“As a teenager, I was fascinated with computers. I was able to install Linux on our computer, thanks to my family’s support, and tinker with all open-source technologies. Eventually, I learned to program.
But my dream was to pursue a career as a musician. I wanted to study music at the Conservatorium and my instrument of choice was the guitar. Unfortunately, things didn’t go to plan. Up until this point, school had been easy for me. Despite my hard work, I only achieved average grades, not enough to get my foot in the door as a musician. I felt disillusioned and lost. I struggled to adapt to this new reality, that music might not be a part of my future.
Around this time I was lucky to get an opportunity to work as a programmer. I had never officially studied computer science, apart from my casual tinkering with the technologies at home. As a result, compared to my peers who had studied computer science, I had a lot of catching up to do.
Since working as a programmer, I have been fortunate in my career. I’ve been able to specialize in areas that interest me, while also developing skills in product and business development. This combination often referred to as ‘T-shaped individuals’, has enabled me to have a big impact on the organizations in which I work.
At Varjo, we are transitioning our business from making hardware products to also providing software as a service. The benefit to our customers is that they no longer need expensive and complicated PCs to use our headsets. Instead, they can use our resources from our cloud services.
Ambiguity and uncertainty are challenges when building new products, but I thrive in this environment. I feel inspired when I see the endless possibilities. I’m good at figuring out what we need to prioritize, which mistakes we must avoid, and how to stay organized.
I embrace the idea of a growth mindset, and I’ve seen how it can lift a whole organization. We know that to build significant and ambitious new products, we must make bets and accept that not all will work out as we believed. The organization must create an environment where employees feel safe and encouraged to experiment, take risks, discover something unexpected, learn and grow.
My why, or one of the personal reasons I joined Varjo, is that I can work in an organization with the same kind of ambition as many Silicon Valley companies and at the same time, I can balance this with the Scandinavian-style work-life balance.