A SERIES OF HAPPY ACCIDENTS*

* HOW WHITMAN PREPARED ME FOR THE STARTUP CAREER I DIDN’T EVEN KNOW I WANTED

DISCLAIMER

I MAY MAKE DATED REFERENCES TO A WHITMAN OF YESTERYEAR; FLY OFF ON TANGENTS; USE INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC LEXICON THAT IS, HONESTLY, AMORPHOUS, AT BEST; AND BABBLE NEARLY INCOHERENTLY FOR WHAT SEEMS LIKE AN ETERNITY. YOU CAN ALWAYS END YOUR SUFFERING BY RAISING YOUR HAND AND ASKING ME TO ELABORATE, CLEARING YOUR THROAT LOUDLY, COUGHING WHILE BLURTING OUT EXPLETIVES, OR SIMPLY BY GETTING UP AND WALKING AWAY. IT’S COOL. I GET IT.

SO WHO AM I? AND WHY DO YOU CARE?

ENGLISH MAJOR

ALMOST HISTORY & PHILOSOPHY MINOR

DUMB JOCKImage courtesy https://www.flickr.com/photos/gtcooper25/7021437345/

WOULD-BE GEEKImage courtesy IBM

SO, IN SHORT, YOUR USUAL, WELL ROUNDED, LIBERAL ARTS GRADUATEImage courtesy https://www.flickr.com/photos/yqakent/8756660312

SO I LEFT WHITMAN AND WHAT WAS THE FIRST JOB I HAD?

WELL, I WAS A LACROSSE COACH AND A NANNY. DUH.

SO WHAT WAS THE FIRST CAREER OPPORTUNITY I HAD?

LITERARY AGENTImage courtesy https://www.flickr.com/photos/quattrostagioni/6363562459

WHAT COULD GO WRONG?

💩

Image courtesy https://www.flickr.com/photos/design-dog/10538897554

SO, NO GOLD WATCH. NOW WHAT?

WTF IS A STARTUP?

WRITING AND EDITING

A DOZEN YEARS OF STARTUPS

BUT STILL, SOMETHING WAS MISSING

OPEN SOURCE

COCA-COLA, DAIMLER, FACEBOOK, KICKSTARTER, INSTAGRAM, INTEL, GOOGLE, NIKE, TARGET, TWITTER, VERIZON… AND MANY, MANY, MANY MORE

PIE ALUMS ARE CURRENTLY WORTH MORE THAN HALF OF A BILLION DOLLARS AND EMPLOY ALMOST A THOUSAND PEOPLE

IN CASE YOU’VE FORGOTTEN, I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO RIGHT TO BE DOING THIS. I’M JUST LUCKY. REALLY, REALLY, REALLY LUCKY.

BUT ENOUGH ABOUT ME

WHAT DO I WISH I HAD KNOWN HERE?

THERE IS NO “CAREER PATH”

EMBRACE THE RANDOM VARIETY OF LIBERAL ARTS LEARNING

FIND COMFORT IN BEING UNCOMFORTABLE

FOCUS ON THE ASSIGNMENT

DON’T LET ACADEMICS PRECLUDE LIFEImage courtesy https://www.flickr.com/photos/lyza/48034431/

ENJOY YOUR MAJOR EXAMS

WHAT YOU KNOW IS FAR MORE APPLICABLE THAN YOU REALIZE

COMMON SENSE IS NOT COMMON

ONE PARTING THOUGHT…

IF SOME DUMB JOCK FROM 20TH CENTURY WHITMAN CAN JUST BUMBLE INTO THIS, IMAGINE WHAT YOU CAN DO

THANK YOU!

@TUROCZY RICK@PIEPDX.COM