Hi Radek, I didn't know how to reach you so I decided to comment on your latest video. I'm a student and I'm on my ML learning journey. I'm mostly interested in CV. Your book helped me get out of tutorial hell and now I practice more and write more code instead of focusing too much on the theory. Recently something happened and I wanted to hear your opinion on this topic. I got a bit demotivated to learn, because my friend who graduated a renowned university and has 9 months experience in the field, still has difficulty finding a new job. This kinda demotivated me because I feel far behind him knowledge and skill wise. I think now the industry isn't really junior/intern friendly and there are very few positions at that level. This doesn't mean that I plan to stop improving! So I wanted to ask you, what's your view on this topic. Do you think the situation will get better? Pozdrawiam
Hey! 🙂 I would love to help but this is not easy. First of all, you take 100% responsiblity for your actions and for setting the course in your life, there is no one else who can provide you with an answer here. Also, there is no golden bullet, there is no formula that has universally worked for everyone. There are so many variables involved, including random luck, that dictate the outcomes in your life. And the topic of having a job and supporting yourself is so extremely broad! There is no way I can provide an all-encompassing answer in a reply such as here. But Meta Learning documented most of my learning from 8 years, this is literally what I had to say on this topic, the best I could come up writing straight from my heart. So I have been going back and forth in my life, questioning some of the ideas in Meta Learning, but I keep coming back to them and and rediscovering their power, that this indeed is the right approach for me, possibly quite useful for others as well. So I think you are doing things right, learning from your experience and for talks like this one. The three interviews I did here are all with people who don't have formal ML education, but are extremely employable. I can't imagine what would need to happen to planet Earth for this to change. And on the motivation side of things -- it is okay to get demotivated or even give up. I have given up on ML a couple of times in my life, once "for good" where for 5 months I didn't do any ML, I stayed away from it as far as I could. But the motivation in what you do needs to be intrinsic -- if you pursue something because ML researcher jobs come with a certain status and salary, you most likely will burn out very quickly. You need to find a game you are willing to play your entire life, ideally. Not for 6 months, not for a year. Not for 5 years. At the same time I am super conscious money is super important and can be life changing, you can't even imagine how well I can relate to this. But maybe there is a certain group of people like me, or some paths -- again, like the one I seemed to have been on, where if you are not intrinsically motivated you will just not be able to sustain yourself along the way. This is not the world where if you go through 5-years of Uni you are guaranteed something at the end. I live in a world where if you can show to the world that you can do A, or B, which seems to be quite useful, you, potentially, might run into someone who might be interested in your work, and through those encounters your life will change. Some people take a more direct path -- they built up their portfolio of projects they completed AND then they apply, following the "standard" interview process, seeking out openings. But you first have to invest a lot up front without any guarantees that you will get any value out of your investment. Just doing something because learning feels good. Because this is the path you chose to be on in your life. Playing the Uni game, I cannot help you with, because I have no experience with that world. Life is unfair in the sense that the job market -- due to actions of the government, aspects of capitalism, etc -- can often create crushing conditions where some % of people will get subjected to not being able to support themselves, and fundamentally I think this is horrible. And this should be getting addressed at the systemic level of fiscal policy, monetary poslicy and legislature. Some countries are much better at this than others. But on a personal level, within the bubble of who you are, what work you shared with the world, what you can do, you play using different rules. On an individual level, the macro-economic conditions of the labour market are something to behold, sometimes with happiness, sometimes with dread or anger, but they affect you much, much less than your track record. I do wish you all the best but this is all I have for now, need to run back to work, All the best to you and your friend, Radek
