Working for a Startup
About a year ago, I was just beginning the last semester of my Data Analytics Master’s Program at the University of Central Florida. I had spent the previous two semesters looking into potential post-grad job opportunities, but wasn’t satisfied with what I was finding. However, one day as I was reviewing my school emails, I discovered an old internship email that my graduate advisor had sent me at the start of the program. It was for a new startup company called Advancing Technologies (now Extropian) that was using machine learning to build a performance tracking device for combat sports athletes. As a Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner and avid combat sports fan myself, this immediately piqued my interest. I reached out to my advisor for more information and was able to set up an internship interview with the Advancing Technologies team. During my initial meeting with Founder/CEO and COO, Ricky and Sean, they showed me how the wearable technology worked and I instantly began thinking of all the possibilities that could come from this. It was from that moment that I knew I wanted to be a part of this company.
Working for an early-stage startup technology company has definitely been unlike any other job I have had before. Every day, there has been something completely new to work on and learn more about. While this could be particularly challenging at times, it has allowed me to grow and expand my horizons into areas that I was not familiar with before. This time last year, I would never have guessed that I would now be a regular member on a podcast interviewing UFC coaches and professional boxing journalists about technology. Additionally, I get to interact with people from completely different departments of the company on a regular basis. I can meet with members of the IT department to discuss machine learning algorithms in the morning, and then hop into a meeting with the marketing team later in the day to develop a new social media strategy. Not being confined to one specific team and having the freedom to craft my own distinct role has been one of my favorite aspects of working for Extropian. Being part of a team that is always encouraging each other to learn something new and take the initiative on ideas has led to a fantastic work environment and is a key reason why I believe that this company has such a bright future.
I remember searching for job opportunities while in graduate school and struggling to find the right one for me. It seemed pretty unlikely that I would ever find a job where I could combine what I was learning in my program with something that I was passionate about like combat sports. When I first read about this company, it seemed like a dream come true. I knew I had to pursue this opportunity further and I am extremely glad that I did. Seeing the progress that Extropian has made and being a part of the team’s many accomplishments this past year has been a truly rewarding experience. As my second year with the company begins, I am excited by what the future holds for us. I believe that everything that we worked on last year led to us creating a strong foundation for our company to grow in 2023. We have already begun working with so many talented, new people and have some incredibly innovative things in development. I can’t wait to show everyone what we have been working on. Stay tuned!
