Those of you who have worked in tech...

Started my career self taught as a kid, from the late 90s to early 2000s. Used to know more than my college tutors and my college peers always asked me to help them with their work. I quit early and freelanced at home at the parents crib for clients around the world doing design/front-end/custom wordpress work in the mid 2000s. I ran a few adult sites back then and sold them at 21.

Then landed my first office permanent job. Nailed the interview got the job easy.

Then started working for bigger firms, went contracting. Was making top end day rate as a specialist in React/React Native/Rails.

Got offers from big home brand companies begging me to work for them. Worked for some famous companies was high in demand.

Recruiters used to call me non stop begging me to go to job interviews.

Had a recruiter come meet me at my lunch break to take me to a job interview for a very famous company they offered on the spot after my interview to do Angular work.

Literally had constant work for as long as I remember.

Then during/after covid shit died down. It's depressing.

Seems nowadays you don't tick whatever niche box you require yet you can perform if not more than other parts of the role.

Yes I'm in the UK and the market is shit.

The US, EU, Dubai, Australia have it better.

IR35 fucked us in the anus.

The gov do not like entrepreneurialism or innovation it seems.

they dont even like peeps who want to open a simple candy store

Are you on about the high street money laundering ones?

Don’t be surprised if they put you through several interviews including having lunch where some jerkoff will judge you for things like putting salt on your food before tasting it or taking too long to decide what you want.

9-5 jobs are for faggots but if you want one, you're going to have to act like a complete beta male and always keep in mind that you have to act corporate. A job isn't so much getting work done, but fitting in with the culture of the office.

Just follow along with the pace and culture of the office and you'll have a job. Make any waves and you're fucked.

I have a 9 to 5 job now and also have hurt feelings

inever had a 9 2 5. it sucks right?

. . .

Yes, I used to work 9-5pm M-F at Adult.com (ICS Entertainment) back in 2007
Playboy Enterprises bought us out.
It was awesome working with Lensman and Eric M. but the office was in Roseville North of Sacramento and there was Nowhere fun to go during weekends so I quit after 1 yr.

yes, i did not like it.

yeah.

did biz in roseville a million years ago. all i remember is the highway.

I think your experience is typical. It's bullshit, but its typical. You would expect them to be impressed that you're resouceful enough to run your own company and be doing your own thing, but I guess that CTO valued long-term half-assed workers over experienced.

A friend of mine was hired as an animator in one of the larger studios in Montreal (They get contracts with Marvel). His animation skills were ok (He knew Blender, Maya etc) but he says what got him the job was a background in Anatomy & Biomechanics that actually got him the job.

Unrelated Story: During Covid I was lining up projects and scored an interview for a company via Zoom. Within 30 seconds, no joke, the interviewer gave me shit for looking around and especially looking down at my desk, demanding that I look straight into the camera and not look elsewhere to read any answers to his questions. I decided he was probably new at this and let it slide until he said it again. I told him he sucked at his job, then fuck off, then asked him if his company was hiring new recruiters. He ended the call.