

Ask HN: What career advice would you give your younger self? - dbtc

What were your biggest wastes of time? What do you wish you spent more time on?
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jasonkester
Prioritize increasing your bill rate over saving money.

Savings are good, and compound interest is quite a thing to behold. But it's
worth keeping in mind that you can put yourself in a position such that 40
year old you is pulling in over 10X what 25 year old you was. So beyond a
certain point, killing yourself to sock away an extra few grand a year might
not be the best plan.

Get a good six figure cushion socked away in your 20s so that you know you
won't starve if the market goes south, and so that you can skip off on a year
long round-the-world trip when the mood strikes. But after that, don't feel so
bad about slacking off a bit. Go actually _take_ that long trip (a few times).
Just make sure you're always taking every opportunity you can find to bump up
that bill rate.

Then take that new rate and double your lifetime savings in a single year at
some point in your 40s.

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bowlich
The advise that more experienced coders gave me at the time that I didn't
listen to, and would probably not listen to even if my older self told me:
You're better at this then you think you are, stop selling yourself short.

I think I've spent the first five years of my career drastically underselling
myself imagining that everyone else is some epic programmer whose class
interfaces spring fully formed from their fingertips when really a large
number of the people who "talk the talk" turned out to be just full of a lot
of air.

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xpto123
Try to become a freelance or a customer employee as soon as possible, being an
employee for an intermediary company is mostly a dead end.

If someone assigns you to a project you really don't want to do, its better to
search for a new opportunity sooner rather than later. When you want to go
back to what you really want to do, you will have to answer a lot of questions
about why you haven't been doing it lately.

Being assigned to the wrong projects early in ones career can effectively kill
it or turn it a way you don't want it to go, so beware of that.

Try different jobs early in your career, stay at most two years early on.
Growth is very much improved by seeing different projects, different teams.

Corporate training is usually limited and imposed by law, invest on your own
training. Technical PDF books are affordable as well as many certifications.
Take them in your own free time and don't wait for the company to pay/approve
them.

Try to build something you like in your free time, learning is a continuous
process and not something that you do once when you where 20.

~~~
mrfusion
Wow great advice. I've noticed lately that most jobs out there are from
intermediaries hiring and they often are really aggressive on getting salaries
down with little wiggle room.

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JSeymourATL
I might lead with an interrogative, how are you preparing yourself for
professional & personal growth? What are you reading? Who are your coaches?

On advice, cut-out the mindless web surfing & TV. Cut back on the drinking,
get outside, enjoy nature more.

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cscharenberg
Spend more time getting and staying fit. Beyond functioning better, it really
does change how people treat you and think of you.

Realize that business and political acumen is a learnable skill: read the
classic business/interpersonal books like Crucial Conversations, 7 Habits of
Highly Effective People, and others. Most business books are pure fluff, but
there are truly great works out there.

You will probably stay at your first job too long. It feels safe and has some
nice benefits, but you won't really grow unless you experience different
workplaces.

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partisan
Stop worrying about work. It will make you physically sick.

Also, stop playing those video games. Start doing stuff instead of reading and
talking about it.

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mc_hammer
easy one: dont work so hard, its not a wise way to spend your youth anyway.
also try to get big enough time frames to actually finish the project,
estimates can be off by 400% all the time. dont ask for more money ask for
understanding on a some days i cant make it in and some im late. work for big
name companies, getting future jobs will be easier. never flake, having one
job on ur resume where u cant use them as a reference really sucks. date
chicks at work but not the hottest 2 they wont put out.

~~~
dorfuss
Sorry for asking, but I don't understand the way you used the work "flake".
Could you please explain? English is not my first language.

~~~
mc_hammer
flake means fail or act like a child/being irresponsible

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easyfree37
"I'm young. I'm healthy. Why do I need a job for?" -Raising Arizona. But for
real. Get training to get a tech job in the medical field.

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josephschmoe
Apply to jobs in other cities.

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analogmind
When you have too much advice, it sounds like you have regret. That's terrible

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MalcolmDiggs
Don't work so damn much; enjoy your youth.

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