Comments for Matt Baril

Comment on Vancouver Tech Jobs by Dean

Dean — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 00:59:03 +0000

Hey, what happened to the list?
Seem to stop updating

Comment on Making the Leap by Matt Baril

Matt Baril — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 04:11:45 +0000

Erica, I can surely relate to your situation and wish you all the best in your career shift! It may be difficult to get out of the routine and scary to put the safe and comfortable corporate life, but it can be done. Working in a big firm like yours means you’re an appealing candidate for startups or small and medium size businesses and you can easily leverage that.

You also have the advantage of having a job right now which means you can apply on other jobs in smaller and more dynamic organizations and negotiate on your terms and even say no to offers if you don’t “feel it”. You have a huge advantage over most people.

Peter convinced me to do the shift to the small business world and he was right all along.

I’ll publish a post on how to measure opportunities and pick a job in a startup in the next few days and I’d like to have your opinion. I know for me that was the big thing, I didn’t want to leave SAP for a crappy startup that goes bankrupt. Hehe

Let me know of your progress and let me know if I can help!

I wish you all the best

Comment on Making the Leap by Erica

Erica — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 18:45:59 +0000

Thank you so much for your candid discussion, Matt! I had your blog entry forwarded to me by Nima because I'm going through some maybe-similar-and-surely-related frustrations right now working at a big consulting firm, and have been toying with the idea of a career shift for some time. I feel like I've been at a crossroads for a long time now, just putting off the tough decisions and opting for the easy and conservative path.
I find your success story (if you'll allow me to call it that) in this post inspiring and motivational…and it may just be the nudge I need to muster up the courage to make a move. It is at the very least another thing that's slowly pushing me in that direction.
Good luck at your new role and looking forward to hearing more about it!

Comment on Making the Leap by Matt Baril

Matt Baril — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 20:03:46 +0000

Why's that Evan?

Comment on Making the Leap by Matt Baril

Matt Baril — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 20:03:25 +0000

Hi Marcel,

Thanks for your kind words! I wish I had done coop or interns at university to figure this out before hitting the job market. At the same time though, the only reason I got the job I have now is because I worked in a Fortune 100 which gives more credibility to your resume. So I guess there are pros and cons… nothing's perfect. hehe

And you don't have to wait to finish University to start doing something cool. Facebook, Microsoft, Apple… all started with a bunch of drop-outs I'm not saying you have to drop out to be successful, but starting a little project (and I know you already have many!) on the side while your a student can take you a long way.

Anyways, looking forward for your return to Canada so we can catch up and have some good German beer

Cheers,

Comment on Making the Leap by Evan

Evan — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 22:52:51 +0000

Every day I get the feeling of living in a zoo when I wake up in the morning, look out of my window, and see South Korea.

Comment on Making the Leap by Marcel

Marcel — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 07:15:51 +0000

I was born ready. After spending 6 months at a corporate giant, I'd love to work in a smaller company and actually get things done. Too bad I've gotta wait a year to finish Uni before I do anything else. Great piece Matt, and best of luck at your new job.

Comment on Do You Work in a Zoo or in The Wild? by Making the Leap | Matt Baril

Making the Leap | Matt Baril — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 01:11:49 +0000

[...] department at an entry level position. Ever since I had talked to Peter Tingling and wrote a post about working in a Zoo vs. the Wild, the idea of leaving the corporate world was with me. In December however, I had an interview at [...]

Comment on Vancouver Tech Jobs by Kiran

Kiran — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 12:05:31 +0000

Nice work Matt. Thanks for sharing.

Comment on Do You Work in a Zoo or in The Wild? by Rosie

Rosie — Sat, 28 May 2011 15:36:51 +0000

Hey Matt,
Very nice post and insightful analogy. As a relatively safe person, my natural instinct would propel me to work in a zoo. Since I do not do stupid things like biting off the hand that feeds me, I think I have a pretty good chance of surviving in there. However, the wild offers something that a zoo will never provide. The wild keeps my blood pumping, whereas the zoo only keeps my blood flowing. In the wild, I can learn from my predators so I can adapt and succumb to the top. In the zoo, I imitate others and keep my head down when the show is over.
So to answer your question, I have a natural inclination to work in a zoo but I am working toward stepping outside of my comfort zoo to become someone greater. And what better breeding ground to accomplish that than the vast wild?