Move to Bay Area: Please advise

dbs · Post by **dbs** » Wed Mar 23, 2016 6:31 pm

Place to avoid.

The Jungle San Jose California
Cops clear ?The Jungle,? one of the largest homeless encampments in America.

The Jungle was previously cleared in May 2012, according to AFP, when 150 people were displaced.

okonomi · Post by **okonomi** » Thu May 26, 2016 3:28 am

Fire in Santa Clara Strip mall. Indians and Koreans lose businesses....
[QUOTE][URL="http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Five-Alarm-Fire-Rips-Through-Santa-Clara-Strip-Mall-380787261.htmlA"]http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Five-Alarm-Fire-Rips-Through-Santa-Clara-Strip-Mall-380787261.html
A [/URL]five-alarm fire ripped through a small Santa Clara strip mall early Wednesday, injuring no one, but leaving about 60 percent of the businesses damaged, the city's fire chief said.

The news devastated the employees and owners of about 12 restaurants and shops who call the 3402 El Camino Real mall in the city's unofficial Koreatown district their home.

"I just can't believe it, I just can't believe it," Parul Patel said before bursting into tears. She and her husband, Prakash, own Radhe Chaat, which advertises kosher, Indian, vegetarian fare. "I just don't know what we're going to do.".......more at source

cantor · Post by **cantor** » Tue Jun 06, 2017 9:09 am

Update to this thread. Did not move to bay area. Found another job as an executive in Dallas. Now I am going through a very strange situation in my life. The guy who hired me was let go in a matter of a month after I was hired. The whole company started looking at me and my new hires as if we are unwanted. Got placed under another executive who is planting seeds to throw me out. Looks like that has been the plan since he inherited me. I am getting tired of the whole politics. Also I am in that age group where I am do not exactly have a coveted resume,(read age discrimination). I am confused what I should be doing.

Just out of curiosity, are those who are 45+ go through similar hiccups in their career or am I the only one? How do you handle this? I am feeling a bit depressed to find that I am going to have a hard time finding another job possibly with a huge pay reduction. What 45+ do or do they just give up on career and accept any position they get? This is not exactly the age to retire nor easily to be rehired. What do forum members in this age group do? How do they handle this?

GutsyGibbon · Post by **GutsyGibbon** » Tue Jun 06, 2017 10:55 pm

cantor;656779
Just out of curiosity, are those who are 45+ go through similar hiccups in their career or am I the only one? How do you handle this? I am feeling a bit depressed to find that I am going to have a hard time finding another job possibly with a huge pay reduction. What 45+ do or do they just give up on career and accept any position they get? This is not exactly the age to retire nor easily to be rehired. What do forum members in this age group do? How do they handle this?

After my 40th birthday, I decided to do everything that was needed to reduce every day stress. Do everything that is possible to feel happy in the very short term. This week, this weekend kind of short term. My main source of stress was middle management. The need to attend meetings, and drive people round the clock, round the world. Hated it. One of the first few steps were to brushup on my programming skills and contact ex-colleagues who were still in engineering. I moved to engineering at the same pay grade as my management role. This has been the best decision I ever made. It has been few years after my switch. I am a lot more happy, so I am doing a lot better at work. Better routine, better work/life balance. It is like I got 3 additional days off every week compared to my management role. I have already declined leadership roles at my new employer. I was a little anxious about the outcome, but I was surprised to see that it was received well. The key is to keep healthy productivity levels.

cantor · Post by **cantor** » Wed Jun 07, 2017 4:43 am

I have three paths I am pondering about:

1. Start my own company: Will be exciting. I have a couple of good ideas. On the sideline grow my capital. I am a well versed trader and don't get enough time due to job. So just create this another revenue and use some to start my own company. Will be exciting. The only con will be that I will need to fund my health insurance.

2. Get any techie job, SE level job: Huge pay cut. Will need to satisfy the boss to get a mediocre bonus. My performance won't directly correlate with the input. Bu will get health insurance.

3. Get another exec level job: It's a bit iffy. I am not very well connected and networked to land in one. May need to move where job is. Again same political shit could happen. Staying away from family is a huge trade off. Difficult to get exec job in the same town as my family.

I am thinking 1 is a better option. What do you guys think?

techynt · Post by **techynt** » Wed Jun 07, 2017 8:25 am

I can vouch for this too. If you are in hands on coding work its not hard to find jobs in most cities like Austin, Dallas, Houston etc.. even in your mid 40s.

GutsyGibbon;656839After my 40th birthday, I decided to do everything that was needed to reduce every day stress. Do everything that is possible to feel happy in the very short term. This week, this weekend kind of short term. My main source of stress was middle management. The need to attend meetings, and drive people round the clock, round the world. Hated it. One of the first few steps were to brushup on my programming skills and contact ex-colleagues who were still in engineering. I moved to engineering at the same pay grade as my management role. This has been the best decision I ever made. It has been few years after my switch. I am a lot more happy, so I am doing a lot better at work. Better routine, better work/life balance. It is like I got 3 additional days off every week compared to my management role. I have already declined leadership roles at my new employer. I was a little anxious about the outcome, but I was surprised to see that it was received well. The key is to keep healthy productivity levels.

GutsyGibbon · Post by **GutsyGibbon** » Wed Jun 07, 2017 10:27 pm

cantor;656870I have three paths I am pondering about:
3. Get another exec level job: It's a bit iffy. I am not very well connected and networked to land in one. May need to move where job is. Again same political shit could happen. Staying away from family is a huge trade off. Difficult to get exec job in the same town as my family. I am thinking 1 is a better option. What do you guys think?

You are the best judge of what you are capable of. The risks trade offs you mentioned are very true. The only exception is #3. I do not think that think all exec roles are political shit. That tells me there is underlying belief that one (or one's team) never gets what they truly deserve. As an exec, as you very well know that every company is setup such that teams/execs compete for resource, attention, recognition, rewards etc. IMHO, it comes with the job that you are required to stand up for the team and beat your own drums, and get what you (your team) deserves. Works great when things are going great, and everything is positive, constructive, and stock is doing well. When the company hits a flat stretch or a downward spiral - middle management can be a bitch. Pressure from the top and ridicule from the bottom. Some people thrive in it, in both phases - some survive drudgingly - some perish(such as execs suffering heart attacks on treadmills at work). I have seen some of my friends become VPs at fortune 500 companies when there are heads rolling, and layoffs going on. You can call it Politics, standing up to the challenge, opportunism, or scape goating. But these people thrive.

In my 10 years of middle management - I estimate that there were 5 years of great times, 5 years of flat/downward spirals. The flat and downward spiral times included layoff/team shutdown. The pain of these flat times had a lot more impact on my life than the joys of good times (YMMV). It is hard for me to explain this. You know how you feel good when you win a game/match, and a twice as bad when you lose. (may apply to some people only).

I can say this though - switching back and forth between 100% management and 100% hands on engineering cannot do much good to overall career growth. With engineering, as long as you are accumulating knowledge and staying productive there is great satisfaction. There is no shortage of work when one is willing to stand up and ask for it. If this is not true, its time to move on to a new employer.

PS: very broad generalizations here, I am sure there are exceptions.

Desi2return · Post by **Desi2return** » Thu Jun 08, 2017 3:16 am

cantor;656870I have three paths I am pondering about:

1. Start my own company: Will be exciting. I have a couple of good ideas. On the sideline grow my capital. I am a well versed trader and don't get enough time due to job. So just create this another revenue and use some to start my own company. Will be exciting. The only con will be that I will need to fund my health insurance.

2. Get any techie job, SE level job: Huge pay cut. Will need to satisfy the boss to get a mediocre bonus. My performance won't directly correlate with the input. Bu will get health insurance.

3. Get another exec level job: It's a bit iffy. I am not very well connected and networked to land in one. May need to move where job is. Again same political shit could happen. Staying away from family is a huge trade off. Difficult to get exec job in the same town as my family.

I am thinking 1 is a better option. What do you guys think?

How big of a risk taker are you? With #1 you are running 2 business operations (1) Own Company (2) Trading business. Yes if you do not consider trading as a business then I am sorry you may not be that well versed trader.

My suggestion is go for Hybrid Option - That is - Find a techie job and be a trader on the side. This way you are running a business on the side, but your techie job provides you the flexibility and the low profile job to run your trading business on the side with health insurance and fall back job security

cantor · Post by **cantor** » Thu Jun 08, 2017 3:47 am

Desi2return,

I have been option trading for quite some time. I have been very conservative so far. The nest egg I have built can fetch upto 60 to 80K annually very conservatively. And 100-120K with some tangible risk (still not great risk). I have a very modest living style. I have house that is fully paid off. What I am realizing is that I can reach for 100K with little bit of timing and some more risk. When I am fully employed, I have to be happy with 50 to 70K return in stock market due to job constraint.

Frankly the latest job adventure has left a bad taste in my mouth for corporate politics. I did not like the individuals that I met. I have been asked to do things that I did not want to. Also after giving 20+ years to corporate world, I am feeling that I have paid off my dues and built my nest egg. Why not live simple life, support kids, do your own venture on side, visit india as and when required, pay attention to parents? If my venture succeeds, fine. If not, I still have enough for my needs. That's the thought process. Try out 3 or 4 ideas and see if they work and find my way to eventual retirement. Being in US, I am free of the gossip, curiosity that I would have to face. Another idea will be to take government job, very low stress with health insurance benefits.

Desi2return · Post by **Desi2return** » Thu Jun 08, 2017 4:18 am

cantor;656973Desi2return,

I have been option trading for quite some time. I have been very conservative so far. The nest egg I have built can fetch upto 60 to 80K annually very conservatively. And 100-120K with some tangible risk (still not great risk). I have a very modest living style. I have house that is fully paid off. What I am realizing is that I can reach for 100K with little bit of timing and some more risk. When I am fully employed, I have to be happy with 50 to 70K return in stock market due to job constraint.

Frankly the latest job adventure has left a bad taste in my mouth for corporate politics. I did not like the individuals that I met. I have been asked to do things that I did not want to. Also after giving 20+ years to corporate world, I am feeling that I have paid off my dues and built my nest egg. Why not live simple life, support kids, do your own venture on side, visit india as and when required, pay attention to parents? If my venture succeeds, fine. If not, I still have enough for my needs. That's the thought process. Try out 3 or 4 ideas and see if they work and find my way to eventual retirement. Being in US, I am free of the gossip, curiosity that I would have to face. Another idea will be to take government job, very low stress with health insurance benefits.

You will have to teach us your options strategy then :-)

When you say for quite some time - for how long? 10 yrs? 20 Yrs? Has your strategy worked in all kinds of market environment? Have you back tested it and studied the results? Running a business and doing trading wouldn't you still have the same problem? i.e. dedicating time between the start up (with very high failure rate) vs trading - which also typically has very high failure rate ?

Does your spouse work? If so, at least health insurance will be taken care of by her job and you can take some risk. If not, look for a work from home type low profile job and focus on your trading business. Once you comfortably settle in, then quit your day job and start your company....at least you will have a transition instead of taking high stress in one go