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The text really captured my attention. I've recently been struggling with whether or not tech and the modern internet are a force for good. I always enjoyed tin
by shellmayr 7y ago
The text really captured my attention. I've recently been struggling with whether or not tech and the modern internet are a force for good. I always enjoyed tinkering with hardware and software, and have been working in related jobs because it pays well and there are always interesting challenges to solve. But the societal shifts ongoing in Europe, the filter bubbles and breaking down of discourse, the xenophobia and the growing divide between large parts of society as well as the erosion of (local) media and the crisis of mental well-being among both adults and adolescents, which I feel are at least partly attributable to technological changes in the past ten years, have led me to think that maybe the most important thing for people right now may be spaces without technology, without personalization and just being confronted with the community of others. This does not seem like a problem solvable by the means of technology and makes me wonder whether I've spent my life learning about technology only to abandon it at some point.
Are there any good resources about what I call my "tech hangover" to navigate how to move on, maybe convert this education into something of societal value beyond screens? Or am I being too cynical about everything and in reality it's all much better than I'm seeing it? Open for anything here really, but struggling with the status quo.
- v64 7y agoI don't have any good advice, but just wanted to say you're definitely not alone. I left the tech industry due to these feelings and observations.
- codyb 7y agoMind if I asked what you got into instead and how you transitioned to it?
- v64 7y agoSure, although I'm not sure how helpful the answer will be as I'm still trying to figure things out myself :) After I quit my job in 2017, I floundered for a bit while living off of my savings. Later that year, the big crypto bull run happened and I was introduced to trading. After the bubble popped, I learned how to trade options through TastyTrade [1] and have been doing that since. TastyTrade CEO Tom Sosnoff [2] has a refreshing attitude toward finance that totally spits in the face of Wall Street. I think the way he's addressed and dealt with Wall Street has some clues for how we can similarly criticize the excesses of tech. For now, getting myself back on my feet has just been the start. I still feel unsatisfied with where I am in life and how I'm interacting with my community and what I can do for others. I have some vague ideas about how to use the money I've raised to bring more awareness to these issues in tech and to support those who are building organizations that address these issues from day one. I don't have anything concrete yet, but I've been trying to network and learn more. [1] https://tastytrade.com/ https://tastytrade.com/ [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Sosnoff https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Sosnoff
- Isamu 7y ago>whether or not tech and the modern internet are a force for good People. Only people are a force for good or evil. Tech is true neutral ... or maybe Chaotic Neutral.
- specialist 7y agoMy tech hangover started in 1989. Reading Psychology of Everyday Things and Technolopy helped me articulate my dissatisfaction, transmuted me from a technophile into a humanist. I started some study groups (for geeks), started volunteering (tree hugger stuff, cancer survivor groups), got very activist / political. (Now experiencing a citizenship hangover. Oof.) Hanging out with different cohorts is invigorating. Highly recommended.
- crustacean 7y agoSink deeper into that tech hangover and use your tech skills to fund yourself
- kirso 7y agoIt feels to me that overall people are quitting their corporate jobs and searching for meaningful and impactful things to do professionally. There are some movements which are trying to do something like AI for good, but it seems like generally people know that "something is not right"