“Back from the Brink” – my professional path 2007-2010
This guest blog was published on SF Chronicle’s SFGate website Nov. 23, 2009 and garnered +150 comments. It is a slightly-edited version of an essay by Penny Mudd, who describes her ongoing evolution from tech to teaching. – Tom Abate, Editor
“Two years ago I was a Silicon Valley veteran of nearly twenty years. I’d had a typical whirlwind career, gathering expertise about technology partnerships with Europe and creating software with smart teammates at companies like Novell, Remedy and Borland.
The start-up firm I’d been with for the last eight of those years was on track to find a buyer. I had imagined the day that I could leave the grind and make a direct contribution to society. Maybe be a teacher. Gone would be the 60-plus hour work weeks. No more massaging boy wonders’ unchecked egos. Hello summers off and dinner at home at a reasonable hour.
But in late 2007 I was kicked to the curb by the aforementioned start-up. A second Dickensian moment occurred on Christmas Eve in 2008 when I opened a package informing me – with all the details down to the penny – that instead of commendation and reward for the long stint I had dedicated to the firm, the CEO and Board had engineered the disbursement of very paltry sums to the long time employees, while they loaded up the stockings – to the tune of seven figures – for a relatively new management team. I found myself in a fog of disillusionment.
Finally, there came the third event and (near) coup de grace: The Recession. I’d skated through the last two downturns (1990, 2000) so I had no clue how to protect myself. My skills were still in demand, but there was now super-abundance of applicants, both American and from the vast H-1B job pool. I had no choice but to re-evaluate my earlier daydreams in light of these changed circumstances and start building a new professional identity from scratch at age 50.
So much for the past. These days I wake up at 6 a.m. to study before I go to an 8 a.m. math class at the community college right down the street from my house. The instructor is not only easy on the eyes at that hour, but teaches in a manner that brings the bleary-eyed 20-something students (and one middle-aged, would-be math teacher) along for the learning curve.
Two days a week, I follow that up by driving another mile to a well-funded local junior high school where I’m a teacher’s aide. To round out my pre-credential curriculum, I study piano (as I plan to teach our newly arrived students some national anthems), US history and a symposium of what it takes to work in public schools led by veteran teachers. On Fridays I volunteer at the Monterey Aquarium down the coast, an activity that got me thinking about teaching to begin with.
Most days I’m calm and committed to my new path as a middle school math teacher. Other days I feel betwixt and between, like I’ve lost my right arm and I want to flee back to my old identity. But when given the chance to mingle with the tech crowd at a trade show in NYC recently, I could see I’d been bitten by the bug of helping kids find their place in the world.
Though the road to teaching is long and winding, studying math has been strangely therapeutic. That, along with the love of a good man, compassionate counseling and some short, but fun travel has helped me keep the faith during this painful and extended transition. I find I am a much better-rounded person that I was during my SV days. With two careers in my arsenal now, I look to 2010 with a spirit of adventure and a curiosity about what the future holds.”
Follow Penny on Twitter @calliopeconsult.
Posted By: Tom Abate (Email) | November 23 2009 at 10:15 AM
