The Wall Street Journal recently published their 2010 survey findings on the best and worst careers, based around factors like income, outlook, environment, etc. As usual, software engineering ranks near the top of the field, though, for the rest of this post to make sense, you’d have to ignore “Web Developer” at #15 -I’m guessing HTML monkeys – and whatever the hell “Computer Programmer” is down at #34.
Now that I think about it, I’ve been pretty lucky to pick a career that seems to have an insatiable demand for a work force, in a place that not only fosters talented software people but also encourages entrepreneurship. That is, there’s always someone with an idea with a need for an engineer for implementation; the demand drives up wages and perks, with an unfortunate downside in jacking up living costs and, well, Californian taxes. The net result is that a “high-tech” job here in the Bay Area pays 60% more than one elsewhere, with cost of living expenses to match.
Oh boy. I feel another productivity rant coming on. Reader beware.
It’s pretty hard to be productive – trying to maximize the amount of work done in a minimal amount of time requires serious discipline, process, and fairly in-depth knowledge of all the moving parts (including, in a lot of cases, people). Though, there is a sweet solace which comes from the extra time saved and accompanying relaxation.
So why don’t more people try it?
Back when I was in school, Cal’s College of Letters and Science just started a so-called interdisciplinary studies major – a way to become well-versed in multiple areas of study, to prepare for a world where a single skillset was insufficient, a dabbler of many and a master of none.
Always seemed like a lame way to eek out a degree from Berkeley.
At least they got the idea right, in that there is usually a need for someone who can work in multiple areas, though it may not be immediately obvious. Your typical website or webapp requires a few dedicated individuals to build:
One of the points our ergonomic consultant made was to prefer keyboard to mouse use. Apparently, our hands and wrists are worse off with gliding motions than with stationary typing, and in most setups the device sits on a flat surface we have to reach for. The combination makes for quick carpal tunnel; laptop trackpads aren’t much better from their cramped positions, and they’re a pain to use.
Then there’s the obvious advantage of efficiency with keyboard shortcuts – they’re faster to input, and they keep your hands in the same position for additional typing. Mousing requires precious seconds of hand-eye coordination to hunt down the right pixels to click, and commits the entire hand to its usage. No wonder high-end mice are evolving to include more and more buttons to access common functions with simple tactile buttons.
There’s got to be a rule in the Corporate Handbook for Dummies (TM) which advises that a passerby with no stake in the company’s well-being is better suited to architect its systems than its own employees. Strange custom, woefully true.
Consulting is a pretty lucrative gig in the software industry. Ridiculous hourly rates, architectural design, and flexible work periods are nice perks, but consulting avoids in the hardest part of writing software: the continual maintenance and enhancement of existing code. And really, consulting is the pre-med of the job world; it sounds impressive until you realize the qualifications for entry are essentially zilch.
This post is about two weeks overdue.
The news – kinda old at this point – is that I’m no longer working at Factset Research Systems and have exchanged working for the finance bean-counting man to working for the social network web startup man. I’ve labored at Factset for 3 1/2 years, so while I certainly didn’t approach the decision lightly, the gravity of the entire ordeal did not dawn on me until the last moments of my old job, in between responsibility transferral and fond farewells. I’m only now starting to realize just how much I left behind.
There’s not much more to say about my previous job; any commentary I make now makes nary a difference and would simply be whining at a scenario I’m powerless to affect.
