For a founder, one of the side effects of success in a company is that your role is constantly changing. In a company of two, your job is radically different than in a company of twenty. This is both good, in that it provides lots of variety, and bad, in that it can result in being “promoted” into a role that might not be a good fit.
And so it is with me. I have moved from being someone who works on software and problem solving to someone who pays other people to work on software and problem solving. This has not, as it turns out, been a recipe for job satisfaction in the long run.
Back when I had no wife/house/child/child I was able to balance out my role by just working more – spent all day on meetings and email? no problem, play with technology at night.
But that doesn't work any more. I don't feel like I have the leadership focus I used to, nor do I get to spend enough time on technology and problem solving. Since I am doing neither job well right now, I am going to pick the one I like more, and do that for a bit.
So I have decided to make a big change. I am going to leave the company I started, and return whence I came, to independent consulting. Solo consulting is tricky, because the work is “gappy”, but it has a good rhythm: in the gaps, you learn new things; in the peaks, you apply those things.
I don't know what other opportunities might come along (best laid plans and all) but in the meanwhile some quality time with my computer and some concrete problems sounds great. I am looking forward to getting my hands dirty in the guts of the many open source projects I have thus far only experienced as a user.
Refractions is a big (relatively, 25 people) company now, and has momentum – good institutional clients, great delivery skills, stable business processes. I have ensured over the last six months that I am not in the critical path for any of our projects. The leadership team has been operating independently of me for a number of months, and can keep building the company into the future. The staff are an excellent group of folks, the best collection of geospatial smarts in the Pacific North-west.
I will miss spending regular time with the folks at the office, but will continue to do occasional work with Refractions as an associate, so there will be lots of opportunities to keep in touch, have lunches and beers, and keep the creative juices flowing.
Thanks everyone, it has been an amazing experience, I look forward to working with you again in my next incarnation(s).
21 comments:
Good luck Paul, I'm sure you'll do fine.
Planning on posting some new contact information at some point?
What are you looking at concentrating on from the consulting side? Development? Implementations?
Exciting news, Paul! I can remember back in the day when you were a spatial database pioneer and helped noobs like me in your spare time instead of managing. Can't wait to see what you get into this time.
Good luck in your new venture, Paul. It's an exciting, and scary, step to take. The work you have done at Refractions has been groundbreaking and I know you'll continue to lead the way. Thanks for all you've done for the community so far.
Sky's the limit P! SFS
Paul,
Congrats on making such a big move. You've left a hell of a legacy with Refractions. It will be interesting to see how they go over the next few years. Certainly there's an enormous depth of talent there.
Having seen first hand the growing pains of my old man's surveying consultancy as it grew from a one man band to about the same size as Refractions is now (by staff size at least), I can appreciate the struggles you've had to go through to get there. Well done.
All the best in the new business Paul!
Neat! I'm anxious as everyone to hear about where you are planning to focus your attention.
Wow! Paul, that's a big change and surprising, I have to admit.
Anyway, I'm not going to say any good bye or we will miss you Paul, because I'm sure you are not leaving us :-)
Changes are good, very good, and power us to do even more exciting stuff than previously. I am just going to sit back in my easy chair with a glass of whisky and wait for news from the "Paul's - Geospatial Guru Workshop" :-)
Hi Paul, I know the feeling! Congratulations on having the courage to make the move, and like everyone else I wish you the best of luck and am sure you will do well!
Wow, very unexpected. But in retrospect, understandable. I've had the privilege to work with the results of you getting your hands dirty, and I must admit I'm excited to see you give that role greater priority.
Hey Paul,
A very brave and exciting move! Good luck with it all, of course, and keep us all posted with your new plans
Jo
Best of luck, Paul. I still appreciate the time you took to come chat with me on a weekend in Victoria five years ago. You've built an amazing shop in Refractions. I'll be looking out for your technical output, and hopefully more frequent blog postings (always great reads).
Best of lucks Paul! I'm sure you'll walk your way to keep up with what you love. I for one, in a lesser extent, understand what it feels to miss doing what you were meant to in life. It's gonna be opportunities and excitement times
Welcome to independent consulting and best of luck!
I look forward to seeing/hearing about your new exploits. You're one of the giants on whose shoulders we all stand!
Good luck!
Everyone, thank you so much for your kind comments. I showed them to my wife "see, this is what I do all day".
@geojason, future contact info will be forthcoming, but I am still at Refractions part time for the next little while. My current skill set dictates that initially my consulting will be implementations, architectures, and training: but my spare time will be spent diving into core development on PostGIS. Wish me luck.
Congrats Paul,
This is courageous and will be soul satisfying. To the limit!
Good luck Paul!
Also very curious about your future plans ;-)
Congratulations Paul. Change is good.
Paul, I'm very excited on your behalf. I just left my corporate job in January to do consultancy and work on http://iMaptools.com full time. I understand desire to get back to the things that make you happy. You will do great as you have in the past. All the best.
Best of Luck Paul.
You did us right on our mapping projects, your leadership at Refractions was top notch, and I would not hesitate to engage your services in the future.
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