Changing Your Career Isn’t Easy
Brian Jenney shares his experience changing careers to become a software engineer at 30, highlighting the challenges and lack of support he faced.
Intelligence analysis by Qwen 2.5 (3B)

Brian Jenney, a software engineer, shares his experience changing careers at 30 and the challenges he faced, including lack of support from family and friends.
Brian Jenney's story is about how hard it is to change careers, especially in tech. He found that people who have already made the change can offer the best advice and support.
Analysis
Finding Support in the Right Community
Finding someone who has already made the transition and asking for their advice is crucial. This can be done through various online platforms such as Reddit, LinkedIn, and Facebook. The key is to look for communities that are full of people who already do the work and are open about their experiences.
The Importance of a Degree
While many assume a degree is crucial, Brian found that the degree mattered less than he expected. This underscores the importance of finding the right community and support network, rather than solely relying on formal education.
Key points
- Changing careers is hard, especially in tech.
- Finding support from people who have already made the transition is crucial.
- The importance of a degree is often overstated.
Even if you want to become a goat herder, there is no easy path. The internet is full of free and paid communities where you can find people who have already made the transition and can offer valuable advice.
The knowledge we spent our careers building is being commoditized, and employment for entry-level software developers has fallen nearly 20 percent since late 2022.



