oh i was hoping you would provide the link 
If I recall correctly we use PLC Programming to run numerical control sytems. What language did you use for writing navigation systems? Design is again something completely different - CAD etc. Unless, i’m missing something there are a lot of languages there that have no relation to each other. Kudos to you. What timeframe are we talking about here?
I am certainly glad to know that I rank somewhere between “scrotum bastard” and “community organizer”.
Lmfao…just kidding with you man! Btw, thanks for effectively reviving my inherent disgust for scrum in this thread.
What sort of crazy sht
Interesting thread. My conclusion if I was to change everything, go back and start blank. As I want to make money then best way is to create a product and service that solves a real problem for people and are willing to pay for the product or service you created. Investing taught me to think this way. As your service/products get adapted, you get share for each unit of that service/product sold. Over time, network effect and the economies of scale begin to work for you. Since you begin very early, you get used to trying, failing, trying and after several repeats and sincere attempts - you will find enough success that will inspire you to continue on this path. More on it here…
http://paulgraham.com/start.html
Assuming I have a great mentor parents that share this vision. That said, I had focus my efforts from very early age (Age 7) on that ONE goal and keep doing things that aim at understanding people’s problem and create solutions from them. I will mow lawns, deliver paper, clean garages, sell lemonade on hot days, buy scrap and sell on ebay and so on. Read as many books on enterpreneurs, meet them, learn their story, their struggles and just keep doing it through school, undergrad, grad school, work - till one of them works! E.g - Undergrads/grads at Stanford routinely start companies. I understand we all are not that lucky, hard working and smart to get into stanfords of the world but the idea remains.
s2000 magician, Numi, chad - sound like those kind of folks from here. They have created their own customers and services that help them earn. Ofcourse there are numerous famous people too!
Another thing I found useful was seeking advice, seeking mentors and knowing getting advice was good for you. Objective and constructive critical feedback from others helps you develop clarity in your goals. Seeking feedback makes you, your product/service better and reach your goals quicker and effectively.
More here http://blog.samaltman.com/you-and-your-research
As life has it, my path was anything but that. I am an engineer by trade. Did engineering work for 4 years then got into writing and designing software. Along the way I worked at few big 4 firms in advisory roles that had formal culture to give you feedback on your career goals, tag you with a mentor and to the extent possible, allowed you to pursue whatever you wanted to do. I also quit big 4 and started doing my own gigs. Got interested in investing, finished CFA and do investment research now. Am I done? No. Still tinkering to create the service/product that solves a problem but just little bit worn out…
It is definitely the latter for me. Still have much to learn.
I wrote most of my software in C, though I’ve programmed in Basic (including Visual Basic), Fortran, APL, ADA, and a few other odd languages. The navigation software was in C and ADA; I was mostly writing nonlinear Kalman filters, but there were a few other interesting things as well. I think that the freeway camera software was in C as well. The software for analyzing mortgage-backed securities was in C, and included some interesting threading operations to speed up the analysis on computers with multiple processors.
I honestly don’t recall what language I used for the cost estimation on the petroleum processing facilities; that was at Exxon, using whatever language they had in place at the time.
The numerical control stuff was largely in C; what I did was to write code that wrote code to run the CNC equipment. The user would give my software a design file and it would generate all of the commands for the machinery: tool changes, spindle speeds, tool trajectories (linear, arcs of circles), and so on.
For the EFP warhead design I wrote software that would allow me to design free-form surfaces (for the metal parts that would be formed into projectiles when the warhead was detonated), allow me to analyze velocity and acceleration vector fields, run Monte Carlo simulations to optimize warhead designs for maximum effectiveness, analyze inspection data for manufactured parts, and on and on.
I did the CNC stuff stand-alone for 3 or 4 years, then as part of the warhead design work, which I did for 10 years. The cost analysis and freeway camera work were both short-term: about 6 months each. I did the MBS stuff for 6 years.
Those damn onions again…
I found my job but it took a while.
Went to a good school and joined the military after (because I had no idea what I wanted to do). Never took a single business course in college. (Took undergrad night classes in accounting/financne/business law while in the service).
After my 5 years I heard about being an actuary and was able to land a job at a top pension consulting firm as an actuarial analyst.
After 2 years at that (boooorrriiing) I learned about the CFA program and found analyzing investment related material MUCH more interesting. Found a job at a RIA.
After 5 years there and getting my Charter, I realized equity research was really what I wanted to do. I applied for a job and got one. Don’t ever want to do anything else.
Some people let their careers find them, which is fine. If they start on the right path it might happen that way. But I feel like most of us, like me, just kind of started walking on a random path, see what you like/hate, and steer toward what you like, not knowing the final destination. Eventually it should make itself clear.
You didn’t like working as an actuary? I heard it’s one of the best $$$ to hour ratio.
Not bad, but if you do a great job calculating liabilities, what does that get you? Pat on the back?
If you do a great job analyzing a stock for a buy side firm, it gets you A LOT more. ($$$$)
The hours weren’t that easy or anything. The pay wasn’t all that great. I have better hours now as a buy side analyst.
Well, if you are not working towards finding your career, then you’ll be awefully dependent on luck.
You’ll be dependent on your luck even if you know what you want to do, but, if you are in the right direction, the odds of you finding your career or your career finding you will be much higher than the odds of an angel blessing you with the career best for you.
One should atlest do some introspection and experiemntation to find their affinity, because if you are running behind things you don’t really want then you might very well feel disappointed even after you succeed. I have experienced it, and against all advices I left a great going career and switched into a different career where I found my happiness.
Anyway, that’s just my point of view, felt like sharing it for people who are not really sure about their current career choice,
For most of humanity’s time on earth, nobody really had a say in what their jobs will be.
When we were hunters and gathers, you either hunt and forage or die. When we were start farming and organizing cities states, you could either farmed or fight wars. When the industrial revolution happened, you could work in a factory, fight wars, or farm.
It wasn’t until the 1960s/70s when the developed world transformed into a service economy and people started obtaining higher education in masses did this notion of a “career” really start to take hold. Luckily, new industries were starting every decade or so, and the U.S. was growing 5%+/yr, so people could choose a career or just getting lucky and fall into a career.
Now, with slower economic and high student loan debt, I think this notion of a career will some what fade. When you are in debt, any job is better than nothing. Finding what you were ment to do (as if there is such a thing) might have to take a backseat for a lot of people.
Mohamed El Erian calls it the new normal.
Christine Lagarde calls it the new mediocre.
Former Trader calls it The Lost Generation.
^ I call it a good reason to find work as an old fashioned merchant businessman and stop relying on others to pay your salary. It doesn’t matter what you’re selling, but through all of those stages of history, the guy who bought something low and sold it higher has always been the winner. More so than the career farmer, bobbin changer, autoworker or banker.
The Trader’s Son asks his Father: “How do you earn money? You don’t produce anything, don’t steal anything, and still you are rich. How?”
The Trader Replies to his Son: “Son, bring that stick of butter from the fridge. Very well, bring it back now… Did anything change? Did the butter lose it’s weight? No? …But your hands are greasy now.”
^ Is that some original poetry?
^ Just someting I read a while back that made me chuckle.
If that is the case, there will be a transition period. People don’t become an old fahioned merchant businessman overnight, especially in an era where many feel they are entitled to be successful just for breathing. One to 2 generations will be sacrificed in the process, hence the Lost Generation (s). Today’s youth will be Exhibit A, the text book example for kids decades from now on how standard of living doesn’t necessarily increase in every successive generation.