Wanted to know from the LGBTQIA+ community, how are you doing in this toxic work culture and how is life after 30 in IT. Im 26 and scared

I'm not from the LGBTQIA+ community, but I can share about life in IT after 30.

The work culture is not uniformly toxic in the industry, and varies from company to company. So it is possible to switch to less toxic companies.

Also, in IT, life in junior roles as in individual contributor is hard because of pressure of productivity and churn out code / deliverables rapidly.

Once you get into more senior engineering or management roles after 10+ years of experience, the pressure of daily productivity drops, but instead you get increased responsibility for leading & ensuring the success of your team. So that is a different kind of mental pressure, but you have more free time in daily life.

Also, by that experience level, you develop increased mental strength and resilience by the time you're in 40s, so same daily work doesn't feel so challenging any more.

It's the same thing as going to a gym. A 10 kg weight feels heavy on first day, but after you have been working out for months or years, you develop strength and muscles, 10 kg feels like nothing.

Same with work and career. The responsibility and pressure and toxicity will continue to be tough throughout the career. But with increasing age and experience, you develop the mental strength, resilience, and skills, so you're able to handle that much more easily.

Hope this helps. Good luck! 👍