Bored at work, Netflix engineer quits Rs. 3.5 crore job
What's the story
We all have heard the expression "a bird in a gilded cage," but Netflix's former Senior Software Engineer Michael Lin lived through the same. Lin resigned from his job at Netflix in May 2021. Why? Because he no longer enjoyed the work he was doing. Why is this a story? Well, he was paid a whopping Rs. 3.5 crore/year by Netflix before he quit.
Context
Why does this story matter?
The pandemic was a tough time for many. Apart from being confined to our homes, it challenged us economically and mentally. That is why Lin's decision to quit his high-paying job for the sake of his own well-being deserves appreciation. Most of us are told to stick with what we have. Lin questioned that notion without any backups to follow his heart.
Good times
Lin initially enjoyed his time at Netflix
Before joining Netflix, Lin plied his trade in e-commerce giant Amazon till 2017. According to him, the first two years before the pandemic struck were good for him at Netflix. He enjoyed the culture at Netflix, which was less secretive than at Amazon. In his own words, he was "paid handsomely to learn." "It was like getting paid to do an MBA."
Pandemic
COVID-19 changed things at Netflix for Lin
Lin's great Netflix experience didn't last long as the COVID-19 pandemic brought in work-from-home routine. Lin wrote on LinkedIn, "All you were left with was the work itself. So if you didn't like the work, and that was all you had, COVID magnified this fact 10x more." Along with that, toward the end of his stay, he felt his work becoming more "copy-paste."
Job change
Lin tried for several job changes within Netflix
Lin tried to get out of the rut he was in by trying for horizontal role changes. He first tried to move to product management but as Netflix did not support such changes, the move did not materialize. He even suggested creating a role within his own team, but that failed as well. Lin slowly lost the motivation to work, which affected his performance.
Objections
Lin's parents objected to his decision to quit the job
Lin's lack of motivation to work didn't go unnoticed as he was told to "pull himself together" during his performance review. Two weeks after the review, he quit his well-paying job to the surprise of many. His parents, who immigrated to the US from China, objected this decision and asked him to keep his head down and work. However, nothing changed Lin's mind.
Life's better
Lin saw an improvement in his mental health after quitting
The pandemic was a wake-up call for Lin. He said, "you could die from COVID before any of your dreams are ever realized." Once he quit his job, he felt a sense of calm and a belief that everything will be all right. He saw a marked improvement in his mental health. After Netflix, Lin lived in NYC and even took a road trip.
Quote
"I've decided to commit to fully working for myself"
"I've decided to commit fully to working for myself. Although I'm just starting, and don't have any real dependable streams of income, I'm going to trust the process that if I'm working on the things that energize me, good things will happen," Lin said.