Paige Finn DohertyFounding Partner, Behind Genius · Founding Partner at Behind Genius Ventures

How did TQ Ventures Investor Jana Iris build her career in a bear market?

13 Dec 2022 · 1 min

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In this interview excerpt, Jana Iris recounts her early professional journey during a bear market. She began in customer support and sales, working long commutes from her parents' house and enduring a routine 9‑to‑5 grind. These first two years helped her build relationships and gain initial exposure to technology. She later transitioned to a community role at Engine Yard, a former competitor to AWS and Heroku, where she deepened her understanding of the open‑source ecosystem and discovered the importance of community building as a career asset.

Chapters

What was it like graduating and trying to build your career in a bear market? I started in a customer support role, customer support and sales, and it just, I got, I kind of got my first exposure to tech. Again, it was hard work. It wasn't glamorous. Like I had to go into a job every day, you know, I had to, I was commuting from my parents' house. I like, you know, it was like an hour each way. And that was just, you know, the first 2 years was just a 9 to 5. And then that, that was just kind of where I really started to like, make friends and meet people. And then I got a job offer to do like sales, then I switched into community at a company called Engine Yard. It's no longer around, but it was a competitor to, it was actually a competitor to Amazon Web Services. We had our own colo, and then a competitor to Heroku. And that's really where I got my exposure to kind of like the open source world. And that's where I really kind of learned about the value of community building.