I was very much a part of the 'career rat race', as I call it. School, then high school and then without much thought, went to college to study Chemical Engineering. Chose that discipline because my father had a successful chemical industry, waiting for me to take the helm.
Studying chemical engineering was abysmal of course. I loved tinkering with computers ever since I was a kid, and I'd absolutely no interest in what chemical stuff was being taught. Being a bright student since childhood (having decent memory) helped, because I could mug up answers during exams and pass. It was during the final year when I told myself, 'I beg to differ. I don't want to follow this path'.
All my classmates had started preparing for higher education & similar things. People kept asking, 'how come you aren't preparing for master's degree?', 'why not MBA?', 'why not intern in some chemical corporation?'. I badly didn't want to do any of it. So I didn't. And staying on this decision changed everything.
In the last few months of the final year, a company came in for campus interviews. This company wanted smart engineers to be a part of their internet marketing team. The job didn't expect any particular type of degree, just engineers. It expected us to learn marketing skills, learn some business skills for dealing with other companies, learn to deal with clients outside of home country and execute internet marketing strategies to help grow clients' business. And most of all, something that aroused my curiosity then, the job expected us to do it all using computers.
It probably wasn't the best thing after 4 years of engineering, but it did seem so at the time, and mainly something that showed me light. Their hiring process was surprisingly difficult for some reason, but I did get through. I even got awarded the 'best rookie' prize 3 months after the job started. But this looked like a rat race soon again.
I kept doing the expected things next 2 months and it was no creative anymore. Had a word with the CEO about it and he said, 'You're one of the best I have, and I see you growing at the pace of *some good senior manager* & become like him in 2 years. Don't fret, keep up the good work'.
So? I quit few days later! I absolutely didn't want to see myself growing the same way that "top performing" senior guy did. Let alone that, I couldn't see myself doing those same things even 1 more month. Didn't follow this rat race either, in short. And it paid off hugely!
That job, via clients, showed me how software businesses can be. I was extremely intrigued by the idea of building one myself (had some entrepreneurial blood in the veins from my dad after all :)). I was always fascinated by software; so I thought, why not? Lets learn to make software and eventually, maybe, a business.
To cut a long story short, an extremely eventful year followed; full of making software for different clients, trying various things, learning, and learning and learning more technical stuff everyday. Experience and expertise grew; much faster I guess, because I loved what I did.
Today, I'm working as a developer at Shopify (Story of How I Got Hired). Shopify (ranked amongst the top 50 most innovative companies in the world) has the best product in its class, the best team of people I've ever met; each one of us trying to use our creativity to the fullest and hustling to make Shopify even better each day. Life couldn't be better.
So, I highly recommend not following the rat race. The way to do it I think, is through this question: Do you see yourself continually doing what you do (while learning a ton & growing fast), for at least the next 2 years?. You don't have to do it for that many years but can you at least see yourself doing it? If the answer is no, please quit. Just begin working towards something you really feel like doing. The results would surprise you.
Today I can absolutely see myself killing it at Shopify for at least the next few years. I couldn't see that in case of higher education. I couldn't see that in that internet marketing job. When you can answer that question above in the affirmative, you know you're all set!
Hope this answer aids at least one person's decisions. :)
Cheers.
Read other related questions on Quora:
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from Quora http://ift.tt/2dPeBO1
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