Spaghetti Code & Scooters
Why your career path is a feature, not a bug
A candid discussion mapping a messy career path that looks less like a strategy and more like someone gave a caffeinated squirrel access to a whiteboard. We covered curiosity, chaos, and why real life rarely follows a clean, neat map.
When Experience Meets Curiosity
When Georgina Kelly invited me to speak to first-year computer science students at London South Bank University in Ajman, the plan was a standard campus visit. Life, however, threw us a curveball. We had to quickly pivot the entire event online via Zoom.
Anyone who spends their days on virtual calls knows the challenge of keeping students engaged for four hours across morning and afternoon sessions. Yet, these students brought a level of energy, enthusiasm, and curiosity that elevated the entire experience. They did not just listen; they drove the conversation.
Alongside Dr. Mohammad Barakat, we ditched the formal slides and scripts. We shared honest stories about career chaos, navigating uncertainty, and why a messy professional path is a feature rather than a bug. We become "experts" not because everything goes perfectly, but because we learn from the moments that do not. This session was a powerful reminder of why sharing those hard-earned lessons matters so much.
Session objectives
This was not a technical talk discussing architecture diagrams or programming languages. It was an honest session with first-year computer science students about the realities of international business, failure, and adaptation.
- Exploring the jump from 90s hardware at Sygma United to early 2000s global DVD e-commerce.
- Learning that while code can be difficult, people are the wild variable.
- Understanding that progress is usually less glamorous than waiting for perfect motivation or clarity.
- Navigating impossible bureaucratic environments and knowing when to walk away.
Key takeaways
Speakers and Moderator
Two dedicated sessions built around honest dialogue, answering direct questions from highly curious first-year university students.
The sessions were designed to challenge the illusion of a perfect five-year plan.
Talk outline
This Was Not a Plan
- Addressing the pressure of making the "perfect" choice at 19.
- Building a career by stepping into opportunities and surviving mistakes.
Career Chaos
- Pivoting through logistics, scooters, derma-cosmetics, and AI.
- Understanding that the sectors kept changing, but the problem-solving mindset did not.
Hardware Works. Humans Don't.
- A case study in early in-taxi advertising displays.
- Learning that the technical problem is often easy, while the human system around it is impossible.
Be Friends With Yourself
- Accepting that progress happens step by step.
- Surviving external criticism by refusing to subscribe to it internally.
Event context
- The Audience: First-year computer science students beginning their university journey.
- The Format: An interactive storytelling format culminating in a detailed Q&A about bizarre career turns.
- The Goal: To prove that individuals who went from diapers to computer science can do exceptionally hard things.
Session details
📅 Date: Wednesday, 6 May 2026
⏰ Duration: Two sessions, two hours each
📍 Venue: Hosted virtually via Zoom
🎤 Format: Guest lecture and student-led Q&A