And after all… what?
Let’s start like the Netflix series again! And here is our quick summary. A summary that I also need, as I am writing this post more than 2 years after the previous one. A lot of changes in my career, a lot of changes in the whole world. No one expected this situation, no one besides Bill Gates probably could predict what we are dealing with, in the last 2 years, but here we are to find solutions, not problems.
So, in the previous article, you grew a lot! You managed to become a Senior guy, you managed to gain so valuable knowledge and now your contribution is crucial to the team and the stage is yours to show us your leadership skills.
But let me give you an idea first of my career changes!
Was December 2018… before covid, when we could touch each other freely
This month was my last month in an awesome project, a project which helped me to grow as a person, as a professional, as an engineer. I was working next to two amazing guys. Two guys gave me more mentoring than most of my professors during my university years. Two crazy guys, two functional programmers, two nerds! Thomas Meijers and Francisco Arámburo! After every different day working with them I was feeling like a junior guy who wants to learn and learn and learn and improve himself, and learn again and again…
I know, you probably think that this is a bit strange for a Senior guy like I was. But as I have mentioned in the previous post “the older you get, the more you learn” this is the mindset I follow in my life and I suggest it to you as well.
I really thank you both, guys!
Back to December 2018. At that point, the directors' board of the company we were as consultants announced that the project will end immediately. Was a sad moment, to be frank. Especially for the internal guys, the company had, but what you can do. This is the way business works.
So, at that point in time, my company (Lunatech) was about to assign me to a different project, and to be honest it was a project I didn’t like. After some discussions with them, instead of going to a project I don’t like and want, of course, we decided that it would be nice to spend some time doing research. Our focus was on blockchain technology. A quite hot subject, especially the month that Bitcoin did the first boom! ;)
I and a colleague of mine spent days, weeks, and actually, some months trying to understand blockchain in and out by reading papers, articles, experimenting with Solidity and smart contracts. A pretty valuable and completely new experience for me. It was something so interesting but at the same time, I had the feeling I want something else. I wanted to grow.
I started doing some interviews without pressure at all. I wanted to find something meeting my expectations and my ambitions. And, fingers crossed, I found it! Back to the aviation industry!
After some interviews with KLM, I decided to leave Lunatech after thinking thoroughly. After exactly 2 years in Lunatech, I was feeling mature enough to take the next step of my career. A beautiful company where I can have more responsibilities, where I can find more challenges, and first of all where I can enjoy the industry I love! Aviation and travel industry.
I still remember the first time I went to the office. I felt so welcomed! I was so impressed by the people and their happiness. I remember my introduction to the ODS department and my favorite team. The blue badge I was wearing around my neck and a perfect smile on my face! Beautiful moment. It was a really nice period for KLM as well. The first airline which celebrates 100 years of operation! Beautiful achievement, isn’t it?
My first months were really tough, as we had to meet a strict deadline and complete an MVP! We were working a lot but we were enjoying every day! We had fun, and believe me, we had a lot of fun! Months were passing, and we were growing. With my awesome colleagues, we managed to have a nice impact on the KLM operation department and helped them make better decisions with our data-driven approach.
It was Christmas time when we heard about this Covid for the first time. Something is happening there in China. No stress, no problem at the first glance. But apparently, after some months we all realized how bad the situation was. The pandemic started and the first industry which felt this pain was the travel industry and especially the airlines.
It was so bad to see a company celebrating 100 years birthday and after 6 months suffering from the worst pandemic in the last decades. Was tough for all of us, as employees. We had a feeling of uncertainty, a feeling of fear like the whole world had. A lot of colleagues decided to leave the company and instead of hiring people as we planned, now we are bleeding. We have to push ourselves a bit more to guarantee the business continuity, to help our lovely airline to survive and overcome the most difficult moment the blue lady had faced. And we made it.
The bad days were over and we started to see a light at the end of a tunnel again.
As for me, I wanted a new challenge, something I can grow more, something that can push me outside of my comfort zone and give me more reasons to explore my limits. Was by far the toughest decision in my career. Leaving your favorite company. I rejected many offers at that period of time. Even the first offer of my current employer.
March 2021, I gave back my blue badge after some tough days and I joined the IKEA army to participate in an amazing challenge. The digital transformation of IKEA! That’s gonna be a separate article, as my experience here could be really valuable to you.
But enough for me, we are here to help you and to make you a better leader. A better source of inspiration for the world and the people around you!
And after this short recap of the last two years, in the next article, I promise you! I can share some nice experiences with you and who knows, it might be helpful! ;)
See you soon, mate!
