For me it was pure luck..i applied to work for a construction company and was assigned a project that ironically no one was able to take on because it required collaboration with different construction companies abroad.

The project was to implement a data integration standard among different construction companies who were competitors so it was actually a tricky job. The chair of the project were Bechtel and they decided it would be open source.

Three years later i had a great journey but i also had to quit. not only was i making good money relative to where i live, but i travelled to some beautiful places and met extraordinary people. Since that was my first job, i was totally spoiled because now i can't accept any job that is less exciting, so i am currently pursuing being independent, which is the only alternative i would accept.

There are corporate open source jobs out there and i recommend that you look for them, but be careful you might get spoiled.