In this episode, I sat down with my friend (and returning guest) Pooja Dutt to talk about a question a lot of people are quietly thinking right now: is big tech a trap? Pooja worked as a remote Software Engineer at Microsoft for 3.5 years and decided to quit—yes, in this economy. We break down the real reason behind her decision (burnout + wanting to go all-in on YouTube and side businesses), what she did to make it financially possible, and what she didn’t expect after leaving—like missing structure and the day-to-day social interaction that comes with a 9–5. We also get super honest about the current tech job market. Pooja applied to around 25 roles and got basically one true callback (the other interview came through a recruiter relationship she had kept warm). That leads to one of the biggest takeaways: applications alone are rough right now, and relationships are doing a lot of the heavy lifting. Finally, we talk about the “unspoken curriculum” in big tech—visibility, persuasion, and navigating bureaucracy. You’re not playing politics… but you are navigating politics, and nobody teaches you that in school.