CATDOLL : CATDOLL: Will programmers be unemployed at the age of 40?

Recently, a well-known telecommunications company was laying off employees. Except for leaders and experts, those over 45 were forced to retire. Old employees who had developed hemorrhoids from squatting in the toilet were the first to be affected. The company wanted to make itself younger, reduce the company's bloat, and then increase the salaries of the remaining employees. One of the employees with an annual salary of one million was also among those being laid off. He wrote an article in a very depressed mood, expressing his miserable situation of being fired by the company, facing unemployment, and not being able to pay his mortgage, which caused heated discussions online. The original text is as follows:

Of course, the author of the post inevitably exaggerates the facts of the tragedy, but it also reminds programmers: What should a 40-year-old programmer do after losing his job?

Data from Intel shows that nearly 80% of employees laid off in the United States in 2016 were over 40 years old, and the probability of being laid off for those over 40 is 2.5 times that of employees under 40. If a 40-year-old does not hold a key position, his experience can usually be replaced by a 30-year-old, but in comparison, his salary is higher, his execution is worse, and his life is more entangled.

The Unbearable Forty Years Old

Business is not a charity, and the boss will always consider cost-benefit before personal feelings.

For most people, 40 is undoubtedly a hurdle, especially for technology companies and emerging Internet companies, the "midlife crisis" comes even earlier.

There is a joke in the IT industry: "When it comes to programming, PhDs are not as good as Masters, Masters are not as good as undergraduates, undergraduates are not as good as junior college students, junior college students are not as good as high school students..." However, among the Chinese programmers, many developers who are 40 years old or younger are blind to their future development:

Facing career bottlenecks, unable to write programs, and having difficulty rising;

Salaries are higher, overtime is reduced, and the younger generation is catching up with the older generation, facing unemployment pressure;

The pressure of life has increased dramatically, and I dare not change jobs;

When recruiting programmers, the age limit is under 30 years old, which has become an unwritten rule in the industry. It is difficult to change jobs, let alone at the age of 40.

Of course, some people think that there is always a way out, and there is no such thing as the 40-year-old phenomenon. This is groundless worry. Yes, programmers can indeed work into their 40s or even 50s, but the pressure they face may be "unspeakable".

So how can programmers avoid unemployment when they reach the age of 40?

1. Become a technical expert

Programmer Plus Edition. You are still a programmer, but you are a very good programmer. With years of accumulation, you are no longer an ordinary person in terms of the breadth and depth of knowledge.

Programmer Upgrade. Although you are still a programmer at heart, your position has been upgraded to a system analyst or system architect.

2. Become an industry expert

If you are a consultant, then become a professional ERP implementation consultant in the industry. In today's Internet environment, which is called the information age, enterprises face transformation, otherwise they will be eliminated. No matter which transformation method or path the enterprise chooses, it is inseparable from informatization. Informatization has become an accelerator to help Chinese enterprises transform and upgrade. During the transformation period of enterprises, a large number of informatization implementation-management software application consultants will be needed. It is estimated that there are less than 30,000 talents in the current market, and there is a huge talent gap.

3. Development towards management

An excellent project manager needs not only a high IQ, but also a high EQ. It is no exaggeration to say that if you are competent in project management, you can be competent in all management positions at the tactical level, and even the quality of your family life will be improved to a new level. However, becoming an excellent project manager is not an easy task, and even requires a certain amount of talent. Some people learn without a teacher, while others can never learn. Programmers are people with high IQ, but their EQ is often insufficient, which means that only a few programmers can grow into project managers; and even fewer can become excellent project managers.

If you feel that none of these aspects are suitable, you still have a few options.

The first is to live a down-to-earth life. Tell the truth, be an honest person, do honest things, and get an honest salary. Such employees are also very much needed by the company and generally will not be fired.

The second is to change careers or start a business. Because this industry is no longer suitable for you and there is no greater development prospect, you can only change careers. If you can change careers, it may not be a bad thing, and you may be able to make a comeback in the new environment.

The third is to be a freelancer. According to the current trend, a large number of programmers will choose to be freelancers after a few years of employment: freedom of time, identity, and thought, and most importantly, more financial freedom.

Many programmers start planning their careers at the age of 30. Unlike in foreign countries, the current domestic market for first-line programmers means that they will reach their ceiling at the age of 35, because the requirements for this type of people are relatively low, and they do not need to be born in a professional school, and they can enter the industry with a little training. If you are a first-line technical manager (such as a technical leader, technical manager, etc.), then your career will not be a big problem before the age of 40. Although it is delayed by five years, the ceiling will be reached soon after all.

Of course, what we are talking about here are those who are still looking for a job or changing jobs at this stage. Generally, companies may retain some older programmers (these people are the first-line core personnel of Silingjiu), but most older programmers still face the risk of being optimized. So it is better to realize this as soon as possible and make plans early. If you still take the technical route, then the career of the architect will be slightly longer. Of course, the architects here are real talents, not just those who can only look up and talk. As far as the current market is concerned, most programmers will still choose to switch to management, such as project managers, and there are also some operational business personnel who have good industry business. The powerful ones are basically promoted to management personnel, and these people are not considered as the group of people being discussed at the moment. Programmers can also consider taking some other part-time jobs. Xiao Mifeng Cloud Work has learned that many programmers can also work remotely online, which is quite convenient, and do something else in their spare time.

In addition to changing careers, a few people will choose to start their own business. However, these people have accumulated some foundation, either financial foundation or business network foundation. However, even fewer can keep their business. Programmers are relatively well paid because they are young. Of course, if they want stability, they can take the initiative to choose to reduce their salary and go to state-owned enterprises or public institutions. There is basically no layoffs here. On the contrary, they are "poor" and stable. It depends on how you think.

If you are a programmer, it is better to be proficient in technology and not just rely on your youth to get by. After all, you will get old. If you work hard, you will still have a future. After all, with more than ten years of industry accumulation and your own technical accumulation, domestic companies are in short supply of such technical talents. You will naturally be promoted as you work harder.