Brain dump from Grace Hopper
The one message that I heard again and again at Grace Hopper was: Get a PHD, if only for the instant credibility it gives you. I thought this was good advice. Most people I work with have PHDs and I admit to subconsciously treating like they know what they're talking about [until they prove otherwise but that's rare - not because they have a PHD per se - but perhaps because they wouldn't have been hired if they weren't smart]. On the other hand the MS (and BS) folks need to earn their credibility. And what about the numerous times I've felt so small, not knowing what to talk about an obscure topic?
But after I came back, I got thinking. Do we ever feel comfortable with our achievements? Or do we ever stop looking up, at one level higher, to compare, to downplay oneself? Like a co-worker (with a PHD) told me once - "I applied to universities and was rejected everywhere, I had to join the industry". And what about those that do get into academia? Do they go - "I got into Tufts all right but wish I was smart enough to have MIT or Berkeley after me, like that other guy I know"? And does the MIT prof think - "I showed such promise in school - and I'm still stuck here doing mediocre research. I thought I was a genius but would I ever get a Turing ..."?
But the biggest take away for me from GHC was: it's OK to feel small sometimes. OK to have the butterflies when you start something new. And hearing women who've been in this field for as long as they've been say this was huge! I mean, one thing about this industry is that it's hard to find many people (forget just women) who've been here long enough to have a "career" and be a role model young women could aspire to. To see these 40+ aged women CTOs and VPs sharing their journeys, the paths they took, the hurdles they faced was truly inspirational.
But after I came back, I got thinking. Do we ever feel comfortable with our achievements? Or do we ever stop looking up, at one level higher, to compare, to downplay oneself? Like a co-worker (with a PHD) told me once - "I applied to universities and was rejected everywhere, I had to join the industry". And what about those that do get into academia? Do they go - "I got into Tufts all right but wish I was smart enough to have MIT or Berkeley after me, like that other guy I know"? And does the MIT prof think - "I showed such promise in school - and I'm still stuck here doing mediocre research. I thought I was a genius but would I ever get a Turing ..."?
But the biggest take away for me from GHC was: it's OK to feel small sometimes. OK to have the butterflies when you start something new. And hearing women who've been in this field for as long as they've been say this was huge! I mean, one thing about this industry is that it's hard to find many people (forget just women) who've been here long enough to have a "career" and be a role model young women could aspire to. To see these 40+ aged women CTOs and VPs sharing their journeys, the paths they took, the hurdles they faced was truly inspirational.