I received a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics. That’s the full extent of my formal academic history. During my undergrad, the career center asked me if I was interested in a PhD in economics. I said no. They asked me if I wanted to go on Wall St. I also said no. Then they asked me if I wanted to go to law school. I also said no. Four weeks later, I graduated and they stopped counseling me :(

Fast forward a year later, I became a data scientist in Oklahoma working for an energy company. Thereafter, I was designing graphics for newspapers which caught the interest of a large media company. I soon joined their design team in Toronto. I know. WTF, right (🤨)? Today, I am a software engineer at an investment bank.

My point is that with a little bit of time, I taught myself all the skills I needed along the way. I was not doomed because I studied economics, nor was I doomed because I decided to leave data science for graphic design. Any skills or credentials I possess are simply a reflection of what I chose to do with one chapter of my life. And because of how time works, they may slowly fade into the distance as I continue to write more chapters of my story (📚).

How does your book read so far?

Warmly,
DH