Today was the day I could finally make a decision. I have decided to quit Limechat and move to Blackrock as an SDE Intern at Aladdin Product Group.

It was a tough decision. I had been thinking about this for months now, and more so in the last week. There were so many factors that I had to consider.

Any decision involves a proper analysis of the problem, followed by looking at possible scenarios and future possibilities. It is important to be rational, and not let emotions come in between.

Contrary to what most people may think, I did not choose Blackrock as a way to avert risk. Infact, it is just the opposite. I feel I made a risky decision in my personal life by going for it. I was and I still am ready to take more risk right now, because I can afford it at this point.

Surely, Limechat offered a great opportunity for personal growth, but I am looking for something beyond that at this point. I want to explore how a big company like Blackrock works. I am curious to know how big software stacks function and evolve. I want to master my hands on writing, designing and building systems that solve problems.

Too confusing, eh?

It is a risky proposition. A Java-based legacy software stack pushes me completely out of my comfort zone. It strips me off the warmth and comfort of being in the Python world. It is a work environment I would not have preferred to work in. Even the pay gap is substantial.

But I believe that being pushed out of your comfort zone makes you do great things. It is a litmus test for me and my interests: Either I will end up being a passionate software engineer and an aspirational software architect, or branch out into finance, research or something else.

I considered all aspects, and there is no better way to learn about system design, as well as test your interests. So yes, I am making that jump.

Hope it all works out well.