wow you have lots of good feedback here in this thread... probably still requires you to parse through it all though... i have a feeling though this question has been asked multiple times by different people on HN
i'll just add some thoughts (though it will likely be redundant to large degree) because I empathize with anyone who's seeking for guidance on life decisions (I know what it's like)
1) agree that you should think about product management where technical and social skills combined can be powerful but I'd recommend you do (2) below first
2) based on how you've described your state, inclined to agree that you should take a real hard look at what is the source of discontent with your life and not jump to conclusions that it's being an engineer (as suggested, it can be the project, company, other parts of your life, lack of challenge or growth, etc)... maybe it would help to take a vacation to an international destination in the developing world & rough it (no nice hotels or restaurants etc), live among the local people and think (suggested to get you out of your comfort zone)
3) people who say they are "bored" (even if just trying to simplify the communication in summary form) or describe a lack of passion for anything as an alternative... frankly, those are warning signs that you should iterate on (2) above for a bit. no one can tell you this though, you'll need to be in tune and aware enough to search your own gut for what's going on inside you
4) though self-help folks like Tony Robbins generally make me puke (my first reaction, though i know it can be unfair), he has an interesting mental framework for you to iterate on (2) and navigate why you're so-called "bored" and what to do about it as a TED talk: http://youtu.be/Cpc-t-Uwv1I
5) in my past, i've read a lot of stuff on career guidance (what color is your parachute, blah blah) but none of it was useful to me. the best thing i read was this HBR article. key takeaway is that finding meaning through work for those that lack direction is a cycle of test & learn (similar to the lean startup approach)... it's more geared for biz types but the principles can apply more broadly: http://www.insead.edu/alumni/newsletter/january2003/herminia...
6) Well, you probably already know. But classically speaking, the type of person you're describing isn't the type to do a startup successfully. The classic type is someone driven to make change because of some kind of passion. Not that you couldn't do it and be successful because it seems there are all types of people who do "successful" startups. But on the surface, IMHO signs don't seem to point to this option as a good one for you to quit your job for at this time.
Good signs would probably be that a) you work on side projects solving problems that annoy you b) you are actively engaging and talking about ideas with good people (at work or not) who you could be co-founders with
More than anything, if after mulling it over, you realize that what's lacking is challenge (or possibly the meaning or value of the bigger goals you're working on with your technical skills) then also realize you don't need to be the idea person. You can join someone who already has the passion and an idea and rally against that vision by being part of a solid, small 2-3 person team. Or just find a co-founder and work together for 6 months, build something with some traction and then apply to YC! :)
Or you could join another company (working for 1 company might not be enough data for you to know that coding isn't what you want to do no matter how good you think the current environment is) assuming early 20s means you only worked at 1 place
love it... probably not intended but i found it fascinating how the description of finding new ideas and approaches in mathematics (or any field for that matter) is similar to that in startups. this part in particular resonated
"If you keep asking yourself such questions when
reading a paper or listening to a lecture, then sooner or
later a glimmer of an answer will emerge—some possible route to investigate. When this happens to me I
always take time out to pursue the idea to see where
it leads or whether it will stand up to scrutiny. Nine
times out of ten it turns out to be a blind alley, but
occasionally one strikes gold. The difficulty is in knowing when an idea that is initially promising is in fact
going nowhere. At this stage one has to cut one’s losses
and return to the main road. Often the decision is not
clear-cut, and in fact I frequently return to a previously
discarded idea and give it another try"
I absolutely agree with this comment as well. Regarding having a hard discussion with a co-founder and incorporation being a forcing function for this (from a comment below in this thread)... not the best reasoning. You can and should have this discussion regardless of whether you incorporate.
true... and i wonder how many other untold stories there are that are out there about small businesses benefiting from Pinterest.
the funny thing is how everyone goes after local with mobile and pretty much doesn't get much explosive success (sorry Foursquare but it's true). in fact, i was reading this founder's post on why you shouldn't do local: http://www.crashdev.com/2012/01/top-three-reasons-not-to-do-...
But the problem with that post is found in PG's black swan article... that blockbuster ideas and businesses that solve real problems often aren't attacking an industry directly but arise in completely different or adjacent spaces
It's another take on what "bad ideas" might actually mean... in other words, that an idea is a bad idea for what seems direct but it turns out to be a great idea because it surfaces a real problem that it does solve somehow
verified with a friend this weekend who's using Verizon with his iphone 4s... when you get a call while using data on cell network, the data access stops and the phone call takes precedence (you'll still receive the call). if you try to switch to an app or browser for data while on a call, you get a message saying it won't work
been watching shark tank off and on for a few seasons, love it!
always wondered why it didn't provoke much discussion in Silicon Valley... at least that I was aware of. most of my friends don't even know about the show. Until now at least :)
What's been most interesting are the types of companies and the investor perspectives that seem to vary enough from what you hear about here in Silicon Valley that it makes you think...
The bar for positive reactions from the sharks is definitely to have "traction" in terms of real revenue/sales... going in front of them and saying you have thousands or millions of users probably won't cut it (except maybe with Cuban) but who knows, haven't seen that sort of company present yet...
on one of the past seasons, there was a Silicon Valley type startup that got acquired by Chegg in 2011 called NoteHall
I think if you're getting data on wifi, then you can receive calls still. If you're on the cell network, I'm guessing you stop getting data and the phone switches over to receiving the call but not sure
kudos to you for pursuing your dream; even if you do go back to a job again, I'm sure you'll keep pushing forward somehow, some way... wishing you future success!
i'll just add some thoughts (though it will likely be redundant to large degree) because I empathize with anyone who's seeking for guidance on life decisions (I know what it's like)
1) agree that you should think about product management where technical and social skills combined can be powerful but I'd recommend you do (2) below first
2) based on how you've described your state, inclined to agree that you should take a real hard look at what is the source of discontent with your life and not jump to conclusions that it's being an engineer (as suggested, it can be the project, company, other parts of your life, lack of challenge or growth, etc)... maybe it would help to take a vacation to an international destination in the developing world & rough it (no nice hotels or restaurants etc), live among the local people and think (suggested to get you out of your comfort zone)
3) people who say they are "bored" (even if just trying to simplify the communication in summary form) or describe a lack of passion for anything as an alternative... frankly, those are warning signs that you should iterate on (2) above for a bit. no one can tell you this though, you'll need to be in tune and aware enough to search your own gut for what's going on inside you
4) though self-help folks like Tony Robbins generally make me puke (my first reaction, though i know it can be unfair), he has an interesting mental framework for you to iterate on (2) and navigate why you're so-called "bored" and what to do about it as a TED talk: http://youtu.be/Cpc-t-Uwv1I
5) in my past, i've read a lot of stuff on career guidance (what color is your parachute, blah blah) but none of it was useful to me. the best thing i read was this HBR article. key takeaway is that finding meaning through work for those that lack direction is a cycle of test & learn (similar to the lean startup approach)... it's more geared for biz types but the principles can apply more broadly: http://www.insead.edu/alumni/newsletter/january2003/herminia...
6) Well, you probably already know. But classically speaking, the type of person you're describing isn't the type to do a startup successfully. The classic type is someone driven to make change because of some kind of passion. Not that you couldn't do it and be successful because it seems there are all types of people who do "successful" startups. But on the surface, IMHO signs don't seem to point to this option as a good one for you to quit your job for at this time.
Good signs would probably be that a) you work on side projects solving problems that annoy you b) you are actively engaging and talking about ideas with good people (at work or not) who you could be co-founders with
More than anything, if after mulling it over, you realize that what's lacking is challenge (or possibly the meaning or value of the bigger goals you're working on with your technical skills) then also realize you don't need to be the idea person. You can join someone who already has the passion and an idea and rally against that vision by being part of a solid, small 2-3 person team. Or just find a co-founder and work together for 6 months, build something with some traction and then apply to YC! :)
Or you could join another company (working for 1 company might not be enough data for you to know that coding isn't what you want to do no matter how good you think the current environment is) assuming early 20s means you only worked at 1 place
7) Listen to Bezos talking about his decision to do Amazon: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwG_qR6XmDQ
Good luck!