Ask Slashdot: Joining a Startup As an Older Programmer? 274
First time accepted submitter bdrasin (17319) writes "I've had a series of interviews with a late-term startup (approx. 300 employees) and I think there is a good chance they will make me an offer. The technology is great, my skills and interests are a good fit for the position, I think the company has a promising future, and I like they team. Frankly I'm damn excited about it, more so than for any job in my career. However, I'm worried about what could euphemistically be called 'cultural' issues. I'm a few years over 40, with a wife and kids, and all of the engineers at the company seem to be at least 10 years younger than I am. Being at the company's office gives me a distinct old guy at the club feeling.
I don't think the overall number of hours the team works is more than I could handle, but the team does a lot of young-single-guy-at-a-startup group activities (rent-a-limo-and-go-clubbing night, weekends in Tahoe, Burning Man, in-office happy hour) that I wouldn't want or be able to participate in; I need to be home with my family for dinner most nights and weekends and so on. I'm wondering if anyone else has had the experience of working at a startup with, or as, an older programmer, and how it worked out?"
Practice new cultural references (Score:4, Funny)
Startup? (Score:5, Funny)
300 employees doesn't really sound like a startup to me.
Are you sure they're not just leveraging the startup culture to sucker employees into working insane hours without compensation?
Re:In my experience in that situation... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:You're supposed to be founding startups (Score:4, Funny)
Or you're supposed to be in management by now. And you've slowed down and can't possibly hope to keep up with the 20-somethings.
Any other cliches we've missed that are impossible to apply to everyone who's a 40-something programmer?
Re:You're supposed to be founding startups (Score:5, Funny)
- 43-year-old programmer