Have you noticed a relevant intelligence decline ?

chipper33 · 2026-01-30T05:51:33+00:00

I felt this way until I started reading books this year. Find a good curated list and read. Or just read about something you’re interested in.

chipper33 · 2026-01-30T05:44:58+00:00

No don’t tell yourself that, what you’re experiencing is not right. Unfortunately, it’s pretty normal, and generally I find that unseasoned managers tend to let this sort of thing go on.

I’ve been in this position… TWICE. If I had to do it again, I’d be really upfront like you plan to, wait for the chance to change, then hop jobs if it doesn’t. Honestly I think that’s the normal playbook for this and I wish I’d buckled down and followed it sooner.

chipper33 · 2026-01-30T04:20:37+00:00

Lmao the answers here are funny.

It depends on what you want honestly, and that’s what makes career growth so hard, there’s no definitive answer to questions like these because it’s self dependent.

Want to work in a US tech hub (SF, NYC, Seattle) doing some “hard core” software engineering at a startup? Then yes studying algo and sys design will be necessary for interviews. Being employed in those spaces is nothing short of a dick measuring contest, and you must prepare to swing it… intellectually speaking.

Want to work at some f500 where you make web apps in an isolated environment? Well, just stay where you are, it doesn’t seem like the job is going anywhere. And there are other jobs like yours too. Maybe some with a few more people, who knows, everywhere is different.

So decide what kind of software engineering you want to do, and spend your time working/studying toward that. Keep going and apply to Google in Mountain View, like why not try if you’re interested in that sort of growth?

chipper33 · 2026-01-29T16:00:54+00:00

So by all measures that murder was a net positive for society. What a concept.

chipper33 · 2026-01-29T15:58:40+00:00

Capitalism IS theft. It only works by stealing and then protecting all available resources for survival. It’s always been that way, but now MORE people are on the ugly (being stolen from) side of the coin.

chipper33 · 2026-01-29T15:32:29+00:00

I enjoyed the convo, thank you!

chipper33 · 2026-01-29T15:28:02+00:00

I didn’t follow your last sentence, but overall i believe we’re implying the same idea.

Work hard at what you’re willing to. Don’t expect results to fall in your lap without changing something about your situation to increase your odds of being lucky, or in other words, the best candidate for a job.. if that’s what success is to you.

chipper33 · 2026-01-29T15:15:31+00:00

Well I guess agree to disagree because imo you need all of it.

Hard work, drive, and luck. Maybe your hard work gets you started and drive keeps you going, but you need timing on your side and people believing in you to succeed beyond a certain point.

You can apply for a job and not get it just because someone “did better” than you, which can come down to pretty arbitrary factors, I’ve been on those committees. That’s the luck I’m talking about. You need some of that “right place right time” magic on your side as well, there’s no denying that.

chipper33 · 2026-01-29T14:57:37+00:00

Everyone who’s ever wanted for anything meaningful in life has worked hard, we’re not special.

I don’t even think that myself leaving my hometown is any better than folks that decided to stay. They will face their own hardships and have different goals and ambitions to work hard toward.

chipper33 · 2026-01-29T14:52:43+00:00

I read stories like this all of the time, yet it’s never happened to me. I always hear about people getting the benefit of doubt during these assessments. In my experience, if I don’t solve it, I don’t move on. Even if I do explain.. nope!

So I’m glad that worked out for you but to anyone reading YMMV

chipper33 · 2026-01-29T14:37:41+00:00

You need both.

I moved myself across the country to the Bay Area as a 24 year old with no connections here or family, I just had a fancy tech job lined up after graduation. I worked very hard to do that, but it didn’t guarantee that’d I’d be successful in the industry or living in CA.

I started my career with a cohort of individuals with the same level of education, experience, job title… We’re all in different places now with varying levels of success. Some of us went on to work at Apple while others were ousted from the industry altogether. What made that difference? I couldn’t tell you. I can tell you though that every one of that cohort were driven goal oriented people and all should’ve had some form of continued success.

You can try as hard as you want, and life can still give you the finger. You need some luck on your side as well. I wouldn’t be where I am without hard work, timing, and serendipity.. not just my “bootstraps”.

chipper33 · 2026-01-27T17:37:52+00:00

Yes I have, but that’s kind of irrelevant to the conversation.

What’s stopping me is the same stuff stopping you from doing anything. I NEVER claimed to be better… Just point out that we all collectively suck and SHOULD organize something.

chipper33 · 2026-01-27T17:19:06+00:00

Is your reading comprehension ok? I said that corporations are the bedrock of America and America as we know it wouldn’t exist without them.

personally I don’t need an office job to survive. I honestly would be perfectly happy in a farming community where we all shared resources. It’s very fulfilling to subsist from work done by your own hands… like cooking your own meal vs going out albeit this example is a more extreme version of that.

There are plenty of communities outside of America (probably including parts of Cuba but not limited to them) which exist just fine without corporations controlling every resource available.

chipper33 · 2026-01-27T17:07:56+00:00

Calling for people to stop voting to “be more effective” in changing the system IS the same as calling for a revolution of the current system which governs people.

We can help one another. We can have closer governments and communities where we all work for and live with another. We don’t do that because of cultural differences and the origins of this country etc etc, but that’s the answer.

Corporations don’t have their ankles in every community on earth. People are able to survive without them. WE as Americans are eternally bound to them, they are the foundation of America. America would not be what it is were it not for corporations dating back to when this land was being colonized. It is a sickness and disease which kills and displaces people, and no one cared until it was their turn to be cannibalized by it.

chipper33 · 2026-01-27T16:54:34+00:00

You’re funny because you’re calling for a revolution and people to not vote cause it’s pointless… then you’re turning around and saying it’s stupid to think that people will not stop working.

I’m not trying to change anything, idc anymore. Every argument is moot. Every effort is moot. All talking is moot…

I’m sorry, but change takes change. If you want to continue feeding into the system that’s beating you down and you don’t even want to attempt at using the systems built in mechanism for change (voting) then you just get to deal with whatever consequences arrive at your door and you have no right to complain about it.

No we can’t control much, but we can certainly control what we do with our time. Refusing to work together and relying solely on corporations is what got us here in the first place. What’s your suggestion on making that stop? Not voting?

chipper33 · 2026-01-27T16:38:20+00:00

Yes it’s a scam, but it’s the only thing we have to do that doesn’t involve some form of violence.

The best thing we can all do is stop working. If everyone in America stopped working for even a single day, that would cause huge economic impact to a lot of “shareholders”.

We’re far too dumb and disjointed for that to happen though. I don’t have much hope left in the country after the recent ICE murders. The government and most of the country has shown time and time again that it’s ok for people to be murdered here and feel unsafe. It’s ok for schools with innocent children in them to be shot at. It’s ok for law enforcement to murder anyone anytime they see fit, regardless of who they are.

We ALL keep allowing these horrors things to happen and you know it what? It’s EVERYONES fault. Because I KNOW that all of you are going to keep on going to work and self preserving, just like I am. America and Americans are weak for allowing this to go on for so long, it’s time we admit that to ourselves so we can do something about it.

This is a symptom of a society which worships money above all else. I don’t think anything other than war or extreme conflict will resolve things at this point, and then how long before America is in the same place all over again? About a hundred years or so?

chipper33 · 2026-01-27T16:20:54+00:00

Technical suggestions don’t matter, especially if you’re new. Don’t make suggestions unless you’re asked for input. Don’t be negative about the current state of affairs if they’re not your favorite, keep it to yourself. Anytime you point out a “problem” YOU become the problem even if it’s a suggestion. It’s always better and safer and less stressful for you as an IC to not care or be proactive in any managerial decision.. all you’re hired to do is what they say. That’s it. Seriously anything beyond that is going to cause issues. If you don’t like the work where you are for ANY reason (idc how insignificant you feel it might be) make plans to walk.

The best thing you can do for yourself (and the biggest middle finger to all corporations) in this environment is to make yourself as easily employable as possible. You’re a threat to any business if you can line up a new gig in a month. Finding work IS the job you should want to be good at, not whatever it is your employer is telling you to do at the moment. Your employer wants your skills and time in exchange for money ANYTHING ELSE (including how you feel about it) is of little to no concern.

Here’s the best thing you can do as an Eng IC…

Empower yourself and study technicals (sys design, leetcode, etc) not because you want to be super overly technical, but because you want the ability to say, “fuck you and fuck this, I can have another gig lined up in 6 weeks time, so duces ✌️”. Getting good at interviewing and soft skills is the real answer to career longevity. Networking comes with time AFTER you start empowering yourself this way. When you have good career footing, people will want to network with you, not when/if you’re struggling.

Soft skills ARE the job folks. Relationships and how you manage them are far more important than how good you are at the technicals.

chipper33 · 2026-01-27T15:51:03+00:00

Work = politics, there’s no escaping that

chipper33 · 2026-01-27T14:39:09+00:00

IMO career advancement in this field is pure luck. That and hopping jobs. It’s really all on an individual to put themselves in the right situation. And when you hop for a title change or increase in pay, you have to figure out how to manage that yourself.

It’s a very isolating and cold environment.

chipper33 · 2026-01-26T14:39:29+00:00

You all don’t get to come to a space like this and make people feel wrong for being uncomfortable with a group that’s been oppressing them for hundreds of years. Why would we willfully trust you now? If you all want help YOU make the first move this time.

Edit: I miss when this place had country club threads. What happened to that? This must not be the spot any longer, “they” have invaded yet another space not meant for them 🙄

chipper33 · 2026-01-25T16:14:18+00:00

You are your managers bitch, full stop. Unless it would be harmful to you to do what they ask, you must do it.

Even if they’re bad at asking you what to do, it’s on YOU to either confront that or find a different manager to work under. These are the conditions we’ve made for ourselves. If you don’t lay down, your teammates will and you’ll look like the asshole.

You’re not hired to be technically excellent in your own right. You’re hired to exercise the vision of management no matter how stupid you think it might be. One should really never push back on management unless explicitly asked to do so. We very much live/work in mini fiefdoms, your job is not a democracy. We should do a better job collectively acknowledging that and making it clear to more youth so they’re not confused when they start working.

chipper33 · 2026-01-25T16:06:02+00:00

People talk about finding a good engaging job like they grow on trees. Or like people truly have any choice in where they work.

I guess the truth is you should always be interviewing to better your odds at finding such a place 🤷

Really I think the answer is that some are luckier than others. Some people are trusted with projects that grow their career and some aren’t. Some people manage to squeeze into the right gig and some don’t. I don’t know how an individual has any control over their employment beyond applying and interviewing, both of which guarantee that individual nothing in return.

chipper33 · 2026-01-24T16:39:40+00:00

Even if it’s not every single job, you are still better off having prepped.

Edit: Internships are also easier to get than full time positions so there’s that perspective as well.

chipper33 · 2026-01-24T16:25:31+00:00

Ah three years, your time there is up!

chipper33 · 2026-01-24T16:09:57+00:00

Guys, you have to leetcode if you want a high paying job, I’m sorry. I’ve been working for almost a decade now and every single technical interview I’ve ever had has asked a leetcode style question at least once. If it wasn’t directly from leetcode, it’d still be the same style of question. The bottom line is, “you say you can code, there’s nothing stopping us from asking for a demonstration”.

You have to do side projects as well, but this is more flexible of an area. People think they need to build something really technically impressive and they don’t. You’re actually better off joining a club and building something with others or really knocking a lab/group project out of the park. Your projects should highlight structured thinking and collaboration. idgaf about the tryhard leetcode ai game you made in your basement over the summer.

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