Hacker News Reader

Comment by thaumaturgy | Hacker News Reader

I wrote a long and convincing reply about how you have to also know what you want in the future, and whether you want to have a happy and stable life or whether you want to seek some other kind of fulfillment...

...and then as I was about to post it, I realized that the people it would be intended for would already know everything in it, because it's part of their nature, and that it wouldn't do anybody else any good.

So maybe there's an even simpler rule here: if you have a fun job, and you're not sure whether or not you should trade up to a less fun job, then you probably shouldn't let anyone talk you into leaving it.

If it's right for you to give up a good job, you'll know it.

View on HN

"If it's right for you to give up a good job, you'll know it."

I thought I knew, but it turns out the flexibility (hours, teleworking) I had in $previous_gig was something I took for granted.

I enjoy the work I do now, but it can be stressful trying to code in an open plan office which also hosts other business concerns (communications, NOC...)

edit People I work with read HN. Hello there. You know my feelings already ;)

Well, you don't leave a fun job because the next job is better in every way. :-)

There are always tradeoffs. You just want to make sure they're trade-ups, too.

It occurs to me that there's a perfect analogy for this: the one red paperclip dude (http://oneredpaperclip.blogspot.com/). He wanted a house, and was willing to keep trading up for it -- even when he had to trade on some pretty great opportunities, things that other people would be willing to trade for and be happy with. And, in the end, he got his house, and he stopped -- that was what he wanted, and he didn't need to trade any further.

Your current job might not be an afternoon with Alice Cooper, but maybe it's one KISS snow globe away from getting you that house you want.

"I enjoy the work I do now, but it can be stressful trying to code in an open plan office which also hosts other business concerns (communications, NOC...)"

Intra-Ear headphones. Especially with noise cancelling. They do wonders.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com