Internapalooza and Mentorship

I attended Internapalooza this Tuesday

• I enjoyed meeting everyone. I met a lot of different interns from many different companies. Because I’m practically one of two interns at my current place, it can be a bit isolating, like a bubble. So it was good to get away. It gave me a lot of perspective.

I especially enjoyed the talks

• The theme was “Women in Tech”, and some amazing ladies spoke about their journey and gave advice. Including this one :)

• Marissa was interesting because she started out with a research background. She was interested in some really specific research, which gave her a good opportunity for a summer research position, and then she decided to take, out of 14 offers, a job at a weird little startup of 8 people. She said she chose it because she wanted to work with smart people who were doing something really interesting, and that the worst thing that could happen is that later on, she could say that she worked at this weird little company with a funny name called “Google”.

• She also stressed the importance of getting the perspective of both a big and small company. Fortunately, at the moment, that’s exactly what I’ve been doing this year. I completely get it.

Mentorship

• I’ve really been struggling with the reality that the Bay area, with all of the opportunity it provides, and how it’s just not enough. Imagine being surrounded by every opportunity, loads of money, and every entitlement imaginable, but lacking in opportunity for growth and mentorship. This is how it feels.

• On the other hand, this town that I visited once in New England, with its beautiful architecture, snow, fall, has resonated so deeply with what I’m looking for right now. Everything my advisors have touched upon has come to pass. What they offered is something that NO ONE else had offered me; investment in myself, recognizing that I have the POTENTIAL to be so much more than I see myself to be right now. NO ONE else has offered that in terms of a company and other managers/engineers I have found here. They focus on jobs and making money, as though I should settle. It is a sad thing, but it is a wonderful thing to have the maturity to recognize that.

• A mathematician friend of mine told me this week “you are more than what you are right now, at this moment” basically, in an email. This is what my advisors have been saying. Every other company, recruiter or person who I do not consider a mentor has trended in the direction of putting a label on me and trying to (as I call it) dumb it down so I take the path of least resistance. They goad you on by saying you can “get a job quickly”, “make a lot like me”, or some other nonsense. But that path isn’t enough for me, considering how far I’ve come.

Oh, I am going to Europe for a Conference!

• I am really excited about that! I will get to see my brother, who I haven’t seen since 2017. I am really humbled by the persons who tried to encourage me to get me to this conference, starting with Gabe and moving through a chain of other people, including my advisors. I am grateful.

And that’s it