So in your view, there's this mass of people who accomplish nothing useful and then a few who change the world?
> Will becoming a software engineer be a step in the right direction?
You need to realize that every single one of us who works, regardless of profession, changes the world. Even the guy flipping burgers at McDonalds.
If the guy wasn't flipping burgers, you'd be hungry and you wouldn't be able to do your super duper important job. Every single person in the economy contributes and shares in the accomplishment of everyone else. It's a large machine and every piece is important. Every piece, every person, makes a contribution and has an actual impact on the world.
Don't choose your profession based on some pre-conceived notion of how important a job is. That's just a cover for where on the social ladder a job falls. Yes, if you're a lawyer or a doctor, you'll be more respected than a burger flipper. Better paid too. But that's all it is, social perception and its consequences.
Choose a profession based on your ability and your capacity to engulf yourself in the work. If you have the capacity to be a software engineer, you enjoy the work, and you can make beautiful things with your skill-set ... by all means. But leave the pretentious bullshit of "making a difference" behind. We all make a difference, regardless of the profession.
The second difficult-to-admit thing is that software is only good at solving problems where analyzing information and manipulating data are the solution. Mobile banking apps are doing tremendous good in developing countries -- but the benefits of things like mosquito nets, water purification, and vaccination are not software problems. I'm pretty doubtful that apps will do much to alleviate poverty, although I'm excited and encouraging of the people who are trying.
But nowadays projects are built by hundreds if not thousands of engineers. They are all necessary but no individual engineer is irreplaceable or particularly important.
Without the politics, the Apollo missions wouldn't have happened.
Just note two things:
Strategizing is usually easier then implementation. It is by far easier to Imagine something then it is to make that imagination real.
The people who strategize will usually, unjustly get more credit then the people who implement. This applies both to failure and success.
People thought of digital money before, but Bitcoin's implementation set it apart, no?
Perhaps the same can be said for Tor, as well.
Another anecdote I personally have is a friend who is obsessed with being an entrepreneur. He keeps coming up with these ideas that are actually pretty decent, but he tries to build them himself (he's self taught but still doesn't really know what he's doing) and what he ends up with are things no one would ever, ever use twice.
Strategy is nothing without good implementation, and implementation is nothing without good strategy.
I've seen engineers fail at a task. I've never seen an entire startup fail because of bad engineering -- they fail because they don't have paying customers, and the lack of paying customers is usually not because "our app doesn't work just right." Users will keep using clunky apps that solve a real problem for them, but they abandon apps that don't solve a real problem.
> He keeps coming up with these ideas that are actually pretty decent, but he tries to build them himself (he's self taught but still doesn't really know what he's doing) and what he ends up with are things no one would ever, ever use twice.
That seems beside the point, doesn't it? We're not talking about whether implementation is completely unimportant, merely that the biggest lever is strategy (the idea itself, the marketing, the leadership that makes decisions about how to reach product-market fit) and not implementation. Let's say your friend is actually a semi-decent engineer. Would his app be 10% better if he were a 10% better engineer? Probably not. Yelp is ugly as sin but people keep using it because it solves a real problem. Tinder chat is broken beyond belief but people keep using it because it solves a real problem. Those companies have reached success through strategy and not implementation. You could make Yelp or Tinder 10% better from an engineering perspective, but that's not going to produce a 10% increase in users... I'd be surprised if it produced any growth in users at all actually.
To use your example of yelp - it might not be a feat of engineering, but it's well engineered enough to not get in the way of the problem it solves.
2. The easiest way to do that is money. (ex: Bill Gates, Elon Musk) Barring that, you need to write an awesome book, or have something published (Stephen Hawking, Albert Einstein), or get elected (Barack Obama). Chances are, those will lead to increased wealth also.
3. Use that to introduce the change you want in the world.
The thing is, the most difficult part is expanding that sphere. You're one person of 7 billion. That's not even a one in a million chance of impacting the world. The odds are against you. That said, you can make a change in your community, maybe even your city. The key is, you have to start right where you are and impact what you can.
If Albert Einstein had asked 'should I become a patent clerk if I want to make an actual impact on the world?' people would have flat out said NO. The thing is, it did give him steady income and time to think, and thinking is what he did best.
Now of course you can shortcut those steps by being a martyr for whatever cause you want (Nathan Hale, Mahatma Gandhi), but then if you have to ask, you're already doing it wrong.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effective_altruism https://centreforeffectivealtruism.org/
I suspect this isn't what you were thinking of - but it's something you can do that doesn't prevent you improving the world directly through the software you make.
This EA organization seems especially relevant to OP's question: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/80,000_Hours
The people who stand upon the ends of our levers are there because they have already decided the direction in which they wish to push.
You cannot guarantee that any skill will help you until after you have decided what you want the world to do for you. Once you have decided upon your end, the means to it should become more clear.
I try to focus on the small things. There are alternatives to owning the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Choosing not to work for Zynga, or refusing to help the NSA's data collection is more than enough for a start. Write an app that makes life in the 3rd world easier, and you are already ahead of the curve.
Great attitude. I feel the same way too. There is a line[1] in "Hey Jude" (a popular Beatles song) that I quite like:-
"Don't carry the world upon your shoulders"
No one can change the world all by himself but little things go a long way.
Then as a software engineer, you'll earn a decent amount of money. And money is what you will need to sponsor your dreams of changing the world. And getting started in software isn't too hard, you just need a computer and internet. Worst case, you can always fail and start again (minus health). So out of any career, I think a Software Engineer one is a pretty good bet. You will at least get a pretty good set of tools to help you out. Then it's up to you and your determination.
All that said, I don't think there's a single 'career' that will make you change the world. Nothing and nobody will make you change the world, it will come from you.
Some people might advise you that you can't do much, but that's not true.
Some people might advise you to try to do something uber-ambitious, but most uber-ambitious projects fail.
Some people point out that almost whatever you do, your labor contributes to society as a whole. That's very true.
I want to add: change the world into what? In what direction? Your question is like asking, "Can I travel far away by train or automobile?" Depends where! Are there roads or tracks? Do you intend to construct roads or tracks? Why are you picking out some destination in particular?
Software did change the world and is continuously doing that. The jump from even 30 years ago is spectacular.
This trend will continue in the foreseeable future.
But notice that there's a slight difference between 'changing' the world and 'making the world better'.
The first means doing thing differently, which doesn't necessarily mean that it is in everyone's best interest. Change can also be a bad thing. The second means giving humanity tools which they can use themselves to solve some of their existential problems.
When you solve one of these problems you can either: profit immensely from it by being a monopoly (change the world) or share your solution with the world and contribute to everyone (make the world better).
Then there's you very personal desire to 'make an actual impact'. You have to very carefully examine why you want it to be you and not someone else. If you're looking to get rich, you can do it in a lot of other ways. If you want a place in history, you can also do it by going into politics or science or art. If you want to improve the condition of the human race, then ask yourself - are you willing to still do it even if you get no reward or recognition for it ?
I guess that's more than you asked for, but I think it's important to consider these things early as they will haunt you for the rest of your journey. Good luck.
You can certainly do that working at NSA (or FSB).
If you want to do good, then becoming a software developer (or accountant, or statistician) is not enough in itself.
It is what you then choose to do with your knowledge that determines that. And luck.
However, beware [1].
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_road_to_hell_is_paved_with_...
Anytime I see an article saying something along the lines of "Big data can cure cancer," I just laugh. All occupations help the world in their own way. Software just happens to be really trendy right now.
I believe the reason this question is asked, is not because of the stark reality of software engineering, but because of the perception.
We choose to become leaders. We choose to change the world. No one is born* into it*
In the massive wealth of technology and information we have today, it is very much possible to become successful as an engineer. But much too often do people outweigh the failures of the many with the successes of the few. Think of how many startups have failed before one actually succeeded. It is ungodly and daunting to look at the statistics but that should never stop someone. It should drive you as a professional in not becoming one of the many and deciding to fight to become one of the few.
TL:DR; I do not believe that being a software engineer alone gives us all the capability of changing the world. It must be coupled with drive and determination before it becomes an option
Change Heroes helps raise money for charities and non profits. Our impact includes 217 funded projects so far including schools, wells, and aid packages. Yes, as an engineer, you can make a huge impact on the world.
> International Development Design Summits (IDDS) Lahore is a hands-on design experiences that brings together people from all walks of life to create low-cost, practical innovations to improve the lives of people living in poverty.
(you can apply before July 1st, and participate in Lahore, Pakistan).
The impact may be small, but certainly significant for many (things that have come out of these summits are water purification and monitoring technologies, sanitation technologies, healthcare information through SMS, and many more)
Probably one of the most direct ways to help is to work for a company whose impact you believe will help change the world in a positive way.
E.g. online learning, green tech, or whatever you personally are passionate about.
Another example: in the last 5-10 years there's been a lot of work done in helping consumers understand their power and water usage. This lets us make smarter choices and reduce our energy and water usage.
Making lots of money and donating it to an effective charity is usually a more efficient way to change the world for the better than choosing a sub-optimal career trying to change the world by yourself.
If you think you can be a good software engineer, you should go for it.
Been thinking about this as well, would love to hear any further thoughts on this.
Following that same strain of logic, if I want to build a successful business, why not choose an optimal career and then hire someone to build the business for me?
That's what angel investors do, right? First they make lots of money and then they invest on other people's business.
This is indeed a boring answer but a realistic one, especially given how vague "an actual impact on the world" is.
http://www.unite-to-light.org/
I'm less cynical now.
It all depends on where you want to work, and what you want to do.
Either way the world is changed.
Just an example.
HN is filled of brogrammers these days, the ones who will change the world, and are reading HN to know, how to do it.
I just wanted to give my perspective, as someone who's done both, regarding 'working for a product you love' and 'working for a big company because you get paid well'.
If anyone got personally offended because they think they can be a corporate Java developer and change the world by contributing to a charity... well, I guess it's pretty clear the OP wasn't asking about that. Anyone can do that, no need to be a software engineer.