[anonny]

> I would be somewhere between indifferent and disappointed if one of my friends settled for a job at any of those companies.

I think this is emblematic of what I'm encountering: Joining Google is "settling." When I was in college, Google was at its peak, and I was very attracted to Google both because of the amazing work it did and the deep technical challenges it solved.

What I'm concerned with today is that, due to whatever cause, Google fatigue is needlessly costing me friends and respect. I don't think of myself as a Google employee, I see myself as an educated, capable engineer who happens to work for Google at the moment. I have actually received disrespect in social settings for this. Why do people take PR missteps and apply them to me as a professional?

[benologist]

There's nothing "wrong" with working at Google and you can bet every friend of yours joining or starting a startup secretly hopes your employer bails their asses out when their seed money expires.

While google makes very public, very loud decisions that people dislike you're going to be held accountable for it. Their decisions impact 100,000,000s of people, the ones you know are going to bust your balls for it.

Anyone who literally doesn't want to be your friend because you work at Google is a douche.