Career Roadmap
Chad's work combines: Design, Technology, and Building Things
See more careers and stories that connect to your interests.
Take Roadmap Quiz
Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Here's the path I took:
High School
Bachelor's Degree
Management Information Systems, General
California State University-Chico
Here's the path I recommend for someone who wants to be a Chief Executives:
High School
Certification
Learn more about different paths to this career
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life took a while to figure out
1.
Got my first job as a web technologies engineer.
2.
Then I realized that user experience was important.
3.
Then I focused on learning about usability and interaction design.
4.
Then I realized a great product experience isn't just design.
5.
Then I decided to become a product manager.
6.
Then I was hired by eBay as a product manager and interaction designer.
7.
Then I left eBay and worked at several small companies, then went back to eBay for a tick.
8.
Then I decided to start my own thing and convinced eBay to be my first client.
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Society in general:
You are lazy. (step dad) You won't amount to anything if you don't go to school. (biological dad) You complain all the time. (step dad) You read too much. (step dad)
How I responded:
I knew I wasn't lazy - their opinion was irrelevant. Going to school to ensure success is, as a concept outdated and completely untrue. Find your passion and pursue that. It is all the matters. Complaining isn't necessarily a bad thing as long as you are prepared to take on the burden of fixing the problem. The sci-fi books I read as a child served two goals, 1.) escaping from my reality (when I was young) and 2.) drove my passion for technology and futurism.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
Spend time with friends whose families seem to have it together. Observe them together - ask the parents questions. Aspire to one day model your own family after them, or a combination of them. My friends' families got me through some tough times.
My stepfather was an alcoholic. He was verbally and emotionally abusive. You deal with this by realizing that they are weak. Know that you are better than them and commit to breaking out of the cycle. Remove yourself from the environment.