The Path Less Traveled

Imagine a group of young travelers, backpacks laden with dreams and maps, embarking on a journey with a loose plan and open hearts. They know their starting point and their eventual destination, but the path between? That's where the magic happens.

What if the wrong turns in your career aren't mistakes, but the very detours that lead to your most valuable destinations? My journey in tech taught me that the path of a thousand lines of code begins with a single misstep - and that's not always a bad thing.

As I watched a video of these adventurers recently, something resonated deeply within me. These travelers, much like myself in my tech career, found themselves stopping unexpectedly by a serene lake for a day, simply because the weather was perfect and the view too beautiful to pass by. On another occasion, they spent a day shepherding sheep, an experience they never planned but one that enriched their journey immeasurably.

This approach to travel - flexible, open to serendipity, yet guided by an ultimate goal - mirrors the evolution of my journey in the tech world. It's a stark contrast to where I began and a testament to the power of embracing unexpected detours along our paths.

"The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." - Lao Tzu

The Young Coder: Sprinting Towards a Destination

My journey began in the 1990s when the internet was just becoming a 'thing'. I still remember the day my father brought home an Intel 386, a gift that would shape my future in ways neither of us could have imagined.

With youthful enthusiasm, I dived headfirst into the world of coding. HTML, JavaScript, Pascal, Assembler, Visual Basic - I tackled them all with the fervor of someone who believed that the fastest route between two points was always a straight line. My father, ever practical, encouraged this path. "A programmer is the job of the future," he'd say, his voice a mix of pride and expectation.

But something wasn't quite right. Like a traveler too focused on the destination to enjoy the journey, I found myself constantly racing from one coding challenge to the next, never pausing to enjoy the view or explore the side paths.

But as I raced down this coding highway, a chewing realization began to take hold. Despite my efforts, I wasn't the fastest coder. I wasn't the best. There will always be others more skilled, and more efficient. This realization was like a fork in the road, forcing me to question the path I had chosen.

During this time, I also had my first significant detour in programming. I had an idea to build a blog for gadgets called PVMP3, and part of the project was creating a system for different writers to draft posts and send them. This was before WordPress existed, and I based the project on JavaScript and PHP. However, the system kept crashing because I wasn’t strong enough to combine the code, a 14-year-old kid managed to solve the issues in a day and this was a turning point for me. This project, despite its frustrations, taught me early on that I enjoyed the creative, big-picture problem-solving aspect of product management more than the technical grind of coding itself.

The Unexpected Detour: Analytics and Self-Discovery

Frustrated with my perceived shortcomings in coding, I veered onto a new path: analytics. It was like our travelers deciding to take an unmarked trail, hoping it would lead to greener pastures. I dove into this new world with the same intensity I had applied to code, certain that here, finally, I would excel.

But the journey was far from smooth. I made mistakes – many of them. Each error felt like a personal failure, keeping me awake at night, and tormenting me with self-doubt. I remember one particularly challenging project where I misinterpreted a key metric and, then by mistake deleted the entire data history, leading to flawed recommendations and organization that couldn’t work for an entire week while we tried to recover what was lost. The weight of that mistake was crushing.

In retrospect, if I had taken the time to learn how the files and tables were connected better, I likely would have avoided dumping the data. Instead, I would have created a small exploration space. However, this mistake also opened up an unexpected opportunity. I realized the need to build a validation system, ensuring that the data was accurate before I sent off an 'Excel_Sheet_V3_Final_Final.' This system saved me and others from repeated errors that had previously confused me. This detour taught me that even mistakes could lead to stronger, more reliable systems.

Instead of pausing to reflect, to learn from these missteps, I punished myself. I was so focused on reaching the 'destination' – being the best, making no mistakes – that I couldn't see the valuable lessons each error offered. It was like racing past beautiful vistas, too fixated on the end of the trail to appreciate the journey.

I also began to notice patterns in my work during my analytics career. I often sent too many 'Excel_Sheet_V5_Final_Final' versions, which led me to question whether I was bad at analytics altogether. Over time, I realized it wasn’t my skillset that was lacking but rather my approach to solving problems. Today, I know that I’m adept at spotting trends and drawing meaningful insights, even if coding remains something I don’t enjoy. This shift in perspective helped me see that the detours were not failures, but opportunities for growth and learning.

The Mindful Turn: Embracing the Journey and Its Lessons

It wasn't until my mid-30s that I finally learned to slow down and embrace mindfulness. This shift in perspective was like finding a hidden overlook on my career path, one that allowed me to see the entire landscape of my journey.

I began to understand that my coding background, combined with my analytics experience – even the mistakes – had given me a unique perspective. It was this realization that ultimately led me to the product space, where I could leverage all of these experiences.

This shift in perspective manifested beautifully during a project on Tale About Data's Smart Data Warehouse. We started with a clear destination in mind - a simple, efficient warehouse for app publishers. But then, like our travelers deciding to spend a day shepherding sheep, we allowed ourselves to explore uncharted territories.

Initially, we were just trying to understand the size and format of the data files from third-party marketing data providers. However, as we dug deeper, we realized that most of these data sources were standardized. This discovery led us to automate the process for our clients with minimal effort. This detour not only solved the problem of marketing teams lacking engineers to handle data but also allowed us to add a valuable feature that increased the service's impact while keeping costs low. What began as a simple investigation turned into a feature that added immense value for both us and our clients.

Learning to Navigate: From Self-Criticism to Self-Reflection

Just as our travelers might have learned to read a map more effectively after taking a wrong turn and landing with their tenant in the middle of a road-building site instead of the tourist-dedicated area, I learned to transform my self-criticism into constructive self-reflection.

Now, when faced with a challenge or after making a mistake, I don't immediately berate myself. Instead, I take a moment to pause, like stopping by a stream to refill a water bottle. I ask myself: What can I learn from this? How can this experience make me a better problem-solver, and a more effective leader? I own the mistake, and the learnings to come with it.

For instance, that metrics misinterpretation that once kept me up at night? It taught me the crucial importance of double-checking assumptions and seeking diverse perspectives before concluding, as well as never to delete files or tables which I don’t have a backup for. This lesson has proven invaluable in my current role, where I often need to synthesize complex data into actionable insights for C-level executives.

The analytics detour also revealed that while I didn’t enjoy coding, I had a passion for making data products more accessible. This realization allowed me to focus more on the product side of analytics, leveraging my background in coding and trends but avoiding the actual coding work that didn’t inspire me.

The Scenic Route: Leveraging Diverse Experiences

My journey from coding to analytics to product management wasn't a straight path. It was more like our travelers deciding to take a scenic route, full of unexpected turns and challenging terrains. But it's precisely this winding path that has enriched my perspective and problem-solving abilities.

In my current side project, developing a platform for C-level executives to set data strategy, I draw upon all these experiences. The precision I learned from coding, the analytical thinking from my time in analytics, and the holistic view I gained from product management – all contribute to a more comprehensive approach to problem-solving.

The Flexible Itinerary: Balancing Goals and Exploration

Our travelers had a brilliant approach - they knew their ultimate destination and timeline but kept the in-between flexible. I've adopted a similar strategy in my tech work. I set clear goals and deadlines, but I also allow for exploration.

I allocate about 30% of my time for 'wandering' - exploring new technologies, experimenting with different approaches, or even just reflecting on the problem at hand. The remaining 70% is for focused 'hiking' towards our goals. This balance ensures we make steady progress while still leaving room for those serendipitous discoveries that often lead to breakthrough innovations.

But when I explore, I ensure it’s relevant to the problems at hand, it will help my journey by focusing or alternating the course of action.

The Journey Continues

As I reflect on my journey from a sprint-focused coder to a mindful tech leader, I'm reminded of the transformative power of embracing the unexpected. Like our travelers, I've learned that the most valuable experiences often come from unplanned detours, talking to strangers, trusting the good of others, spontaneous lake-side pauses, and the willingness to try our hand at 'shepherding' in unfamiliar territories.

To my fellow tech travelers, I encourage you to pack your backpack with curiosity, and arm yourself with a map of core skills, but keep your itinerary flexible. Stop by the lakes of new technologies, spend a day shepherding unfamiliar concepts, and don't be afraid to hitch a ride on a passing idea that takes you off your planned route.

Remember, in both travel and tech, the richest experiences often come not from reaching the destination, but from fully embracing the journey. So, where will your mindful tech journey take you next?

The Vista Point: Reflecting on the Journey

Looking back on my journey – from a young coder sprinting towards an elusive destination, through the challenging terrains of analytics, to becoming a mindful tech leader – I'm reminded of an aspect point our travelers might have discovered after a particularly challenging climb.

From this vantage point, every wrong turn, every stumble, every moment of self-doubt becomes a part of a beautiful, complex landscape. Each experience, whether triumphant or painful, has shaped my path and enriched my perspective.

To my fellow tech travelers, especially those who may be struggling with self-doubt or feeling lost on their journey: remember that your path doesn't need to be straight to be valuable. Your 'wrong turns' may lead you to unexpected sights. Your struggles may be the very experiences that set you apart and drive your unique contributions.

We are all parts of a puzzle, within the company, within the team, and ourselves, we just need to find the right part that will help us connect the rest of the puzzle, and even though sometimes, this will be hard, we can always take a moment to zoom out and look at the big picture.

Pack your backpack with curiosity, and arm yourself with your core skills, but don't forget to include self-compassion and a willingness to learn from every step of your journey. Whether you're coding, analyzing, managing, or leading, remember to pause occasionally, look around, and appreciate the view. After all, in both travel and tech, the richest experiences often come not from reaching the destination, but from fully embracing the winding path that leads us there.

So, fellow tech adventurers, what unexpected turns will you embrace on your journey? What hidden sights await your discovery? The path is yours to explore – enjoy every step, every challenge, and every triumph along the way.

The Lake-Side Pause: Learning to Stop and Reflect

Just as our Israeli travelers found value in pausing by a beautiful lake, I've learned the importance of taking time to reflect and experiment in my tech projects.

Now, when faced with a challenge like creating an ingestion solution for a backend web application, I don't immediately sprint toward the most obvious solution. Instead, I might spend a day exploring Kafka, even if I know Kinesis could get the job done faster. These 'lake-side pauses' often lead to insights and innovations that would have been missed in a headlong rush to the finish line.

The Shepherd's Lesson: Embracing New Experiences

Remember our travelers who spent a day shepherding? They embraced an experience entirely foreign to them, and likely learned lessons they never expected, also I guess they were stinky as hell by the end of the day (disclaimer I did it once). Similarly, I've learned to step out of my comfort zone in tech projects.

Recently, I've been working on a system to help C-level executives set data strategies. Instead of approaching it purely from a technical standpoint, I've been 'shepherding' ideas from various domains - data leadership philosophy, user experience design, and even principles of mindfulness. This cross-pollination of ideas has led to a richer, more nuanced solution than I could have created from a purely coding-centric approach.

Embrace Your Unique Journey: A Call to Reflection

As we conclude this journey together, I invite you to embrace your own 'wrong turns' in tech. Remember that misstep that started our story? It wasn't a failure - it was the first step on an unexpected path to success. What career detours might lead you to your most valuable destinations? If you're ready to explore your unique tech journey, to transform your 'bugs' into features, I'd love to continue this conversation. Through mentoring sessions at the Mentoring Club, we can map out your path, debug your challenges, or swap stories from the winding road of tech careers. After all, sometimes the most innovative solutions come from the most unexpected places in the world of technology. Ready to rewrite your code for success? Let's debug your journey together.

Not looking for mentoring, it’s ok, you can also follow my substack channel Cooking Data to get weekly inspiration for your data journey.