For software developers, I feel this career thing works a bit differently. Going up the ladder means managing people or projects, but that is not necessarily more fun than writing code.

I don't know where I see myself in 5 years, but it might actually be still just coding, no actual change in title or function. It's fun and challenging and I imagine it can be like that for a long time.

Instead, a dead end job for me would be caused by projects that are boring, or that the process has become overly bureaucratic, or that the company interests or culture have become too corporate or political.

The title says it is about Dead End Jobs, but it is not. It is about People That Cannot Stay Put In a Damned Place. Look at this quote:

> "Yes, unfortunately, even good jobs can be dead-end jobs—or positions with little to no room for advancement."

This is the massive obsession our culture has developed around growth and progress. The whole premise of this article is that if you are not eager to make it big and shoot for the starts in your chosen profession, there's something flawed inside you and you should take immediate action to fix it.

There might be a bit of hyperbole from my part, but the article actually suggest to switch careers and follow your passion if you find yourself unable to keep moving ahead. As if the work of a lifetime can be thrown down the window every other day.

Another petite peeve is that you shouldn't want to "still [be] doing the exact same work today as you did two years ago when you first started with the company." If that is the case, it either took you just a few weeks to master your position, or you have never taken the time to actually master anything. Whichever it is you better keep hopping, because sooner or later someone like me is going to come and automate that job from under your feet.

I'm in a job a bit like that, not much room for advancement. Not much of a challenge, but the pay is about double what most other places in my town are paying because it's a small location of a much bigger company. my family is here and we have no intention of leaving so for now it's a very comfy dead end job with good benefits etc.

If you are a programmer in a company where IT is seen as a cost center, you are in a dead end job.

If you are programmer and your manager and his/her manager are PMPs , you are in a dead end job.

When I think of "Dead End Job", I think of a clerk at a convenience store or fast food joint, the guy who drives a tractor for the company that won the contract to cut the grass on the side of the highway, or the janitor comes to clean our offices at night.

It's hard to imagine a working programmer making $80K at a stable company as being in a dead-end job. Maybe in the strictest sense of the word it's a dead-end if they don't have the opportunity to advance, but if that is the end, then they didn't do so bad - and if you're in that situation and you do think that way, ask the janitor who empties your trash at 8pm how he feels about your dead end job.

If you feel like you're not reaching your potential, then yeah, I know what you mean. I feel the same way. But me not reaching my potential is different than having a dead end job.

5 years experience is very different than 1 year of experience repeated 5 times.

Many positions aren't designed for growth, and you really need to ask your self if you have been growing professionally when in that position. You risk losing whatever edge you once had.

IMO having side projects (with some sort of attached business goal) / and some contracting is a great option if you aren't ready to leave a job that is going nowhere.

Most of the responses here are from developers but from a more business perspective, I find this article somewhat flawed. Regarding "It Would Take a Big Event for You to Get Promoted," the author says "For example, say your boss has been in her position for five years, and her boss has been in his position for seven—and they both seem very comfortable where they are. That means, in order for you to move up, something would have to entice one of those big wigs out of his or her position. "

A good manager should be able to promote and advance their employee if they're adding significant value even if it doesn't mean taking the manager's position.

I've found myself recently in that situation. That's what I am going to do about it:

1) I've been reading about startups and etc for ~2 years but have never did my own project ("but well there is XYZ which is perfect..."). At the moment, I have tabs open and looking for ideas for MVPs home page's design. The experience will be extremely valuable for the future.

2) I felt like I have something to say, but kept in my mind. Now I write everything to google docs, leave for a while to cool down (sometimes it looks like awesome idea but a day later I find it as an embarrassing) and going to publish as a blog.

The hardest thing about it? There's almost all the time "well it's not totally perfect... just few more days!".

Since I'm still a student (one year left), many people at networking events are like 'oh sounds interesting... you just graduated?' 'nope, one more year' 'oh......', the opportunities are a bit more limited.

If you spend 40+ hours a week working on other people's projects, hasn't the worst that can happen already happened?

The plan is that you work until you have enough money to hold you for a year or two (so you can work on your projects). If they cut your pay then the quit date is pushed back, if they give you a raise then it's pushed up. I think that covers it.

So dead end means... no raise in sight?

But what if I don't want a promotion and want to cultivate mastery instead? This article is kind of wide of the mark for HN.

It's kind of depressing to see that the current mindset seems to be to quit as soon as it gets a little difficult.

I have gotten used to taking pride in the fact that I deliver only slightly shitty work under very shitty circumstances.

Oh, that's simple - you are 9-to-5 coder in a language which name begins with J or ends with #.

If you ever find yourself in a dead-end job that you love, you'll understand.

In my case, I had to leave a position I really liked because it simply didn't pay a livable wage, with no raise or promotion in sight. Taking low pay to engage your passion is great when you're single, but the game changes once you get married and/or have kids. For me, leaving had nothing to do with the rat-race and everything to do with meeting the basic needs of my family. I suspect others who've found themselves in this situation would be able to give other reasons, too, that are not related to growth for the sake of it.

I agree with you to a point. I do think that society is obsessed over "growth" and "progress." If you are happy where you are, then stay.

The trouble is that I am one of those people who feels a drive to keep "moving forward," whatever that means. I have had a job that was by most measures great, but after 5 years, I was still doing exactly the same thing. I was very good at it, and could do it in my sleep, but that meant the challenge had gone out of it. I needed something new. Sadly, I expect that I will spend most of my life like that. As soon as I master one challenge, I will be seeking a new one.

> " The whole premise of this article is that if you are not eager to make it big and shoot for the starts in your chosen profession, there's something flawed inside you and you should take immediate action to fix it."

It seems a reasonable premise, given the audience of that site.

Though they might want to have considered prioritization. E.g. If you're constantly networking, job-hunting, and proving yourself at new firms, that's necessarily less time for you to 'hack' other areas of your life.

A 'good' dead-end job is a pretty great place to be if your spare time is focused on writing a book, building a house, training for a triathlon, etc.

Personally, I don't advance solely because of the money. My main motivation is facing and overcoming new challenges. I've worked for a couple startups and another small company. In my experience I face challenges at the start and overcome them while leaving my imprint. Soon after, things are better then when I showed up and the place starts feeling stale. I suppose I just hunger for more punishment. :p The increases in pay are just an added bonus that makes the other stuff in life slightly easier.