Thursday, August 31, 2006

What should I do with my life?!

Ok, so soon enough I need to decide where I want to go in Estonia. I have to do a test task (pretty large, but I get a symbolic pay for it) for CoolSecurity, then I should have an offer from them, and FindYourself have already made me one and are content with waiting a while for my final decision.

I give you here the unique opportunity of pitching in your opinion of where I should go. Below I'm listing the pros and cons of my options:

CoolSecurity™
+ a golden product, a small holy grail of cryptography, but still a grail
+ the company is aiming to be international, and might sell well
+ the potential to make me sizeable amounts of money if the company succeeds and is sold
+ the privilege to work with very cool people who knows their stuff
+ the career benefits of specializing in security
+ slightly better entrance salary than FindYourself
+ I get to live in Tallinn, which is less remote than Tartu
+ I would share apartment with my baby
+ I would prove my flexibility in helping build the organization

- I would share apartment with my baby
- the risk the company will never reach market
- my immediate boss seems cool, but choleric
- Tallinn is perhaps too busy, polluted etc.
- the present organization is virtually nonexistent
- I could be more confident that I will manage the job

FindYourself™
+ silver technology, pretty cool and unique, but not holy
+ are already selling worldwide very well and there is no end in reach
+ Tartu is cheap to live in
+ Tartu is more relaxed and nicer than Tallinn
+ excellent trustworthy prospects of bonuses
+ I would most likely travel to very cool places all over the world
+ as a part of my job, I would be in contact with swedes
+ a varied job I would probably enjoy a lot
+ I would have my own apartment
+ an excellent workplace with well-oiled routines

- Tartu is remote and boring
- I would not live with my baby except when she comes to visit
- I would have to pay for my own apartment
- I would have to live with turning down an uncertain chance like CoolSecurity

With my own weighing of the factors (between one and ten, which I am not going to disclose) CoolSecurity get 49 plus and 32 minus, a total of 17 plus. FindYourself get a slightly surprisingly high 54 plus and 19 minus, making it a total of 35 plus.

So, this looks like the safer option, FindYourself, is still winning the race, but I'm still leaving my options open, and I want your opinions and comments as well!

4 comments:

Carl-Johan Sveningsson said...

I take it that's a pitch for CoolSecurity? That's the way I'm thinking as well, but yesterday I started thinking more of that FindYourself might simply be better, cooler and have better prospects all over the board, why then risk everything at something like CoolSecurity? :-P

Unknown said...

Did I mention FindYourself has the greatest wotking environment ever? And that I'll be teaching in Tartu on Mondays next semester?

But then, stock options and holy grail sound pretty worthwhile as well...

Carl-Johan Sveningsson said...

Yeah, the working environment, and I'm sure I've mentioned they're doing business in the Caribbean as well? Cool about the teaching – and I should say the particular point about being alone in Tartu got a reasonably low weighing as well. :-)

Yep... they do, and they seem. But is it as worthwile as the also very promising job at FindYourself? I say that when I finish the whitepaper and if things feel good then, I go for CoolSecurity, but only if it feels really good. I'm loving the whitepaper though.

Anonymous said...

I should say, take the chance with CoolSec, cuz it sounds like you are already set on that job and if you make a sacrifice and just settle with the FindYourself job, You will always hate yourself.