Information technology has never been a static industry. From the outset of developing processes to better handle how information is collected, processed, distributed, and utilized, technology has grown to handle more data better. This has had a profound impact on research as well as commerce. Our world is better for the dynamic nature of IT.
But we should not be surprised that the exponential accomplishments in the world of IT have come at the price of countless failures that technology professionals eventually overcame with determination. And they continue to do so every day in our world.
One such example is Martin Casado.
“Martin Casado is a legend in his corner of the tech world for inventing a technology that radically alters the way computer networks are built,” writes Julie Bort of Business Insider.
Casado, she explains, is considered a pioneer of SDN (software-designed networking) and has changed the landscape of information technology with his innovative approach to the field.
However, notes Bort, Martin Casado, who later sold his company to VMware for $1.26 billion, did not just slide into success. In fact, he recently told graduating students at Northern Arizona University that learning how to manage failures became his key to success.
In his speech, Casado gave students four principles to guide them in the development of their careers:
- You’re unlikely to achieve your goals.
- You are going to fail. A lot.
- No one really knows what contributes to success.
- The universe is a messy place.
Read Julie Bort’s entire article titled “A guy who sold his startup for $1.26 billion tells grads to ‘get good at’ failure” at Business Insider, which includes the full transcript of Casado’s speech.
Here’s the gist of Casado’s advice:
“You’re unlikely to achieve your goals. Really, it’s very unlikely. When I was standing where you are, I wanted to be the world’s best computational physicist. And soon after, I wanted to be the world’s foremost cyber-policy expert. But instead, I went to grad school, and then I wanted to be the world’s best academic. And I certainly didn’t accomplish that.”
Opportunities, Casado explains, will always be coming at you and a better one may just “smack you while you’re looking the other way.” Set goals, work toward your goals, but be ready to take other opportunities when the time comes.
“You are going to fail. A lot. It’s inevitable. I only found computer science because I couldn’t hack it as a physicist and then I failed as a microbiology student. I made many, many missteps as the first-time founder of a company.”
Failure is to be embraced, says Casado. Failure is our “true measure of success.” The dynamic world in which we all live shifts rapidly, especially as systems develop and technology increases. Learn to value the process of failing and then “get back up, apply what you’ve learned, and hit reset.”
“No one really knows what contributes to success. Not me. Not some business guru or some pundit on the news. No one. And that’s particularly true for your success — yours.”
Casado urges us to measure the advice of others against our own unique capacity to define and solve problems in the real world.
“The universe is a messy place. And the real trick going forward is to acknowledge that and to embrace it. The opportunity is hidden in the sloppiness. If you hold too hard to specific ideas of where you want to go, or what the landscape will look like, or what the world will provide you, I can guarantee you’ll be disappointed.”
And isn’t that what defines life and work and even relationships? Seizing amazing opportunities in a messy world, working alongside amazing, yet messy people, in order to achieve amazing success that brings a bit more order to our messy lives.
This message is not just for 2017 graduates, but for professionals at any stage of their careers.
If you find yourself stuck in a stagnant career environment, why not grab hold of that next amazing opportunities and bring some order to the chaos, like only you can do.