Excitement
I'm not the sort of person that will change jobs just because they can. I don't lightly leave behind a job where there are lots of people that I like and respect and where I have the tools and ability to work on a lot of various (and often interesting) projects. What draws me away from a secure and comfortable environment like that is the exciting possibility of really doing something meaningful. My new company is called OpGen, which is located here in Madison, WI where I live and I will be working full-time as a software developer. I don't want to shoot my mouth off about what I'll be working on until I know for sure that I'm not giving away any company secrets, so for now I'll just point you to this press release on the company website. It gives a pretty good synopsis of the technology we're dealing with and the type of market we're going for. I think this quote pretty much sums up what has me so excited about this company:
“There is a huge unmet need for systems to rapidly and accurately diagnose clinical infections...,” added Corey Mulloy of Highland. “We believe that OpGen’s technology is uniquely placed to meet this need and to transform clinical microbiology.”
Loss
As I mentioned, I'm leaving behind a group of people that I've worked with over the last three years with whom I've created very healthy and positive working relationships as well as friendships. I'm also leaving behind a position where I had the ability to work on a large variety of projects and tasks. I had the freedom to explore some of my own ideas and work on things that interested me. I can also say that I feel that everyone I worked with felt that I was doing something worthwhile and that I was a valuable part of the team. Walking away from a situation like that was the hardest part of making this change.
Optimism
As I've been explaining my new position to friends and family, I keep saying that I'm very optimistic about the opportunity .. hopeful that all if it's brilliant possibilities come to fruition. Truly, in my mind, there is no better situation for me to be in at this point in my life. I will be engaged in a brand new software development project, working to build a product that will provide genuine, revolutionary changes in a vitally important field like health care. I will be part of a small team, helping to shape the very foundation of the software architecture. And to boot, I will be invested in the company such that if, as everyone at OpGen expects, the company and it's product is wildly successful we all stand to benefit financially. I couldn't imagine a better starting point for a new job.
Fear
It's been frequently stated that programmers are optimists at heart, yet they have a keen sense for all of the minute things that could go wrong in any enterprise. The same is true here in this situation. As optimistic and excited as I am about the future, I know all too well what can happen with software projects. Late, over budget, failure to deliver what customers wanted, stress, burnout.... all this is possible and more. The optimist in me says that this company knows what it's doing .. I know what I'm doing, dangit!. I've never worked in a venture capital funded start-up company before. The rules and expectations are different than anything I've been a part of before. Will I be able to handle it? What if it turns out I'm just not as good a hire as they thought I'd be? What if it turns out I just downright suck?
Confidence
When it comes right down to it, I feel that this is the right position for me at this time in my life. I'm ready for something exciting .. something challenging .. something that just might keep me scared enough to make sure I work my butt off every day trying to really make a difference in the world. Sure, a part of me really is scared of the things I mentioned above, but I feel pretty confident that OpGen and I are a good fit. They did decide to hire me after all. They think that I have what it takes to help them meet their goals. I feel confident that I am the right person for the job and that we're going to do some pretty awesome stuff together.
It's a pretty wild mish-mash of thoughts and feelings I'm having, but at this moment I can't wait for the alarm clock to go off tomorrow morning. I'm ready to get started and see what happens. Let's go!
