I’m hitting 6 months of unemployment and funds are running dry. My journey into becoming a Stock Marxist is going… ok I guess? I’m learning a lot and know so much more than I did in December, but the money isn’t there to prove it.
So I’m looking for something to do that will not make me go insane. I had a temp job that ended in November, and before that I was working in a Software Dev role that caused my autistic self a lot of grief. My mind was in a dark place. It still is kind of there TBH.
I don’t want to get back into software. The tech changes too much, the frameworks methodolies and endless meetings are frustrating, AND because everyone was told to “learn to code” I have close to 0% shot my resume gets picked out of a pile of 1000s of other applicants. I’ve been branching out into more data analysis/database type work and there’s an AI tool I’m paying for to automate applying. I know it’s not what I’m supposed to do, but I also know spending all day filling out job apps is not where I want to be either.
What other options are out there? Things I’m considering:
Rover (pet sitting)
Data Annotation (AI training)
Flipping things I can find for free or at thrift stores?
Fiverr? Help people with their WordPress sites or something…
IDK, any other ideas?
Data Annotation? That’s not good work. I had better luck with Freelancer.com than with sending resumes. Plus ridiculous logic tests that take the knowledge of a linguist. I say Freelancer.com rather than Upwork because Freelancer.com is cheaper and you can shoot your bids away at more jobs.
Do you have experience with Data Annotation? I put off taking the Programming test until I can sit and concentrate. Pay is good so I bet there’s a catch…
I’ll check out Freelancer. Thanks!
Start a youtube channel? Maybe one chronicling your search for work, interspersed with socialist commentary on the state of work/job hunting?
Agit prop sounds fun! We need a lot more of it…
You looked into GIS jobs? Basically all Geospatial automation is done through JS and Python. ArcGIS Pro has some C# SDK for building tools as well. Basically every county is constantly hiring for these positions.
It’s also nice because no framework rot. You’re stuck with the API that Qgis and Esri push out and they barely ever change anything because so many counties and government rely on legacy code that they’ve never updated.
I’ve done some work with Esri in getting type hints into their Python library to make the dev experience better too.
Qgis is open source and used by most European (totally funded by the German government) municipalities, and ArcGIS/ESRI is the standard in the US. You can get a personal license to learn it for ~$100/yr and the forums are very friendly. Getting a bit of knowledge then applying to your counties GIS department would be a great way to get one of those cushy government jobs that doesn’t pay the greatest, but it easy and has a fantastic pension.
I’m down for something like this. I even have a little bit of experience with the JS ESRI libraries.
I just don’t want to get stuck in the situation I’ve been in several times where I get hired for one tech stack, then get assigned work on completely different stacks and suddenly I can’t get stuff done on time.
Learn Arcpy, it’s actually pretty simple and literally no one knows how to use it lol.
I was on their forums trying to get answers and ended up writing my own wrapper libraries for building tools using it and am the person everyone goes to for answers now. ESRI has even just straight up taken my code that I’ve shared and rolled it into releases… I don’t even consider myself a great developer, but there’s so few competent people actually using it that it’s just rotting.
I’ve actually applied with them to help fix the mess that is arcpy, the library that runs like 90% of web map backends…
This post also 100% doxxes me, hi feds
Might actually be somewhere up my alley, I’ve done some GISsy stuff before (town planning). Hmm
There’s tons of applications for it. I do OSP fiber optic network design currently, and it’s terrible how little most people know about best practices for geospatial data in that industry.
GIS is pretty cool. I’ve looked into it before and kinda wish I went into the field.
This is a decent tutorial video if anyone wants to get started on QGIS: https://inv.nadeko.net/watch?v=SovdBaus7pM
Apparently inv.nadeko.net is down so here’s the YouTube link:
I found a YouTube link in your comment. Here are links to the same video on alternative frontends that protect your privacy:
shit this sounds pretty good to me and im not even a programmer… might dip my toe in the pool
Spend the $100 to get a personal license and learn how to use the model builder. There are entire jobs that are just “hey, can you use this node system to run all our tooling with one button”. They give you the catalog for free when you get a personal license too and that has tons of examples and contact info in it.
But again, just having a literal basic knowledge of how to navigate the program and interact with geospatial data can land you a pretty decent job maintaining county parcel/plat data for census and tax tracking.
that’s amazing, that sounds so good to me, thanks for the info you rock!
Housesitting, User Generated Content (joinbrands.com, billo.app), catfishing truth social users and hitting them up for cash/crypto.
Housesitting could work. I don’t have the face for TikTok
Notary
Long term: try giving your state or city government’s job portal a look. Like others mentioned, GIS and IT analyst roles are in demand and you have the background for it while not necessarily being a code monkey. State govs often have very long hiring processes and lower pay so they have hard times filling positions, they just sit empty. Not to mention the elite benefits and pension.
Short term: I agree with the rideshare, you’re taking a big mileage hit but cashing it in for money now and the bills won’t wait for you.
Also consider leveraging your technical background to be a stronger candidate for less technical positions. I studied engineering and now do operations management in a tradie industry but I like it a lot.
Good luck out there, just gotta keep up the applications even if it seems hopeless
Also idk if I would recommend trading. Unless you have insider knowledge, it’s literally just luck. Maybe try getting into boglehead strategies? They are proven to beat the vast vast vast majority of traders with 0 effort.
Also idk if I would recommend trading. Unless you have insider knowledge, it’s literally just luck.
I invested a little money (like tens of dollars) into Chinese ETFs during this tariff pump and dump (didn’t sell), some of my ETFs already have 20% gains or more. I just invest for the long term when I have some cash, and it has worked out better for me since.
Though I did this while still working. I haven’t traded since losing my job. I only recommend this when you have income.
It’s actually really interesting you mention Chinese ETFs. I am focusing on paying off my student loans before I can aid comrades or invest (high % compound interest is a bitch…) but I also play with small amounts to see how I want to spread in the future.
I really think the Chinese market will be the future and overweight them in my 401k. I get a decent match so I think of it as funneling capitalist money directly to China (but still poor and net in debt for the foreseeable future…).
I do agree that investing wide in ETFs like you did is the way to go. I like to buy the whole market and hold because that’s the only guarantee to beat the rigged game but well researched plays can pay off for sure.
The game is definitely rigged. Sony algo and high frequency trades cause institutions to move the biggest tickers where ever they want. When I trade I’m trying to follow what they’re doing and come along for the ride.
But NGL I’ve learned more ways to NOT trade recently! Stay away from SPY lol
Not WFH, but: If you think you can handle driving a 13 ton truck safely and if the option would work for you, you could go for a CDL like me and work long distance for a month and a week off (and repeat). I’m working on getting my CLP, and once I finish school, I plan on working at the same place as my spouse. Together, we may make ~$160K a year, which would help us pay off student loans and other debt, and after a few years of paying off debt and saving for school, I plan to stop working and go back to college for electrical engineering if possible.
IIRC getting a trucking job doesn’t really involve an interview. You’re typically automatically accepted (at least with certain businesses that accept new truckers) and go into training, similar to how Amazon hires for their warehouse jobs. Some places would also train you for a CDL, and the training is better than some colleges, but you have to pay for it out of your check and it is more expensive. Plus trucking jobs are unlikely to be automated for a while because the liability of crashes are placed on the driver currently, but automating the trucks would put the liability on the business, which would hurt their bottom line. My spouse’s workplace also lost a lot of money investing into automated trucks.
IT and software developer jobs are not looking good, so getting a CDL is personally my best option that would allow me to escape IT hell and eventually get into the field I have wanted to go into since I was a child. I know all STEM fields are also struggling, but I figured with an electrical engineering degree, it may help me start an electronics repair business at home if I can’t get a job, and because of the tariffs, electronics repair businesses will be higher in demand.
If anyone takes this advice, I recommend doing the practice tests on cristcdl.com and keep doing them until you can get 90% right each time. Doing so will likely mean you will pass the CDL tests the first time.
I don’t want to get back into software. The tech changes too much, the frameworks methodolies and endless meetings are frustrating, AND because everyone was told to “learn to code” I have close to 0% shot my resume gets picked out of a pile of 1000s of other applicants.
This isn’t true if toyou have any commercial experience at all, it’s just all the bootcamp and recent compsci graduates who are SoL it seems
I have no much trouble getting interviews and offers with a few years experience on my CV
But yeah don’t get back into software if you dont think it will be good for you personaly
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I don’t think I’m good at software so yeah, not looking to keep it up.
I just started doing rideshare. If you live in a decent market and have a reasonably efficient car it can still be a money maker.
medical scribe for telehealth (you take notes for doctors/RNs/therapists etc.)
proofreading/editing/typesetting
tutoring
customer service agent
translation, if you speak multiple languages
A location would be good but: Amazon WFH tech support. Let me know if you find something.
