you probably already have that covered since you're likely problem solving all day as a developer. For the spiritual, you don't need to be religious, just take a few minutes out every day and either meditate, think about things, or, and this is my personal favourite, self-hypnotise [1]. [1] Since I have eczema I learnt about self-hypnotism from this book: "Skin Deep", http://www.amazon.co.uk/Skin-Deep-Mind-Program-Healthy/dp/0929173112/ref=sr_1_8?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1356044493&sr=1-8 http://www.amazon.co.uk/Skin-Deep-Mind-Program-Healthy/dp/09.... I'm sure there are plenty of others books that probably describe it better. EDIT: P.S. Great blog by the way Michael. I don't agree with everything you say, but it gets me thinking every time.
- napoleond 14y ago
  Along the same lines, a little web app that I've found pretty useful for tracking all of the above (and thus helping to stay motivated) is http://tdp.me http://tdp.me

sillysaurus 14y ago

Additionally, if you are unemployed you must get at least 45 minutes of exercise every day, and spend at least 4-6 hours on something career focused (skill building during the annoying latent periods of job searching) as if you were FT employed. Depression can turn what should be a 21-day gap into 21 weeks. I didn't exercise. I don't regret it. I was unemployed in St Louis for 7 months. It was the most intellectually creative period of my life. I chose to pursue physics of my own accord and with no prior experience. I now have a clear idea of what, precisely, I want my life to be, and close to a six-figure salary. I'm saving up money for at least 6 months while I study very hard in my free time to get high marks on ACT/SAT and (hopefully) earn scholarships to attend a decent undergrad university, with the long-term goal of attending a graduate program at a top university. It's doable with about six years of work, which is no problem at all now that I know who I am and what I want out of life. It's important to realize that it isn't necessarily best to choose to continue to work regardless of what you could be doing with those extra 50 hours per week. More than that, realizing that "choosing to work" is, in fact, a conscious decision rather than a given, is liberating. It has a way of making your life come into focus. Your advice is good. I just wanted to share an alternative viewpoint. It's also important to note that I was incredibly lucky to have the opportunity to not-work without becoming homeless. (On the other hand, it was because I had saved up enough money to do that. And if I can, then you certainly can. Consider it.)

readme 14y ago
>I'm saving up money for at least 6 months while I study very hard in my free time to get high marks on ACT/SAT and (hopefully) earn scholarships to attend a decent undergrad university This tells me you're young. Depression didn't creep in on me due to a sedentary lifestyle at that age either. Our bodies age, and as you get older if you don't exercise or eat a healthy diet (for a very strict definition of healthy) you'll find lethargy creeping in. You'll have a harder time staying up, you'll find your body takes sleep when it craves it. When I was 18, I used to be able to stay up for 2 straight days and it wasn't a big deal. I'd spend a whole night coding, then go to work, no problem. Those days are over, though. Now if I stay up all night coding, I have to crash for a couple hours before I start again.
- sillysaurus 14y ago
  Good point. Thank you for your insight.
saraid216 14y ago
The key isn't exercise so much as it's constant, positive activity. Exercise is one of the most reliable and fundamental forms of this, but there are plenty of non-physical ways to do it, too. > And if I can, then you certainly can. Be very stingy with this platitude. It is highly audience-dependent and false for a surprisingly large number of audiences.

philbarr 14y ago

The best advice I ever had was: do something physical, something mental, and something spiritual every day. For the physical, that can be as much as walking the dog at night or taking a brisk walk at lunch. For the mental, you probably already have that covered since you're likely problem solving all day as a developer. For the spiritual, you don't need to be religious, just take a few minutes out every day and either meditate, think about things, or, and this is my personal favourite, self-hypnotise [1]. [1] Since I have eczema I learnt about self-hypnotism from this book: "Skin Deep", http://www.amazon.co.uk/Skin-Deep-Mind-Program-Healthy/dp/0929173112/ref=sr_1_8?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1356044493&sr=1-8 http://www.amazon.co.uk/Skin-Deep-Mind-Program-Healthy/dp/09.... I'm sure there are plenty of others books that probably describe it better. EDIT: P.S. Great blog by the way Michael. I don't agree with everything you say, but it gets me thinking every time.

napoleond 14y ago
Along the same lines, a little web app that I've found pretty useful for tracking all of the above (and thus helping to stay motivated) is http://tdp.me http://tdp.me