CALLING ALL DEVELOPERS: developers in startups, developers in college, developers in big-biznass, students interested in development, people programming in their basements, people coding in their bathrooms, people hacking in their attics, under bridges, in coffee shops, or completely buck naked running through the streets.
All you gangsters are welcome.
I'm real happy to be supporting a great event sponsored by the Mass Tech Leadership Council. On Tuesday, November 29th, powerhouse developers from in and around the Boston community will be converging at the NERD Center at One Memorial Drive, Cambridge, MA to meet with student developers (and students interested in development) from Harvard, MIT, Northeastern, UMass, BU, BC, Bentley, Babson, and more.
This is an awesome opportunity for young people in the community of Boston to learn from developers who have built successful companies and really neat technologies. They will share their lessons learned, what their users and customers are saying about them, and what unique opportunities exist in and around Boston. This is a great opportunity to hear from people building the future of Boston tech and learn from them.
For more info and to register, visit: http://1129techtuesday.eventbrite.com
Below is a flyer for the event. We hope to see you there!
I started caddying when I was 10 years old. To this day, many of my fondest memories as a kid were from my days at Indian Ridge Country Club. Man, I loved that place.
I'd hop out of bed at 6 AM, eat a quick breakfast, and ask my mom to drive me to work. For six years my mother drove me to work every single Saturday and Sunday morning at the crack of dawn to allow me to make $25 a day looping golf bags for five hours a day (that's roughly $5 per hour). It's a good thing my mom understood the value of strong work ethic, because Indian Ridge changed my life.
When I was thirteen years old, three years into caddying, I was offered a job in the "bag room" as a "bag boy." It was one of the most exciting days of my life. I could still continue caddying, but I was now also able to work afternoons and make more money. And it meant a lot of responsibility. I would be the first person members saw when they entered and left the club. I would clean their clubs. Get their golf carts. Take care of their every wish. And I loved it.
During the day, the job consisted of a number of roles and tasks, but none were as important as standing post. Ultimately, this meant making sure that there was always at least one bag-boy at the front of the proshop to grab members golf bags and place them near the first tee and onto golf carts. Seeing a member carrying their own golf bag and clubs throughout the parking lot was a big no-no, and if there was one rule not to break, it was this one.
One day, Dave Lane, the golf pro at Indian Ridge at the time, approached me as I was standing post.
Mr. Lane said: "Ryan. What are you doing?"
I responded: "Nothing, Mr. Lane. Standing post."
And I'll never forget what he said.
Mr. Lane said: "Nothing is right. Ryan listen to me. Never stand with your hands in your pockets. It makes you look like you're doing nothing. Stop handicapping yourself. Take your hands out of your pockets."
When I got home that day, I told my mom the advice that Mr. Lane gave me.
To this day, when I go to events, I remind myself never to be the guy standing with his hands in his pockets, looking like he's doing nothing.
Remind yourself of this post the next time you are at a startup event in town. Look around. Watch all of the people with their hands in their pockets. And then look at the people in the room who you think are the life of the party. The movers. The shakers. The people with big visions and big goals and big dreams and big plans. See where their hands are. And I'll tell you one thing after observing this myself now personally time and time again. Their hands are not in their pockets.
My name is Ryan Durkin. I write so that I will never forget where I came from and what I stand for. I hope that this will motivate young people to realize their potential and become more productive than they ever imagined. That would make me truly happy.
My name is Ryan Durkin. I write so that I will never forget where I came from and what I stand for. I hope that this will motivate young people to realize their potential and become more productive than they ever imagined. That would make me truly happy.
