[butterandguns]

I had a great relatively chill job at a FAANG-adjacent company, making 300ish in a LCOL city. I went and chased some money at a very large company. It ended up being the worst possible time. The company was soul-sucking, they froze hiring as soon as I got there when I supposed to be building out a new team, I sat around and did nothing for like six months before I was laid off.

I took a few months off and got connected to a co founder of a local seed stage startup through a friend. I convinced one of my best friends to join me there as well.

While we are making less money, the work has been really fulfilling. No more big company bullshit, I help determine direction with a handful of other leaders, and I feel like I make an impact. We have product market fit, we’re growing, and the hardest part is scaling to keep up with the growth.

It’s been fun, I’ve learned a ton. I probably haven’t worked this hard in a long time but I really do feel fulfilled in my work which I haven’t been able to say in a long time.

YMMV