Ask HN: How many different jobs have you had?
A lot of opportunities have come from randomly meeting people in diverse occupations. I got into foreign labour recruiting after being approached while selling industrial trailers at a trade show; I got into entrepreneurship and started my first company after taking an internship in Guatemala, where my best friend introduced me to the world of business that his family had raised him in.
So I'm a little curious what the paths of other founders/entrepreneurs look like -- whether they're convoluted and varied like mine, or focused and deep in one area. I'm guessing there's some of both.
FWIW, here's my list, in chronological order:
Paper boy (4y)
Sanitation worker in a meat plant (4y)
--- graduated high school ---
Graphic designer (10y on and off)
NGO Donor Relations intern (Guatemala, 3m)
Tree Planter (3m)
Youth leadership intern (USA, 3m)
Delegate/Team Leader for international trade NGO (2y)
Export trade development coordinator, public-private partnership (3m)
Founder of project to bring youth to WTO in Hong Kong (3m)
Web developer (8y on and off)
Trade show rep (sporadic)
Foreign labour recruiter/consultant (Canada/Thailand, 3m)
President/Founder of my own importing/brand/online/wholesale company (Canada/Guatemala, 1y)
VP Product Development / founder of a family-owned startup (China, 9m)
SAT prep teacher (Beijing, 2m)
VP Marketing of same family-owned startup (8m)
And this doesn't include any of my studies (I studied at 3 different universities but left without graduating to do my own projects).