How often are you so impressed by a website or technology service that you think, “I really want to be a part of that” — so much that you set out to get a job at the company? That’s what happened to Surabhi Gupta, who first became a user of travel accommodations marketplace Airbnb while she was working as a full-time software engineer at Google, and was so enthusiastic about the product and its promise that she made the switch to working full-time at Airbnb.
There’s a real passion that Gupta has for her job, so in this episode of Inside Jobs, I sat down with her to find out what her day to day work life is like at Airbnb and the path she took to her current career.
I especially liked what she had to say about the nature of being a software engineer, and how it’s about much more than studying computer science at school. No matter where you’re at in your career, it seems, it’s best to keep a beginner’s mind. Gupta said:
“I think as long as you’re willing to learn, that’s sort of the most important part. A lot of people feel that they have to go through a certain training to learn the skills that they need. Yes, you learn some basic foundational skills [at school], but a lot of it you have to pick up on the job. Even though I came with experience, there was still of ton of things I had to learn.
So I think you’re just always learning, and as long as you expect that, that you’re not going to know everything, I think that it makes the job just a lot easier.”
Watch her talk about that and much more in the video embedded above.
Inside Jobs is a 12 episode miniseries from TechCrunch TV airing weekly on Mondays from March 24 through June 16 that gives an in-depth look at people in the job roles that really make the tech industry tick. Last week’s episode of Inside Jobs profiled Fitbit’s VP of Interactive and Design Tim Roberts.
Producing, shooting, editing, sound, and lighting for Inside Jobs is done by John Murillo. Production coordination and creative direction is done by Felicia Williams. Original logo design by Bryce Durbin. Motion graphics and graphic design by Eden Soto.