[dfcowell]

I’m basing my feedback on Will Larson’s Staff Engineer archetypes (https://staffeng.com/guides/staff-archetypes) so read that first if you’re unfamiliar.

It sounds like you’re in a company that only has Tech Lead and Right Hand staff+ roles available, and the responsibilities of those roles are at odds with what you want to be doing.

I would actively seek out companies that offer Solver or Architect roles. These tend to be non-tech companies with large internal technology teams, so you might need to look further afield than the organizations we typically see represented on HN.

Overall though, optimize for your happiness at work. If you suffer through a role you don’t find fulfilling you will burn out.

I wouldn’t worry about the optics of your CV. Any place with a decent culture (i.e. somewhere you would actually want to work,) will listen to your story and appreciate your self-awareness and candor.