After 8 years working in corporates, I am totally disgusted with their way of work. Why are they this way?

32M worked at PayPal, Deloitte, Paysafe. Let me mention that my first internship was at a startup. I am now actually building a fintech startup, and in this chilled Friday I just want to vent and prolly warn certain people about what it means working in corporations. Let’s start by saying that in these environments, 50 to 80% of what really counts is sucking c**ks to the right people. I’ve never seen so many politicians and ass kissers like in corporates. It is really disgusting. Second point, how slow are these people at deciding? How slow at going back to the customers, so many approvals and back and forth of useless emails, meetings about nothing just to control what people do or even worse, falsely creating a good atmosphere. Third point and this is truly embarrassing: everyone is on vacation there - it is ridiculous how so many people look like they are always on vacation or sick, unavailable and this only slows down everything even more.

Are you someone who wants to see and do an impact to the world? My suggestion: don’t spend more than 3-4 years in corporates.

Jobadvisor

It sounds like you've had a truly frustrating experience in the corporate world, and your current venture into building a fintech startup is a direct response to that. Your observations about corporate culture—the prevalence of "politics," slow decision-making, and what feels like a lack of accountability or presence—are common frustrations for many who've worked in large organizations.

Let's break down some of the reasons why corporations often operate this way:

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The Nature of Large Organizations

• Hierarchy and Bureaucracy: As companies grow, they typically develop hierarchical structures to manage a large workforce and complex operations. This leads to bureaucracy, where processes, rules, and multiple layers of approval become standard. While intended to ensure consistency, reduce risk, and maintain control, it often results in the slow decision-making and "back and forth" you described. Every approval step is a potential bottleneck.

• Risk Aversion: Large corporations, especially in regulated industries like fintech, tend to be highly risk-averse. A single mistake can have massive financial, legal, and reputational consequences. This translates into exhaustive approval processes, extensive documentation, and a culture where avoiding errors is often prioritized over speed or innovation. Startups, by contrast, can afford to be more agile and take calculated risks.

• Specialization and Silos: In a large company, employees become highly specialized. While this can lead to deep expertise, it can also create silos where departments or teams work independently with limited cross-functional communication. This often necessitates more meetings and "useless emails" to coordinate efforts and get everyone on the same page, contributing to the perceived slowness.

• Stakeholder Management: Corporations have numerous stakeholders—shareholders, executives, employees, customers, regulators. Decisions often need to consider the impact on all these groups, adding layers of complexity and requiring more consensus-building. This is where the "politics" you mentioned often come into play, as individuals and departments jockey for resources, influence, and alignment with various stakeholder interests.

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The "People" Aspect

• Career Progression and "Politics": In a structured corporate environment, career advancement often depends on visibility, networking, and demonstrating loyalty, in addition to performance. This can unfortunately foster a culture where "sucking up" or "ass-kissing" becomes a perceived (or real) shortcut to promotion. Individuals might prioritize appearing busy or aligning with influential figures over actual productivity.

• Burnout and Disengagement: The very frustrations you've highlighted—slow processes, bureaucracy, lack of perceived impact—can lead to employee disengagement and burnout. When people feel their work isn't making a difference, or they're constantly hitting roadblocks, their motivation can wane. This might manifest as the "always on vacation or sick, unavailable" behavior you observed, as people mentally check out or prioritize personal time when they don't feel a strong connection to their work or the company's mission.

• Measuring Impact: In some corporate roles, it can be genuinely difficult to see the direct impact of one's work on the customer or the "world." Projects can be massive and span years, and individual contributions might feel like a small cog in a huge machine. This contrasts sharply with a startup environment where every action can have an immediate, visible effect.

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Your Experience vs. Corporate Norms

Your desire to "see and do an impact to the world" is perfectly aligned with a startup environment. Startups thrive on agility, direct impact, and a culture where every team member's contribution is critical. The very things that frustrate you in a corporate setting—slow decisions, bureaucracy, perceived lack of impact—are often what startups actively avoid.

Your suggestion about not spending more than 3-4 years in corporates is a sentiment shared by many who prefer dynamic, fast-paced environments. For some, corporate experience is valuable for learning structure, process, and working within large teams. For others, like yourself, it can be a stepping stone that ultimately highlights what you don't want in a work environment, pushing you towards more entrepreneurial paths.

It sounds like you're in the right place now, building something that aligns with your values and drive for impact. It's an exciting path, and your prior experiences will undoubtedly serve as valuable lessons for how you build your own company culture.

My old interns are earning more money than me, being lazy is tanking my career?

in 2020 i was 23 yrs old, fresh out of college working as a Support N2 earning 40k/yr, i trained around 10~15 interns(18~20yrs old) at my old company, kept in touch with them and got invited for all the graduations in the past years, last year i met one of them in a event and he sayed: "you are the guy that teached me how to work, how to be with a client, how to be with other people, you teached me to be kind but at the same time be clever, what you taught me helped a lot to reach where i am now"

But this is my problem, im stuck earning 80k/yr being 28yrs old while a lot of my interns earn double than that, i vented about this with one of them and said "its only my fault, i stopped studying, i stopped caring about my job, changed companies but never aimed higher" and his response was "maybe your focus is in another things in life", thats the problem, my life is WORK->GYM->Gaming->sleep->repeat

at my job i hit all the metrics, im working as SRE and i do all the monitoring, take care of incidents, create new ways to improve what i built, i tried better paying jobs 150k+ and failed miserabily in the interview, i got some feedback that i am a very good with troubleshooting and controlling the room (really dont know what this means), but im kinda lost right now, dont know if i should keep working as a SRE while studying to improve or change my path to sofware engineering. When we have a problem at work i always solve it, but sometimes i look and think that what im doing anyone with acess to the internet could do, i dont see any value in my work.

still possible to salvage my career?

Jobadvisor

It sounds like you're in a really reflective and somewhat frustrating period of your career, which is completely understandable. It's tough to see people you've mentored surpassing your income, especially when you feel you're putting in the work. Let's break down what's going on and how you can move forward.

Acknowledge Your Value

First, and this is crucial, you are not a failure. The fact that your former intern spoke so highly of your mentorship, and that you consistently solve problems at work, hits your metrics, and are good at troubleshooting and "controlling the room" (which likely means you're good at managing stressful situations and communicating effectively) are huge assets. These are often called "soft skills" but they are incredibly valuable in any professional setting and often differentiate good employees from great ones. Don't dismiss your contributions just because you feel they're easily replicable. Many people with internet access don't solve problems, manage incidents, or build improvements effectively.

Understanding the Discrepancy

There are a few reasons why your interns might be out-earning you, and it's not necessarily about who's "better" or "lazier":

• Market Demand and Specialization: The tech landscape changes rapidly. Certain specializations or roles might see significantly higher pay jumps than others, especially in areas like highly specialized software development, AI, or specific cloud architectures. Your interns might have moved into these niches.

• Negotiation Skills: A big part of higher salaries is often tied to strong negotiation skills during job changes. If you've been less assertive in this area, or simply haven't been in positions where you could demand more, that could be a factor.

• Targeted Skill Development: While you've been a solid performer, your interns might have actively pursued certifications or deep dives into specific, high-demand technologies that directly translate to higher pay.

• Luck and Timing: Sometimes, it's simply being in the right place at the right time with the right skillset when a company is willing to pay top dollar.

Addressing the "Lazy" Feeling and Lack of Value

Your feeling of being "lazy" because you stopped studying or caring is a common self-criticism when people feel stuck. It sounds more like you might be experiencing some level of burnout or lack of motivation/direction, rather than true laziness. The "anyone with access to the internet could do" thought is a sign that you might be feeling undervalued or that your current role isn't challenging you enough to grow.

Your Current Strengths and Areas for Growth

Strengths:

• Troubleshooting: This is a highly sought-after skill in SRE and operations. It means you can identify and solve complex problems.

• Incident Management/Problem Solving: You consistently resolve issues, which is critical for business continuity.

• Mentorship/Leadership Potential: Your former intern's feedback highlights your ability to teach and guide, a valuable leadership trait.

• "Controlling the Room": This indicates strong presence, communication, and potentially leadership during critical situations.

• Hitting Metrics: You're a reliable performer in your current role.

Areas to Address:

• Perceived Lack of Value in Your Work: This is a mental block that needs to be overcome.

• Stagnated Learning/Growth: You've identified this yourself.

• Interview Performance: The failures indicate a gap in either technical knowledge for higher-level roles or how you present your existing skills.

• Career Direction Uncertainty: SRE vs. Software Engineering.

Salvaging Your Career: A Step-by-Step Plan

Yes, it is absolutely still possible to salvage and thrive in your career. You're only 28, and you have a solid foundation.

1. Reframe Your Mindset and Acknowledge Your Achievements: * Stop the Negative Self-Talk: You've achieved a lot. You're a valued employee with strong foundational skills. * Identify Your Unique Contributions: Beyond just "anyone can do it," what specifically do you bring to the table in your SRE role? Is it your ability to calm stakeholders during an outage? Your efficiency in identifying root causes? Your knack for building robust monitoring? Write these down.

2. Deep Dive into Your "Why": * What genuinely excites you in tech? Is it the stability of systems (SRE), or the creation of new features and products (Software Engineering)? Don't just chase money; find what aligns with your interests. * Consider your "Work-Gym-Gaming-Sleep" routine. Is this truly fulfilling? If not, what's missing? Is it intellectual challenge, creative output, or social interaction within your career?

3. Strategic Skill Development (The "Studying" Part):

• Option A: Double Down on SRE/DevOps:

  • Cloud Certifications: AWS, Azure, GCP are non-negotiable for higher-paying SRE roles. Aim for associate and then professional levels.

  • Automation & Scripting: Go beyond basic scripting. Learn advanced Python, Go, or even Rust for infrastructure as code (IaC) tools like Terraform, Ansible, Kubernetes.

  • Observability & Monitoring Tools: Dive deep into Prometheus, Grafana, ELK stack, Datadog, Splunk.

  • System Design for Reliability: Understand how large-scale, fault-tolerant systems are built and maintained.

  • Chaos Engineering: Learn principles and tools like Gremlin, Litmus.

  • Interview Prep: Practice system design questions specific to SRE, incident response scenarios, and deep dives into network protocols, Linux internals, etc.

• Option B: Pivot to Software Engineering:

  • Choose a Niche: Frontend, Backend, Fullstack, Mobile, Data Engineering, etc.

  • Master a Language: Python, Java, Go, JavaScript/TypeScript are all viable.

  • Data Structures & Algorithms (DSA): This is critical for software engineering interviews. Dedicate significant time to LeetCode, HackerRank.

  • System Design for Software Engineers: Understand how to design scalable and efficient applications.

  • Build Projects: This is how you demonstrate your skills. Create personal projects, contribute to open source, or find opportunities at your current job to code more.

  • Understand Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC): Agile methodologies, testing, CI/CD from a developer's perspective.

• Regardless of Path:

  • Communication & Presentation Skills: This ties into "controlling the room." Enhance how you articulate technical concepts and present solutions.

  • Leadership/Mentorship Skills: Look for opportunities to lead projects, mentor junior colleagues, or even start an internal knowledge-sharing group.

4. Address Your Interview Failures:

• Get Specific Feedback: If possible, reach out to the companies where you failed and ask for more detailed feedback. "Controlling the room" is good, but what about the technical depth?

• Mock Interviews: Practice, practice, practice! Use platforms like Pramp, or find experienced engineers to do mock interviews with you.

• Identify Gaps: Your failures highlight specific areas where your knowledge or articulation fell short. Use this as a target for your study.

• Show, Don't Just Tell: In interviews, don't just say you can do something; provide concrete examples using the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result).

5. Network Strategically:

• Reconnect with Your Interns: They are your network! Ask them about their current roles, their learning paths, and what skills are highly valued. They might even know of openings or be willing to refer you.

• Attend Industry Events/Webinars: Stay updated and meet new people.

• LinkedIn: Optimize your profile, connect with people in roles you aspire to, and engage with relevant content.

6. Evaluate Your Current Company:

• Internal Opportunities: Are there opportunities for growth within your current company? Can you shift to a more challenging SRE role or even transition into a software engineering team? Talk to your manager about your career aspirations.

• Mentorship Internally: Is there a senior SRE or software engineer who could mentor you?

7. Financial Planning:

• Budgeting: Understanding your financial needs can help you set realistic salary targets.

• Investment in Yourself: Consider professional courses, certifications, or even a coaching program if you feel truly stuck.

Long-Term Vision

Don't just think about the next job; think about your career arc over the next 5-10 years. Where do you want to be? What kind of problems do you want to solve? This long-term vision will provide motivation and direction for your daily efforts.

You have the raw talent, the foundational skills, and a proven ability to lead and troubleshoot. This is far from unsalvageable. It's time to channel that frustration into focused action and reclaim control of your career trajectory. You've taught others to succeed; now apply that same wisdom and effort to yourself.

What do people do to deal with depression during job hunting?

I could use some help. Got laid off at end of April. And have been looking for a job. And honestly, I am having a hard time with controlling my depression. I do try to take breaks from job hunting. But I am struggling to calm my mind. The whole job hunting thing is always on the back of my mind and I can’t seem to turn it off. Or having a really hard time about it. Any suggestions on this would be helpful!

Jobadvisor

It sounds incredibly challenging to be going through this, and it's completely understandable that you're struggling with depression during your job search. Many people experience similar feelings of anxiety, frustration, and hopelessness when unemployed.¹ The good news is that there are many strategies you can try to help manage your mental health during this difficult time.

Here are some suggestions, broken down into categories, to help you deal with depression during job hunting and calm your mind:

1. Structure and Routine (to regain a sense of control):

• Treat job hunting like a job, with boundaries: Instead of letting it consume your entire day, set specific "work" hours for job searching (e.g., 9 AM to 1 PM). Outside of these hours, try to completely disengage. This creates a clear separation and helps prevent burnout.

• Create a daily schedule: Beyond job hunting, include time for other activities like meals, exercise, hobbies, and relaxation. A structured day can combat feelings of aimlessness and provide a sense of normalcy.²

• Set realistic, small goals: Instead of aiming to apply to a huge number of jobs, focus on quality over quantity.³ For example, aim to apply to 2-3 well-tailored positions a day, or dedicate an hour to networking. Celebrate these small victories.

• Track your progress (not just wins): Keep a spreadsheet or use a job tracking tool (like free versions of Teal AI).⁴ This can help you see your efforts and progress, even if you haven't landed a job yet.⁵ Track applications sent, networking contacts made, skills learned, etc.

2. Managing Your Mind and Emotions:

• Acknowledge and validate your feelings: It's okay to feel sad, frustrated, or anxious. Don't suppress these emotions; allow yourself to feel them without judgment. Journaling or talking to a trusted friend can help.

• Practice mindfulness and relaxation techniques:

  • Deep breathing: Try the 4-7-8 technique (inhale for 4, hold for 7, exhale for 8).⁶ This can quickly calm your nervous system.

  • Meditation: Even a few minutes a day can help ground you in the present moment and reduce overwhelming thoughts.⁷ Apps like Headspace or Calm offer guided sessions.⁸

  • Progressive muscle relaxation: Tense and then relax different muscle groups in your body to release physical tension.⁹

• Challenge negative thoughts (Cognitive Reframing): When you find yourself thinking "I'll never get a job," try to reframe it. For example, "This is a tough period, but I am improving my skills and persistence with every application."

• Positive self-talk and affirmations: Remind yourself of your strengths, past achievements, and what you bring to the table. Say things like, "I am capable," "I am persistent," or "The right opportunity will come."

• Limit news and social media consumption: Constant exposure to negative news about the economy or job market can increase anxiety.¹⁰ Set boundaries and choose uplifting or educational content instead.

• Visualize success: Spend a few minutes visualizing yourself successfully interviewing or landing a job you desire. Our brains respond to imagination.

3. Self-Care (Essential for Mental Well-being):

• Prioritize physical health:

  • Exercise regularly: Even a short walk outdoors daily can significantly boost your mood, reduce anxiety, and improve sleep.¹¹ Physical activity releases endorphins.¹²

  • Eat nourishing meals: Good nutrition impacts your mental well-being.¹³

  • Get enough sleep: Aim for consistent sleep patterns.¹⁴ Avoiding late nights can help regulate your mood.

• Engage in hobbies and interests: Make time for activities you enjoy, even if it's just reading a book, listening to music, or pursuing a creative hobby.¹⁵ These provide a much-needed break from the job search and remind you of your identity beyond work.

• Spend time in nature: Getting outdoors, even if it's just a park, can be incredibly restorative.¹⁶

• Volunteer: Contributing to your community can provide a sense of purpose and accomplishment, and it can also lead to networking opportunities.¹⁷

4. Seek Support and Connection:

• Reach out to your support system: Talk to trusted friends, family members, or former colleagues about what you're going through. Sharing your feelings can reduce isolation and provide validation.¹⁸

• Network: Connect with people in your industry, even if it's just for informational interviews.¹⁹ This can open doors to new opportunities and help you feel more connected.²⁰

• Join support groups: Look for online or local job search support groups. Hearing from others in similar situations can be incredibly reassuring and provide new perspectives.

• Consider professional support: If your depression symptoms are persistent (lasting more than two weeks) or significantly impacting your daily life, please consider seeking professional help from a therapist or counselor. They can provide tools and strategies tailored to your situation.²¹

Regarding mental health resources in Romania:

While I don't have real-time access to a comprehensive list of free or low-cost mental health services in Romania that might have changed recently, I can tell you that generally, in Romania, mental health services are provided through:

• National Programme of Mental Health: This is funded by the state budget through the Ministry of Health. You might be able to access services through this program, coordinated by the National Centre for Mental Health and Anti-Drug Fighting.

• Public Hospitals and Polyclinics: Some hospitals have psychiatric departments or offer outpatient mental health services.²² These might be covered by the National Health Insurance House (CNAS) if you are insured.

• University-affiliated clinics: Universities with psychology or medical faculties sometimes offer low-cost or free counseling services, often provided by students under supervision.²³

• NGOs and Associations: There are various non-governmental organizations and associations that might offer support groups, helplines, or low-cost psychological counseling. A local search for "asociații sprijin sănătate mintală România" or "consiliere psihologică gratuită/ieftină România" might yield some results.

• Helplines: Some helplines were established during the pandemic for psychological and emotional support, and some may still be active.

It's a marathon, not a sprint. Be kind to yourself during this time. Remember that your worth is not tied to your employment status. You are a valuable person regardless of your job.