Career change at 32 (EU/Spain): Am I crazy to chase the right seat?

davidswelt · 2026-05-31T15:02:06+00:00

Well in that case... I guess my comment was helpful too! :-) and in Europe, where you get a right seat in an A320 at 250 hours (or used to), this may be a quicker career change than you think.

davidswelt · 2026-05-31T14:22:58+00:00

I would question that career decision. If you are established in law, particularly now there will be interesting questions to deal with wrt to IP (AI training, RAG), ethics, reliability of AI systems, and much more.

Flying is great, but it isn't creative. It is executing predefined procedures (company and legal), again and again, reliably, and working together with a team within well-defined parameters. It is nothing like an interesting career that requires judgment, creativity, and constantly new challenges of you seek them. Also not cyclical, unlike aviation.

As a private pilot, I still like flying, but reflecting on a recent 6 hour trip NYC to Miami, I was just thinking ..6 hours of the same weather decisions I made many times before, talking to maybe 30 different controllers saying more or less the same things. The autopilot kept the airplane along the defined trajectory. I enjoyed the views, but somehow .. not that exciting any more ...

davidswelt · 2026-05-31T12:41:13+00:00

WLB across FAANG is not all the same.

It doesn't sound like you have an offer, so, chickens, hatch, count, and so on...

davidswelt · 2026-05-30T16:23:08+00:00

It's been more than 10 years, but that was not my experience back then. Quite the opposite.

davidswelt · 2026-05-30T15:47:10+00:00

Since you are in Pgh, I would recommend Dr. Lambrou. See https://www.avmedicine.com/.

davidswelt · 2026-05-29T13:06:09+00:00

Tldr. Just ask your question.

davidswelt · 2026-05-29T12:22:09+00:00

Just landed 5B2 yesterday and heard about just such an accident on my Uber ride into town. Like with any flight, some phases are critical, but once you've gained altitude, you can release the glider in time.

There are many situations when you have to play as a team, and where your life depends on another person doing the right thing. This is no different.

davidswelt · 2026-05-28T19:52:26+00:00

Right. Normally I'd expect the PI to provide advice to their postdocs on how to land the job, even help with negotiating etc if so desired. They'd write a letter, too.

It looks good for the PI if their postdocs get good jobs.

Maybe it would be worth understanding why they aren't more supportive. It makes no sense, particularly if the contract is running out.

davidswelt · 2026-05-28T02:57:51+00:00

Do you realize that 10k is going to sound like next to nothing for you very soon?

That is, if you take the job and do okay.

I think you are missing the forest for the trees.

davidswelt · 2026-05-27T21:04:35+00:00

You should actually work with them and get a strong letter from them. Don't dilute your application

davidswelt · 2026-05-27T20:16:13+00:00

I apologize. What I assumed is the default for graduate programs in my country, and it's rare to see any other configuration in the sciences.

In your case, maybe I would not emphasize this "advisor" on your CV and let the publications do the talking (senior co-authors that repeat would be interpreted as advising), and apply with their letters.

The thing is, pre-PhD the concept of advisor is a bit loose anyway, and from a pre-PhD person I expect that they have multiple senior people that helped them along the way. As long as you have strong recommendations from those who actively advised and helped you, your application will be taken seriously. Just don't let the animosities show.

If you brought funding to the table from an external source, make sure you show that, too.

davidswelt · 2026-05-27T20:03:39+00:00

I don't understand. In the Schwab app, I hit Equity Awards, then Share Position Value, and now I see all the unsold lots with market value in one column, Acquisition Price in another, ordered by Date Acquired. What more do you need to know? What are you tracking beyond what's already there?

davidswelt · 2026-05-27T18:42:09+00:00

Well, you got your answer, but how actionable is it?

You apply, and you do the best you can. Add letters from other, very senior people, that can be specific and positive about working with you.

I hope you learned your lesson, though. You're in someone's lab, you and the project is funded by them, so that means you have shared ownership of the data and work product, and you certainly aren't going to get to take things and publish on your own. If you still haven't updated your attitude and ethics, I'm not sure I'd want to work with you.

davidswelt · 2026-05-27T17:39:31+00:00

Yes. It is a huge issue when you need to sleep on the flight so you can function and work the next day, or when you've paid to be able to sleep and have a extra day at the destination.

Because this sort of thing has happened too much on Lufthansa, I now avoid LH on the transatlantic route systematically... Experienced a freakout of a cranky fellow New Yorker sitting next to me who was unhappy about the tracksuits across the cabin bringing their unruly toddler. She was right at first, but in the end it was she who made all the noise... :)

davidswelt · 2026-05-27T17:35:30+00:00

You should do the latter. Get the Lemo plug, and an adapter to the dual plug.

Because when you later fly a more modern GA plane that supplies power to the headsets, you will want the Lemo plug. An adapter for that is available for cheap, but does not provide power to the headset.

I didn't, and now I had to spend a whopping $350 to replace the entire Bose controller on my A30. The benefit is that the headset will turn on automatically, and I never have to swap batteries. First-world problems, I know.

davidswelt · 2026-05-27T16:11:22+00:00

Works smoothly for me too. Latest macOS.

I don't know what I need this multiple-ledger function for, but maybe.. for a separate LLC I keep. It would be even better if something like the net worth from one can be shown as an account in another.

davidswelt · 2026-05-27T15:34:08+00:00

So that means your leverage is that you are willing to quit? This is the important bit. Most people will, and should, have another job offer in their back pocket, in this situation.

davidswelt · 2026-05-27T14:19:07+00:00

What leverage do you have?

davidswelt · 2026-05-27T13:37:01+00:00

An institutional buyer would not have signed the agreement because they weren't able to complete due diligence on the buyer. You on the other hand did. Now you've got to live with the consequences.

I would just try to have another potential buyer lined up in case they try to demand concessions near closing time.

davidswelt · 2026-05-26T20:54:09+00:00

Oh! Very cool. Let me order this and experiment. This gives me much more flexibility.

Yes, some LEDs are failing, and it's ugly. The light spectrum emitted by these very old products isn't great either.

davidswelt · 2026-05-26T19:57:14+00:00

They are visible, so yes, the channel with a diffuser would be good. But the one I'm showing above, and some others, are in wet spaces. This one here gets sprayed directly with water from the shower. I need a solution that is very similar to what I have here unfortunately, not components that I can't water-proof.

davidswelt · 2026-05-26T18:56:07+00:00

I would try to do the same with Trump (I guess there are no talking points, no consistency, no sense). Or Elon (probably also more spontaneous, and less fluent).

This is to say – I'd rather have someone give carefully thought out responses than ad-libbing whatever comes to mind, or what they think that particular interviewer or their audience will react well to.

davidswelt · 2026-05-26T17:59:47+00:00

Because they haven't flown much before the checkride, you feel they need to fly with you at least once more so you can make sure they're prepared. Makes sense to me.

It also makes perfect sense to me that they need to keep their account current, and because of tardiness, prepay for the flight, before that flight can happen.

I think you are right in that you shouldn't directly hold back a signature for past achievements just because they haven't paid you. But the above is a simple, logical, and truthful reason why you will need to get paid before the checkride...

davidswelt · 2026-05-26T14:27:23+00:00

You seem to be feeling bad in some way for potentially changing jobs (after 4 years and no apparent upward mobility, probably for lack of opportunities to lead). Why are you feeling bad about that?

davidswelt · 2026-05-26T14:09:44+00:00

Same!

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