I knew i made the right decision to leave the corporate-dilbert-like world when asked by a coworker : "why are you leaving this job, now you'll have to learn many new things".
Defense rests :)
I'm planning my escape in great detail, like a prison inmate who has been wrongly convicted and sentenced to life in a cubicle. I already made it out a few times before but was recaptured. Armed with my greater yearning and experience I'm determined to make it out for good. Even if it does take another 20 attempts, I will willingly bloody myself on the corporate barbed wire fence that confines me. One day I will escape and spend my time roaming in the open green grass of fulfilling hard work, intellectual curiosity, and irreverent exploration. Oh yes, I will be free.
Here's to the crazy ones.
The misfits.
The rebels.
The troublemakers.
The round pegs in the square holes.
The ones who see things differently.
They're not fond of rules.
And they have no respect for the status quo.
You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them.
About the only thing you can't do is ignore them.
Because they change things.
They push the human race forward.
And while some see them as the crazy ones,
We see genius.
Because the people who are crazy enough to think
they can change the world,
Are the ones who do.
I quit too, I feel like being on the beach with my surf before a 10 feet swell: with so much people looking at me, I can't go back to the car without even trying, but that's scary.
I did brutally quit too, a few months ago, for the same reason. But I had no money, so I had to take another job. Anyway, I don't regret it and I'll probably do it again, this time with more preparation :)
Hehe, me too. Feels scary at times, esp since I don't have another job. But I can't put up with 9-5 jobs anymore. I switched off my mobile to avoid getting harassed by another company that wants me to work for them.
when you think about it its just a trade or investment. I have some money to survive a few months and i'll trade it for interesting work and a "quasi-slim" shot at financial independence. When/if i run out i will have to go back to pointless meetings so its a pretty big motivator and that can not be bad :)
Although different this reminds me of those (even those close to you) that voice their thoughts that working on a startup and not working a 9-5 job is less respectful. I file these under the "Wh-what?" replies.
I had a slightly different problem - once I left and made the odd appearance in casual clothes, for some reason it was assumed I had become a highly paid consultant of some kind, living "the life" and that I "had all the luck".
I think, deep down, people know they have the ability to do anything they want, but they are scared to let the thought even bubble up through their subconscious. Either that or they're damn lazy. Its cool, but I resent the whole "luck" thing.. the more I work hard, the more I realise hard work is the only way to succeed.
Hard work will get you to a certain point - look at doctors, laywers, people like that. They work hard, and they take home pretty good pay. They're never going to get youtube or skype amounts of money though.
I think the startup world is more random, though, and hard work only gets you in a position to take advantage of opportunities, as someone mentioned elsewhere regarding "The Black Swan".
I never understood this. Apparently working a 9-5 working on someone else's problem and not pursuing your interests is considered the pinnacle of the human experience. Who knew.
Trying to get enough money together to live for a year or so first, but towards the end of each week I get more and more tempted to hand in my resignation.
left my job at microsoft today to focus on my startup. leaving feels like i just took a huge dump.
i learned a lot there. but their approach seemed to be: throw more people and money at the problem. (please see "mythical man month".) whereas at the startup, its all my code and it mostly fits in my head.
It really depends on your ability to time manage and keep focus. I know i can not do it. Its much easier for me to work for 16h and sleep till i am rested and then work some more than to follow strict schedule. Focusing on two projects (one being interesting and the other usually dull) is also very hard. There is also commute time ...
i am not sjure about 20+ hour spurts unless you include the most valuable time for coding: doing something away from any computer.. coding in you head. I think pg has written about it not too long ago.
For me, this coding in your head continues and gets re-forumlated, stored as pseudocode in my head until i can write down the full the implementation in one step.
This way i sometimes come to 48h+ of work (including dreaming of code;-) which is just 10percent pysical hacking at a keyboard.
/Toni
Now for the issue of H1-B. I think the government should increase H1-B visas because it seems to me that most Americans loathe the idea of working in a cubicle and getting steady cheque with health benefits and stock options. If that is the case, why don't give your day jobs to people who need them the most?
There are thousands (or more) people that might envy at your day job.
I think US government should be aware of this situation. The reason why hi-tech companies need more human resources is because:
1) People don't major in CS anymore
2) People loathe the idea of working 9-5 for the man.
"Some people just like to do whatever they please."
Technically, entrepreneurs can't do whatever they please either. They have to do what their customers say.
That's perhaps a good test for whether you'll make a good founder: how do you react when asked to do something by a customer, vs. how do you react when asked to do something by your boss? If you jump to attention for the customer but blow off the boss, you'll probably do fine. If you jump to attention for the boss but blow off the customer (far more people do this than you'd think), you're better off as an employee. If you won't do anything for anyone, you have a very difficult life ahead of you.
