Is this a career killer?
-
I’d like opinions here. I’m considering resigning from my current programming position and taking about 5 years off to take care of my kid during the day (my wife would work full time). I’m in my early 40’s and I have ~6 years of solid VB6 and C# experience. Now, I know I could and will spend 20+ hours per week keeping my skills sharp and current, but I fear that when I re-enter the workforce (in Northern California) I’ll find that no employer will be interested in me. Has anyone experienced this? Any thoughts? David
-
I’d like opinions here. I’m considering resigning from my current programming position and taking about 5 years off to take care of my kid during the day (my wife would work full time). I’m in my early 40’s and I have ~6 years of solid VB6 and C# experience. Now, I know I could and will spend 20+ hours per week keeping my skills sharp and current, but I fear that when I re-enter the workforce (in Northern California) I’ll find that no employer will be interested in me. Has anyone experienced this? Any thoughts? David
Depends how you spend the time. If you spend it building a truly impressive app, staying ahead of the curve in terms of developments like .NET releases, XML languages, etc. then I'd say you're home free. If you spend it writing little websites for friends, then you're screwed. Christian I have several lifelong friends that are New Yorkers but I have always gravitated toward the weirdo's. - Richard Stringer
-
I’d like opinions here. I’m considering resigning from my current programming position and taking about 5 years off to take care of my kid during the day (my wife would work full time). I’m in my early 40’s and I have ~6 years of solid VB6 and C# experience. Now, I know I could and will spend 20+ hours per week keeping my skills sharp and current, but I fear that when I re-enter the workforce (in Northern California) I’ll find that no employer will be interested in me. Has anyone experienced this? Any thoughts? David
Yeah, I've been there. I got laid off in '92 and have been looking for real work ever since. No one would talk to me because my experience was too old. But I just got a job that is more or less in my field, and I'm loving it. I think it's a fluke that I found this one, or a prayer answered, but if it can happen once, it can happen again. I know the prospects are grim, but given the choice between staying home to take care of my kid or sticking with my career, I'd choose the kid anytime and take my chances. Tonight I'm babysitting a 9-year old little girl I've known since she was 1; she's asleep now, but in the morning we're going out in search of Easter Eggs. Maybe we'll run over the rabbit while we're out. I wouldn't trade this weekend for any job. "If it's Snowbird season, why can't we shoot them?" - Overheard in a bar in Bullhead City
-
I’d like opinions here. I’m considering resigning from my current programming position and taking about 5 years off to take care of my kid during the day (my wife would work full time). I’m in my early 40’s and I have ~6 years of solid VB6 and C# experience. Now, I know I could and will spend 20+ hours per week keeping my skills sharp and current, but I fear that when I re-enter the workforce (in Northern California) I’ll find that no employer will be interested in me. Has anyone experienced this? Any thoughts? David
My suggestion would be to find several high-profile open source applications and contribute. Projects like nUnit and nAnt are very visible amongst active c# developers, and having your name as a regular contributor is bound to be noticeable. This might also help when you need job references.
-
I’d like opinions here. I’m considering resigning from my current programming position and taking about 5 years off to take care of my kid during the day (my wife would work full time). I’m in my early 40’s and I have ~6 years of solid VB6 and C# experience. Now, I know I could and will spend 20+ hours per week keeping my skills sharp and current, but I fear that when I re-enter the workforce (in Northern California) I’ll find that no employer will be interested in me. Has anyone experienced this? Any thoughts? David
You were developing with C# in 1999? Wow, I'm impressed. :laugh: (Sorry, too easy not to say something. ) Seriously though, to keep your resume fresh it might be good to find some way to do a project every few months. Whether it be on the side, or an open-source project, or even a project you have wanted to work on. In 5 years I imagine things are going to be changed dramatically so your 'language' skills now might be a bust, but your ability to learn new things would be a plus. - Drew
-
I’d like opinions here. I’m considering resigning from my current programming position and taking about 5 years off to take care of my kid during the day (my wife would work full time). I’m in my early 40’s and I have ~6 years of solid VB6 and C# experience. Now, I know I could and will spend 20+ hours per week keeping my skills sharp and current, but I fear that when I re-enter the workforce (in Northern California) I’ll find that no employer will be interested in me. Has anyone experienced this? Any thoughts? David
Keep your skills current (always learn the latest implementations of the languages) and you will have an easier time re-entering the workforce. One great site to check out is www.johnsmiley.com - he has written a series of programming books, and he also manages an e-mail group on groups.yahoo.com