Work Progress

Lately, I’ve been working on assembling a critical piece of EC2 infrastructure that launches an EC2 instance upon request, with a few other tasks like setting up routing, tagging the instance, etc…

However, I got a bit tramlined finding a proper way of starting the Node process.

At first, I was attempting to use a user-agent string (passed to the instance at launch) but Node isn’t available on the path of the user that runs the script’s contents. I believe the scripts run as the root user which isn’t necessarily a good thing…

After some fumbling / Googling, I found that systemd is probably the right way to start the Node process I need, after machine boot.

I’ve got a few evenings of work to button up the application daemon and I should be able to finalize and ship this piece.

Why

Switching gears a bit, I’d like to elaborate on why I’m starting my own company. There’s really two broad facets to why I’ve been longing to start my own company.

The first facet being personal and the second facet being professional, with both sharing a bit of crossover.

On the personal front, I’m just impatient sometimes. As time has gone on, I’ve practiced being more patient, listening with intent, and hearing people out, fighting my impulse to jump in and take action.

As selfish and narcissistic as this sounds, I have this conviction that I need to be the change I want to see in the world. I grew up around my Dad running his own business while juggling three of us kids. Only now, do I realize how many challenges he and my Mother faced, immigrating to the United States nearly 40 years ago.

I’ve come to see that I thrive when I encounter challenges, taking charge, and I find it extremely rewarding and joyful, getting to lead and inspire others.

Now, transitioning to the professional piece…

When I look around technology today, and specifically in tech entrepreneurship, rarely do I see the Asian minority being represented in a leadership capacity. I know Asian leaders exist but there’s rarely any news, mention, or spotlighting of APAC entrepreneurs (or even engineers). This is probably deliberate on their part, let’s respect that fact that successful people often do it quietly. But still, the point remains, representation matters.

I’m tired of the idea or catch phrase, “Come work for us, we need you to solve XYZ” or “FOLLOW our leader to THEIR vision.” I’m tired of solving problems that don’t have sustainable solutions, and I’m tired hearing about “charismatic”, entitled leaders whom are merely assholes (with a lot money) that take advantage of the underprivileged.

I want to be a leader in a space where there’s plenty of room for everyone to succeed, and define their own vision and mission.

Expect a follow up post this week about the business idea and what the product actually is.

• Jonathan