Career management--something I definitely don't have figured out.

[flexagon]

The career management thing last night managed to be inspiring and very intimidating all at once. The coolest bit (from a nerd perspective) was that I got to see a Roomba in action, because one of the speakers was one of the founders of iRobot and she brought one along. It was so cute! It went in circles, bumped into chairs, ate a napkin and shredded it all over the floor, and generally did its thing.

Of the three speakers, one was her, one was a very Dale-Carnegie-influenced network-savvy guy who thought the only way to be really successful is to start lots of companies with other MIT grads (thus centering your career around people), and one was a nutrition science guy who's basically just worked at a lot of places and wanted to remind us that things change all the time. (Be Prepared.) I guess I found the business-starting guy most convincing, no doubt partly because he's taken public speaking courses... and is a multimillionaire. :b I have to admit that sounds pretty good. All the same, I know that starting companies doesn't work out for everyone. And also, I still don't have any good ideas that don't seem to be taken, and my college friends all went in different directions. (Stealing some of my friends from my current job, now, that might work better.) Maybe my best bet is to keep thinking about robotics and maybe consulting companies, and also big cool companies in which career advancement within the company might be possible, for next year. Oh yeah, and take that damn Dale Carnegie course. I notice that one just started in Boston on April 14... I keep missing them.

Comments

From what I've seen it IS all about the people

[bluechromis.livejournal.com]

Network network network. Even if you don't start the company, getting in at an early stage can also be very rewarding. SCF was telling me how he made his millions last night and basically he got semi lucky in that a VP left and the VP's options were transferred to him (and then he was smart enough to cash them before the stock sank).

What is the Dale Carnegie course? That sounds interesting.

Re: From what I've seen it IS all about the people

[flexagon]

So I have to keep going to these young alumni things? Sigh. I was afraid of that. The Dale Carnegie website is a nice place to start with all things Carnegie (actually, close the browser, go read How to Win Friends and Influence People, then come back). The main D. C. Course is described here. There's also a separate (I think) public speaking course that everyone always recommends. I'm a fairly good presenter/speaker but I'd like to get better, sometime.

You're right about coming into something at an early stage. But then you have to be aware of that something. So I can either convince a friend to come up with something brilliant, or I can network... or I could consider NOT making millions and deciding to measure success differently. I'm kind of on the fence with that one, still.

Re: From what I've seen it IS all about the people

[bluechromis.livejournal.com]

Ah yes, HWFAIP - I've read that, but a while ago and it's probably time for a re-read. I'll check out the courses, I need help with presentations.

As for the reasons for getting into something early - well, I guess I did make it sound like $$ was the motivator, but actually, the real reason I think I'm still sort of semi-driven to get into something at an early->high level is because it's so much more of accomplishment than what I've been doing. I just really can't cope with the idea of going into work everyday for the next 30 years and not having a lot more impact. What IS the point? The $$ is a nice side-effect, but I do think that if I knew something else that I truly loved I would be willing to give up a big salary for it.

There's one problem with high-level

[flexagon]

and that is that it would take me away from doing hands-on stuff, eventually. Unless the company is really, really small and stays that way. Would that be all right? I don't know. I may have told you once about the design class I took where the idea that came out of the original brainstorming session was mine, and I also ended up being team leader (and then co-team leader of a larger team). So getting to watch other people working on my idea, and still working on it myself, and eventually seeing it work, was one of the best experiences of my engineering life. I don't think I want my hands out of the dirt... yet. But the millionaire bit does sound okay :)

I just wrote to this girl I know who's been starting companies since she was about a senior. I'll ask her what that whole scene is like and how she's doing... that should give me some clues.