[strlen]

I don't think tech employees who are often accused for job hopping deliberately set out to do so. Most would love to find a place where they can stay 5-10 years while learning and doing rewarding work.

The reason they frequently leave earlier is that they are unable to learn, grow and apply themselves at their present place of work, being in a situation where if they were to stay longer they'd be progressively less useful to employers. The reason younger employees sometimes within a year when they're not adequately mentored and instead keep being used _only_ for maintenance work rather than actual development.

Ultimately each hop, each earlier-than-desired departure does give you a better idea of what to look for in your next position (to avoid more hops). It's true that short stays close some doors, but in serious technology companies, hiring decisions for engineers are made by engineers. The hiring manager or company HR may ask you for an explanation of why you've left last several places (and confirm it by checking your references), but it's foolish to pass on a strong developer who made some career mistakes in favour of a weak, but "reliable" candidate. Companies that do so aren't the ones where I'd like to work in the first place.

The more significant risk to leaving early isn't the messed up resume, it's becoming too anxious and jaded, systematically leaving before being able to apply yourself (e.g., during the training process or when working on a starter project), unable to take advantage of mentoring available. Leaving a company with a steep learning curve within six months is foolish, but sticking around for another year when you haven't learned anything in the two years isn't wise either.