I’m gainfully unemployed again. 5 years, 2 DARPA programs from start to finish, 2 more business thrusts launched with long runway, and 1 global pandemic to top it off! The separation was completely amicable and I initiated it. Me and the previous company both evolved and were trending in different directions. There’s no immediate employment lined up.
Commence sabbatical. Relaxing, recharging, and reprogramming myself. Need to work on some family and health issues. Making room to catch up with friends old and new. Time to learn enough about generative AI to seriously tinker and be able to call BS on snakeoil salesmen. Plus space for a few other fun tech things like music data hacking and Rust programming. Haven’t traveled outside of the DMV for three years. Gonna’ actually go places.
I’ve twice left positions without the “next” thing lined up. The first time, there was really no plan. Bad idea. Wound up muddling along for about three months and almost induced financial ruin. Lucked into a good position that led to great returns. The second time, I had a half-baked plan but didn’t game out the financial timing well. Really could have easily gone sideways, but at least there were backup plans. Thankfully it all worked out.
This time around? Financial runway secured. High probability opportunities being worked and my personal network tapped for more as insurance. If all goes to plan, it’ll be about a three month sabbatical, but if it goes longer I won’t enter panic mode until 2024.
Which means I now have plenty of time to blog. There’s a fair bit to say. We go again!