I just got off the phone with a recent graduate of a top computer science program that happens to be in the DC area. The guy clearly had things going on upstairs, but said he had just accepted a programming job at a government contracting compnay (not even one that I had heard of before) for $60,000. He’s done a few internships and has some great things going for him, but he had not interviewed with one single DC area startup company before he accepted this offer. I asked him about the details and he said that they had a good 401k match. I wanted to tell him that he should think twice, but I would prefer not to push someone so early in their career to burn a bridge. The conversation that I had with him has me in a funk now. How could this have happened.
Today was just full of interesting conversations. I also talked to someone who recently worked with Zed Shaw, apparently he found a job working for a company that also has not so solid financials right now. I hope Zed’s job works out. At any rate, my thought for the day is that just like this guy should be thinking about 401k matching and investing in the right plans in his 401k, he should also be thinking about his career portfolio.
He is about to embark on a long career journey and he hasn’t even talked to any DC area startup companies. Ok, maybe he doesn’t like Foosball or Ping Pong, but there is more to startups than that. Some of the most interesting, challenging, and potentially financially rewarding work is with startup companies. Not to mention the fact that people who work for startups get stock options and a lot more experience than someone working in a large compartmentalized government contractor.
There is plenty of time in one’s career to pursue all of the different options that are out there. People change careers and even industries all the time, but once you become a government contractor it is really hard to switch into anything else.
May 7th, 2008 at 4:56 pm
When I lost my job unexpectedly a few years ago, I started to think of my career as an investment portfolio. What’s the first rule of investing? Diversification!
Therefore, I started working to diversify my income. I started blogging. I started networking like crazy. I started doing side work. When I started off, 100% of my income came from one customer. When I ended that contract, only 50% of my income came from that one… and the $’s from that one had never shrunk. I grew the other things.
But here’s the point… when you’re still *early* - in your career or investment - you’re allowed to make mistakes and not get as big of a return as you might like. Sure, it makes it a bit more difficult later on, but there is plenty of time to make different choices.
May 8th, 2008 at 6:11 am
I would be more in the ‘funk’ from bad salary negotiation then government contracting as a friend.
May 8th, 2008 at 6:41 am
Keith is right. You can definitely recover from early career decisions that were not the best. Many of them will shape your future. I had a conversation with someone recently who told me that they temped so much that they ended up starting a temp agency because he knew the industry as well as anyone who had placed him. He’s been in business for more than 10 years now (as long as I’ve known him). I guess my point wasn’t that going into government contracting was a bad idea, just that I wished that the you person who I spoke with had known about other options.