nbow

It has been a tough last few years. It's often difficult to explain to people how I got to where I am right now, making minimum wage across two jobs when I was once a boot camp graduate who landed my first full time role with Amazon within 6 months of graduation. Truth is, I've spent the last few years getting fired from positions for lack of productivity. I would move from contract to contract after I left the amazon, thinking things would be different next time, but it always ended badly. My last gig was 6 months ago, and I took up a job working as a bartender and another at a smoke shop, making easily 5x less than I made previously. Although the simplicity was nice at first, I've realized that it really isn't sustainable where I'm living, both financially and intellectually.

I have ADHD, and I am in my first year of understanding that this is what was truly happening. I see a therapist for my condition, and am more hopeful than ever about my progress. After a long wait I had my first appointment with a covered psychiatrist, it's looking promising that I will be to receive treatment for my inattention. I am still trying to find a job in the industry, but it's seriously disheartening the lengths I need to go through to stand out from other candidates, as well as make it past ATS filters. I didn't understand nearly to the extent it was holding me back.

For example, I recently had an ATS scanner service explain to me that if I apply for a "ReactJS Developer" position, the algorithm can't even discern that my roles that generally I describe as "Senior Front End Developer" are being filtered out before they reach a human. Even though every position on my resume lists React! What an infuriating system! We as the progenitors of so much of the systems that run the world today are behest to the the stupidest bots imaginable to save costs.

I work on personal projects, but more often than not I lost motivation and don't make it across the finish line. my github looks sparse, my job tenures look strange, but my will to continue on has not faltered. To anyone who has faced challenges in the recent job market, know it isn't your fault. Our profession is less than 100 years old and carries power beyond measure. If you struggle with focus but love to learn new things you are not alone. It's a hard card to be dealt but you can find the help you need. I am here, I am still trying, and there is no harm in pouring a few beers.

I want to preface my point by saying I love LLMs. I am very excited by what's on the horizon and their many useful applications. They are worth investing in and exploring. But it seems like to me many of the members of the tech community have adapted OpenAI's terminology of AGI without really thinking about it. There is an obvious financial benefit for the developers of LLMs to implant this idea as a north star for anything people do with LLMS. Similar to how crypto advocates have a financial stake in their adoption, every time someone puts AGI in their package name, it's free marketing for Sam and Satya. AGI is a science fiction concept that would magically solve all our problems, just like crypto was meant to replace the banks and usher in a new age in finance. I personally think we will look back on their pontificating about magic world changing AIs in a similar light.

Not to say LLMs aren't going to find their killer apps, but I will not be participating in any "to the moon" behavior and focus on finding tangible uses.