I've never worked so hard, for so little pay, and with nothing to show for it. 12 or 14 hours a day, and lots of weekends, for half of what I used to make at my old job. Oh, and before all that, I had to do a one month "internship" (basically, work for free for a month).
Even so, my suggestions were always ignored, and I was fired for no reason because management is VERY cliquey and always gave promotions and recognition to those in their inner circle. Meanwhile, missed deadlines, constantly shifting priorities, promising employees perks and bonuses that never happened, and petty bickering/gossip/backstabbing were all normal.
Not to mention the many contacts I burned because I promised something the company didn't have the will to follow through with. And the multiple vendors who'd call us unprofessional and amateurish (and the staff would get offended. They, especially the CEO, were very averse to feedback).
Learn from my mistake. Find a startup job (or any job) in SF (shouldn't be too hard) that pays you what you're worth and for the amount of work you do, treats you with respect, and won't dump you after they have so much as an inkling that you might no longer be useful to them.
