Don't sweat the small stuff
/My time in high school
Attended high school in the
1990s
Overall high school experience
5/10. it was ok. the curriculum prepared me for college well. the whole environment was very high stress though. all my classmates seemed super competitive and all about grades all the time which was very tiring and not very healthy. I thought undergrad was a breeze after that.
Grades in high school
Mostly A's. I had straight A's
Favorite subjects
Computer Science / Engineering / Technical, Math, Science
Struggled with...
English and social studies. I didn't really like writing; I don't think I was ever taught how to write in school beyond basic grammar and spelling.
Favorite extracurricular
Performance Art
Life since high school
“the whole [high school] environment was very high stress though. all my classmates seemed super competitive and all about grades all the time which was very tiring and not very healthy. I thought undergrad was a breeze after that.”
Attended college / university at
MIT
Majored in
electrical engineering and computer science
Post-graduate education or training
I went to graduate school and I have a MS and PhD in electrical engineering
Places lived in US
California, Massachusetts, South Carolina
Places lived outside the US
yes, Oxford England
Current occupations / past occupations
I'm a professor at a research university. I teach, mentor students, and do government funded research. I also have a tech startup that I consult for and I do volunteer work in several developing countries.
Industries I've worked in
- Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (e.g. Law, Accounting, Interior Design, Graphic Design, R&D, PR, Advertising, etc.)
- Educational Services
- Health Care and Social Assistance
- Nonprofit
- engineering research
Did your education prepare you for your career or occupation?
yes
Has your education or career/occupation trajectory ever changed? How?
not really
A little introspection...
To me, being successful means...
Being happy with what you are doing.
My definition of success has changed over time.
I'm less interested in quantitative metrics of success and I focus more on the intangible measures.
