Leaving Google Cloud
š a linked post to
newsletter.goodtechthings.com »
—
originally shared here on
Iām used to the next right thing feeling certain and obvious. Thatās probably because Iām used to being young. When youāre young, there are a lot of people out there whose examples you can imitate, and relatively low risk in trying things youāre not sure will work out. You also have an unearned confidence that comes from not having failed much yet.
But even the most conventionally successful of us, young or not, may reach a place in our careers where THERE IS NO OBVIOUS NEXT STEP. The things youāve discovered youāre good at may not exactly line up with a standard corporate career path. There may no longer be an existing, ready-made challenge thatās the right size for you to step into.
There will just be a you-shaped hole in the worldāits boundaries defined by your unique connections, the extreme limit of your skills, the scope of your ambitionsāand trial and error is the only way you can figure out how to fill it.
As Iām oft to quote, Lisa Simpsonās āa challenge I can doā bit comes to mind here.
To be honest, this has been the toughest part of being on the job hunt.
I never wanted to follow a conventional career path. Iāve enjoyed the flexibility of my professional life so far, but I do yearn for the perceived stability of a full time thing. Many full time things donāt often give you much flexibility.
I suppose all I can do is just putting myself out into the world and explore until I find a āme-shapedā hole that looks close enough for me.
I sometimes hear the phrase āunapologetically youā tossed around, and I guess there comes a time where you either need to fully embrace that ethos or jump into premade boxes which only can represent a portion of your self.
I think Iām trying to pursue the former.