ToPutItBluntly

I have a wife and a couple of kids. I'm maxing out the 401k and two Roth IRAs (one for me, one for wife) and saving $3k/month on top of that in post-tax.

I did relocate from the SF Bay Area to a more affordable place to live. That helped make it easier to save more. But even in the SF Bay Area it was possible to save. But it got harder with a family.

I did get lucky and married a spouse that does tend towards the frugal/less materialistic side. I do think a lot of people are open to change though if you can, over time, align your goals and try to show the big picture.

But to get back to the main point -- the thread poster feels like their back is up against the wall. I agree with the other posters that it isn't quite as dire as the picture painted. But I also agree it's good to hedge against it and if that is important, some sacrifices seem like a small price to pay to not be destitute.

There is a solution for this and it's Early Retirement Extreme. But it's not what you think. Ignore the "Retirement" word and think "Financial Independence" and ERE is a way to get there. The whole idea is you live well below your means and save like crazy. As much as you can percentage-wise. Eventually, you will have saved enough to be able to live off of your savings by at the safe withdrawal rate of 2.5-4% (depending on your conservative/optimistic bent).

The funny thing is the more you save, the better you become at living on less and therefore the less you need to be financially independent. There are all kinds of facets to it so go google.

It does require effort but in our industry, you can do it. Also there are loads of software dev jobs for older people in the midwest.

I'm doing ERE though so I can be financially independent enough to work on my own businesses (I'm bootstrapping one as a side project, already profitable but only 1/40 of way to replacing full time income). Partly due to fear of agism but also due to being sick of the VC startup world and working for big companies. A life of fear gets old. Why not take it by the reigns and exert some control?

For California, that is wrong. You can claim right away if you are fired. The employer can dispute it however they have to prove they tried to rectify the situation. The way the system works, the former employee has to dispute the unemployment rejection if the employer wants to try to claim it was a valid firing. So if you do get fired and there was not a pattern of behavior or something that you were warned about, then you simply appeal, state your case and the judge will almost certainly reject the employers false claim.

Unfortunately, I know this by experience. I was fired for some fishy business and it was obvious at the hearing. So always file for unemployment unless you are certain it will not be granted. Unemployment also qualifies you for health insurance through Covered California.

I had a similar experience with Facebook although I did well until the last one. Then I was just too tired and hadn't practiced enough to do a good job. After the fact, I read more of the interview questions on Glassdoor and wished I'd read them before and practiced those on a whiteboard at home.

So that is what I'll do next time I want to interview at FB. Overall, I really enjoyed the process as an interviewee. I've been on both sides and I'm curious how well the other side is done at FB but I left with a good impression and thought the outcome was fair.

Also bonus points to them for asking real world questions. I was asked about making a web-based text editor and a couple months later, Draft.js came out.

I agree. I struggled with something recently and just decided there is no way to write about it without sounding like a whiner. Best just to move on and let it go. So that is what I'm doing. It sucks. Sometimes things just don't work out. But that is life.

In the end, I often think these kinds of things, if channeled correctly, have have a positive impact. But one has to be open to stepping back and being honestly and thoughtfully critical of everyones actions including your own.

Although I'd really like to read some examples of companies being called out without anger and with a professional tone (not doubting, just open to links if you have them).

How did you last 26 months with that? Life is way too short for those kind of games. Congratulations on getting out.

But it depends what you want. VC-backed startup and all the BS that comes with funding for about 11 years? Or bootstrap a relatively profitable business that wouldn't interest VCs but can keep a couple of employees well paid for near lifetime?

Every single manager I have had in the SF Bay Area is at least one position up from where they would be anywhere else in the country. This area has a reputation for being the best place to start a career. Well it also should have the reputation for being the best place to jump into management.

Unfortunately, all of these managers also got in through networking not demonstrated ability. So to the person that wants to jump into management, you need to focus much more on networking and less on applying to open positions.

If you can't get in through networking, you need to put in the long slog to get in through working at the same employer (and likely suffering on the pay front until you make it into management and have enough experience there to jump).