It's a Wonderful Life
I just spent the past hour or so responding to the fifty something e-mails that I got from various people across the company, e-mails containing emotions that ranged from shock to congratulations. And this in addition to the twenty or so that I got last night from the private announcement I made to some individuals. Each e-mail was like a voice from the past, echoes of a time when the company was smaller (some may even say crazier) when I worked some wild hours and shuddered in fear when we shipped a product out the door -- fingers crossed that it didn't blow up in someone's face.Software has a strange tendency to do that sometimes.
But alas, I'm proud to say that for the most part it didn't (except for one version that had out-of-the-box licensing issues for a percentage of customers). Times have definitely changed, with the company ten times bigger and in three times more buildings than when I started three years eleven months ago. A part of me still contemplates whether I made the right decision to leave. For some reason, being flooded with e-mails of well-wishes and regrets starts me thinking about poor old George Bailey, a poor broken man deciding to leave it all behind...but decides against it when he realizes just how much of an impact he actually had.
It's strange how easy it is to forget how many lives you're a part of, how many you've touched in your day-to-day dealings. And it's even the little things -- a smile; a joke; a compliment; asking how things are going with such-and-such project; and just listening... That's the one thing that I'm going to miss the most -- being able to listen to all these different voices, attitudes, opinions, and personalities from people in various levels and departments of the company. From directors to managers to individual contributors...it's what made QA so great. You get to talk to everyone.
It has certainly made it all the more difficult to continue with this process, which is one of the reasons why I've tried to make it swift and quiet, leaving only a few days after handing in my resignation letter.
Regardless, I still believe this is the best move for me -- I can't explain it -- there comes a time in your life when you know in your heart that it's time to walk away and chase something different...no matter how much you know it's going to hurt or how much you're giving up. And so I leave it up to fate to be my guide, that the future will remain bright and filled with success in my new endeavor.
In a previous life, one of my former bosses told me that in the Chinese language they have no word for "Goodbye". I wish I only spoke Cantonese.
But alas, I'm proud to say that for the most part it didn't (except for one version that had out-of-the-box licensing issues for a percentage of customers). Times have definitely changed, with the company ten times bigger and in three times more buildings than when I started three years eleven months ago. A part of me still contemplates whether I made the right decision to leave. For some reason, being flooded with e-mails of well-wishes and regrets starts me thinking about poor old George Bailey, a poor broken man deciding to leave it all behind...but decides against it when he realizes just how much of an impact he actually had.
It's strange how easy it is to forget how many lives you're a part of, how many you've touched in your day-to-day dealings. And it's even the little things -- a smile; a joke; a compliment; asking how things are going with such-and-such project; and just listening... That's the one thing that I'm going to miss the most -- being able to listen to all these different voices, attitudes, opinions, and personalities from people in various levels and departments of the company. From directors to managers to individual contributors...it's what made QA so great. You get to talk to everyone.
It has certainly made it all the more difficult to continue with this process, which is one of the reasons why I've tried to make it swift and quiet, leaving only a few days after handing in my resignation letter.
Like ripping a bandaid off your leg.
Regardless, I still believe this is the best move for me -- I can't explain it -- there comes a time in your life when you know in your heart that it's time to walk away and chase something different...no matter how much you know it's going to hurt or how much you're giving up. And so I leave it up to fate to be my guide, that the future will remain bright and filled with success in my new endeavor.
In a previous life, one of my former bosses told me that in the Chinese language they have no word for "Goodbye". I wish I only spoke Cantonese.
posted by VirtualErn @ 12:56 AM
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5 Comments:
wowsers!
may you find your path, and may you have great adventures.
take life by the horns! this is what it's all about.
Like i told you last nite, only you know what's best for you, no one else will lookout for your best interest (except your parents maybe) but I know that you would rather know how it will be rather than not do anything and wonder what if...
Good luck dood, I'm sure you will be just fine.
Go Cracker Go!
Life is about change. Just think where you were six years ago.
:)
-Jamie
Six years ago? Hmmm...If memory serves me correctly, I believe it involved something like blue-colored drinks that tasted like urinal cakes and shots of A1 sauce. :)
You've tasted urinal cakes!?!
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