

Ask HN: I have 6 months. What should I do? - esteer

I&#x27;m an senior undergrad student at a top school in India. I have an offer from a top company in India. I&#x27;ll be totally free during my upcoming semester. I&#x27;m not sure if I should spend time on competitive programming and improve my algorithm skills or work on a startup. I have a SaaS idea that I&#x27;d like to work on. Which one do you think will payoff better later? I&#x27;m not able concentrate on either of these as I keep swinging between them. Any reasoning would be much appreciated. Thanks!
======
sjclemmy
Don't do either. Go and see places you've never seen before. The reasons are
two fold; this is probably the last time in your life you will have the
opportunity and it will benefit you later on as you'll be able see how other
people live and perhaps be able to empathise more easily with other points of
view.

~~~
esteer
Thanks! But, let's just say, the conditions I'm in, I can't afford to spend
time on anything else other than shaping my career. What would your advise be?

~~~
phillc73
Work for a charity for 6 months. And not in a back office role somewhere
spending each day at a computer. Go and work directly with the
underprivileged, the homeless, the sick or the poor.

This will shape your future career by providing a solid foundation of empathy,
leading to stronger relationship building skills and hopefully an ability to
better communicate with people from diverse backgrounds in a wide range of
professional situations. You will be much better placed to succeed than the
graduate who has never taken time to explore life and themselves, outside
their immediate surroundings and social circles.

~~~
coralreef
Just curious, did you ever actually do this yourself?

~~~
phillc73
I was fortunate enough to spend 12 months as a youth exchange student in South
Africa in the early 1990s. Part of my obligations in that programme was
involvement in the charitable works of my sponsoring organisation.

This 12 month period at a young and impressionable age, in a society on the
verge of significant change, certainly altered my life outlook, hopefully for
the better. I think it made me a less selfish person, more open to the needs
of other people, although I still need reminding from time to time.

------
edw519
% of algorithm skills needed that you already have: 90

% of startup skills needed that you already have: 10

Do the startup.

------
jmnicolas
Ultimately we are not you. What might be best for us might not be the right
thing for you.

So accept that you might take the wrong path, it will certainly not be the
last time it happens to you ;-)

------
bbayer
All depends on what are really willing to do? If you have some spare money
that can supports you for a while, why don't you run after your dreams. You
can try to build a MVP, apply some local incubation center, try to convince
people for funding your product. It will provide you a lot of experience even
though you cannot make it. Again, it depends what you want from life.

------
dogpa
Get a job with a non-Indian company. In my experience Indian companies are
bodyshops who'll bleed you dry and treat you like a slave and expect you to
thank them for the opportunity.

~~~
thrwy10
OP says 'top company in India' rather than 'top Indian company'. Besides,
there could be good Indian companies that he might have got a job at ex.
Flipcart, Snapdeal.

------
bikamonki
The startup, obviously. You may not have the same opportunity twice and you
will improve your skills anyway while working on your project.

------
NicoJuicy
So basicly, your question should be: "What would look best on my resumée?"

~~~
cowpig
this is terrible advice

------
zoharj
Email me zohar.j@gmail.com.

------
dogpa
Look for a job with a non-Indian company.

------
pskittle
work on your startup idea.

