What job do I want? Part 1: me

[cjsmith]

Skills

It's got to be C or C++, pretty much. Shame to throw away twenty years of that. I'm best on some flavor of Unix but am comfortable enough with Windows and Visual C++ that that'd work well also.

I can also claim some Java, some CORBA, a tiny bit of SQL, some Perl... but those are all minor. If a job says those are handy to have, great; if they're the main course, not great.

Strengths

Mostly, I am smart and I learn fast. I will get to know really complex stuff quickly. In previous jobs, I have plowed into the learning for a while, then eventually surpassed my coworkers in depth of knowledge. Not counting Spice and Stretch, where *everyone* was pretty smart, it would usually be about four months between my start date and when I became my peers' default Question Answerer.

This confidence in my ability to learn means I'm unusual in my willingness to ditch entire areas of previous experience and strike out into something new. The good side of this is that there is probably a lot out there that I could do. The bad side is that it does not play well on a resume. People are much more comfortable hiring experience than raw smarts. Once I get to the interview I'll probably be fine.

Motivation

I want to do something that makes a positive difference to someone somewhere. I want to know that my work made someone's job easier, made someone's hobby more fun, made someone's office run more smoothly, made someone's health better, whatever.

Being motivated this way (rather than by intrinsic coolness of a technology) helps narrow it down.

Comments

[shadopanther.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I am so bored doing retail, it's mostly not new (except for learning technical stuff about shoes... but that comes up so rarely day-to-day and it's where I'd normally see myself). My background would be perfect for NASA or USGS, but last I checked both were having cut-backs (at least locally) rather than hiring.

[dizzdvl.livejournal.com]

What about the state versions of USGS? I don't know where you are, but the Illinois SGS is sometimes hiring. (Ok, and I will have to admit when I see computery stuff or stuff I don't understand I tend to skim, so I don't know exactly what they are hiring for. And yes I am in the Midwest and we end sentences with prepositions. ;) )