Ask HN: Outdoors career options for ex-engineers? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: Outdoors career options for ex-engineers?

7 pointsgodot7 comments

I've been a software engineer or tech entrepreneur for a decade and a half. My migraine problems have gotten to a point where I feel like I'm using too much medication for my own good. A lot of its causes seem almost unavoidable due to screen uses, for my job.

What are alternative career options for someone like me?

- almost no experience with anything outside of software engineering and a little bit of teaching

- physically quite weak (5'8", 120 lbs) and can't lift very much, also approaching 40 years old

- outdoors or at least anything that doesn't involve looking at a screen, even if indoors

- have a 3 year old at home so jobs that require traveling very much is not really an option

I know it's probably unrealistic to find an alternative job that pays nearly as much as a software dev, but what are any options at all?

View on HN

Outside the scope of this but a single massive megadose of acid took my migraines down from something that once took a shot of sumatripan 2x monthly to something I could treat with a pill or sleep off.

More regular microdoses(10-25ug) over a 3mo span removed them completely and the most I can say I've had since then (4-5yrs) are a few cluster headaches.

Michael Pollan's book How to Change Your Mind might assuage any concerns you might have.

Work-wise, education might be a wise move. Alternatively, sales or hr. Agricultural tech or regulation and compliance.

Low-pay and traditionally stressful but for a former IT guy its a p low grade of stress and depending on your district it could come with some worthwhile benefits - esp w a young child nearing school age(w increasin

I've heard of similar benefits with psilocybin.

The only thing I can think right off the bat is painting (It's labor intensive but not as much as carpentry and concrete).

Do you know anything about city codes and stuff, most city right now are looking for inspectors, You would be going places in your city usually, even though you go out to people who already see you as a detriment, I can tell you from first hand experience in working with construction, you will get less shit than working a help desk though, most of the city planning/zoning are so desperate too there willing to train (At least in the US Southwest, Good Pay too)...

I've often thought that being an electrical lineworker, or similar roles installing fiber, mobile base stations would be good.

I had a long chat with a Verizon employee installing fiber in upstate New York last year, and it sounded pretty great to me - some technical, troubleshooting aspects, but mainly out in the field working alone or in a small team, no office politics, and minimal interaction with customers.

Find a community college with a diesel program, then do heavy equipment diesel work. Get a truck and MSHA part 48 papers and live the life.

Curious, what specific jobs does this kind of program actually end in?

Have you tried using a project instead of a screen?

Working for the parks or natural resources department might be good.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com