That little image you see above is going to be my website’s favicon, or the logo you will see at the top right corner. Also, I changed this websites domain back to the old one as I plan on using AkashSky.com for my new website.
-Akash Sky
Update on Hiatus
Hey internet, I just want to give out a brief update on my future plans for this blog. So, instead of having this blog go out as it has been normally, I decided that I am going to pick a topic to blog out, and then consistently put out content for that blog.
I’m currently debating on what topic I should niche down in, but so far I’ve thought of Risk-Management. After I decide what topic I want to blog about, I plan on doing a complete website revamp. Anyways, if you have any comments or suggestions about a topic, or about this blog in general, please email me at AkashMSky@gmail.com.
Also, I’m debating whether or not I should keep this domain or choose a different one that better reflects my topic
Sorry, Hiatus incoming
“I give my leave of absence not out of fear for the unknown, but rather to take control of what I can and force out the future of my dreams.”-Akash Sky
Dear readers,
As you know from my earlier post, I obtained a job as a junior engineer over at Enterprise Automation. This job is full time, and I am not finding enough time for myself to actually write quality post. As a result, I am going to have this blog go on hiatus, (which means that I won’t be posting very often.) Worry not however, for this does not mean that I will give up on blogging, but rather that I need some time to discover what topics I truly want to write about and how I can write about them in an efficient manner.
To tell the truth, however, I am not very satisfied with the quality of my writing on this blog. I feel that I am capable of writing much better and capable of marketing my blog much more efficiently to actually obtain a substantial viewer base. My number one downfall, I believe, is that I failed to emphasize email subscriptions and build my list. This will most definitely change in the future when I restart this blog.
When I restart this blog, it is going to be much more focused on a niche topic rather than being just about my random life. I would much rather provide value to the world with an informational blog than simply rant off about some of my meaningless stories. (Although I’ll probably still tell them in person if people ask). Until then, I want some time to rethink about my blogs direction and focus on my work.
I don’t know how long it will take me to restart this blog, but I will surely keep you all updated on what my plans are for the general direction I want this blog to take. If you haven’t already, it would really make my day if you were to subscribe to my email list using the sidebar. I promise I won’t send you any spam email, and will simply use it to inform you when I plan on bringing back my blog. If the topic I choose to write about doesn’t appeal to you, there will be a link to unsubscribe easily. Of course, I do realize that asking for an email address is quite a commitment from you, the online reader. Unfortunately as of right now, I have nothing of value to trade for your email.
Please forgive my selfishness until I return
-Akash Sky
Akash goes to Maui day 2
“The animals in Maui don’t seem to give any fucks”
On day 2, I arose with much more vitality than day 1. Surely, I thought, the coastline would be no match for me. I decided to watch my pace and jog slowly to the beach-walk. On the way over, I met a stray cat, relaxing on the sidewalk as many tourist simply ran by. I stopped to take a photo because I was amazed at how tolerant the animals in Maui are at being near humans. Even the birds scavenging leftovers near the hotel grounds refuse to fly away until I am but a foot away. But perhaps the strangest event involved a bird that seemed like a mix between a seagull and a flamingo. As I was jogging through, the bird seemed as if it wanted to cross the beach-walk. It stopped right at the edge of the beach walk, and waited until I passed before it walked across.
Regarding my run, I made the poor decision of attempting to run on sand. Running on sand is extremely tiring because the sand crumbles underneath your weight and sinks down, thus forcing you to life your legs up even higher for the next step. It is similar to running up a hill, even if you are running in a straight, flat, line. As a result, I quit after I reached a quarter of the way to the horizon.
Unfortunately, traversing the beach takes quite a bit more effort than I had initially expected. And as a result, I will probably forsake it going forward to the future.
-Akash Sky
Akash Goes to Maui Day 1
“Mountains make it very easy to build terrible roads” – Akash
Struggling to keep my eyes open past 9pm, (Hawaii time, mostly due to the 3 hour time difference), I quickly fell asleep in my hotel, worn out from my travels.
I rose at 6:30 am, (9:30 Ca time), and set out to explore the new state I had found myself in. With a slight urge to test my muscles, I chose to run left of my hotel, and continued doing so until I met the coastline.
I flinched as I entered the area because the waters were still. The problem with still water is that all the filth in the world is able to congregate and concentrate in said water, resulting in rotten oceanic stench.
Eager to escape the foul still waters, I ran off beside the beach, where the ocean waves caressed the beach sand. Far before this point I had already exhausted my stamina, for I have little tolerance for long distance running (although I think I had been running for a mere 5 minutes at this point). Unwillingly, (but more so because I was unable) I stopped running at the coastline and continued back.
I then concluded the day with a heavy breakfast , aquarium visit, a short ping pong match, and some swimming. I then fell asleep, with plans to conquer the coastline the following day.
I got a job!
“Accumulation= In – Out + Consumption – Generation” -Justin Opatkiewicz
Back in April, I received an interview from Enterprise Automation after talking to the company at UCSD’s spring career fair. This post is the story of how I navigated through the hiring forest and ultimately found a job offer.
Prior to going into my second job interview, I studied through UCSD’s biginterview website. Generally, this service costs a monthly payment, but if you are a UCSD student, the service is offered for free. I went through their mastery plan and learned a lot about the general interview process. Unfortunately (or fortunately) for me, Enterprise Automation is not your average company.
Generally speaking, every company wants to hire the best candidate for the job in terms of qualifications and skill. Thus, skills, experience and job description compatibility are often the most important things required to get a job. However, this dynamic shifts a little when dealing with people who are fresh out of college because they often lack extensive experience.
Enterprise interviews applicants uniquely in that they are just as interested in personal fit as the persons technical skill and ability to do the job. In other words, Enterprise Automation has no problem turning away an amazingly exceptional candidate if their personality would conflict with the rest of the team.
As a result, my second interview consisted mainly of me talking about my past work experiences and school projects, naming both negative and positive aspects. Enterprise was interested in verifying that I would be compatible with their company on a personal level before going forward to test my actual skills, (which was the main focus of the last technical interview).
During the third interview, I was asked to think critically and solve a controls problem the company had provided for me. What ended up saving me was the core principle of chemical engineering.
Accumulation= In – Out + Consumption – Generation
The problem that I was asked to solve failed to account for mass balances, basically, if you put a little bit of something in, you get a little bit of something out, and if you put a lot of something in, you get a lot of something out.
Ultimately, I obtained a job offer after only having applied to 6 different companies. I can’t say that it was rough getting a job, but it wasn’t exactly easy either. Regardless, I am extremely excited to enter a new phase in my life and enter the work force.
-Akash Sky
Sayonara, UCSD
If you would like to receive email notifications whenever I post something, you could always subscribe => (if you are on a PC), or at the very end of the post if you are on a mobile device.
Now, onto the post.
I came here, to UCSD as a mere lad in early 2013. Since then, quite a lot has occurred- friendships forged, ambition realized, and comrades fallen. I now stand on the cusp of graduation, teetering along the cliff that divides college and real life. Many emotions course through mind, but the one I feel most is uncertainty- uncertainty of having to live as an adult. Physically, I cannot claim to be a child any longer, nor do I intend to. However, I am quite sad to have finished that segment of my life. Regardless, times change, and if I choose to not change alongside time, I’ll either perish or be a revolutionary. UCSD was by no means a pleasurable experience, though few things that add value to your life are. To me, UCSD was a series of challenges that forced self-growth, whether I wanted to or not.
The absolute worst:
Few things leave as bitter an aftertaste in my mouth than “Warren Writing”. UCSD, being a STEM centered school, does not wish for its students to exit without knowing how to coherently write an argument. Unfortunately for me, arguing isn’t one of my stronger points, I am far better at ranting and storytelling. As a result, I struggled quite a bit with this class and learned a worthless lesson. Classes where you defend your points instead of earn them are not worth your time. Thus, I settled for a B- and continued onward.
The very best:
There are an infinite number of positive things resulting from a college education (self growth, relationships, maturity, etc.) that you can’t put a price tag on. I don’t know whether or not UCSD was worth every penny, but UCSD has for certain not failed to provide me with a deep, rich college education. Of course, most of the education depends on how much effort you decide to put into it, (but UCSD still provides many opportunities for its students).
I volunteered in a research lab and played scientist in the world of academia for a quarter, learning firsthand the hardships and rewards that come with the creation of new knowledge. I spent many nights with friends laughing away until the sun rose. I grew up and learned to accept more responsibility (if ever so slightly).
My regrets:
Although I generally approve of my experience at UCSD, I too, like many others have regrets associated with college life. For one, I didn’t find a girlfriend (although this isn’t my real regret as I can always search tomorrow). I do also regret not getting into a graduate school program, but I see this more as an opportunity to gain work experience than as a regret. But really, my actual regret was not stopping my friend Duong from flunking out of Chemical Engineering. Prior to this I always thought I had the power to stop people from making poor decisions- a power that I most certainly did not, and do not have. Regardless, this is something that I hope to gain in the future- so as to prevent unavoidable tragedies.
Yet, Nonetheless:
Just because we are one of thirty thousand students, we weren’t just numbers UCSD. We all fermented our desires, fought our own battles, formed our own relations. Even though UCSD was not 10/10, I do say at least this. I am proud that from this day forth, I can call myself an Alumni of UCSD, a triton.
Akash’s Workout Movement
The next post will be my UCSD graduation reflection. I plan on having it up by 6/6/13.
“When you find yourself in the thickness of pursuing a goal or dream, stop only to rest. Momentum builds success.”-Suzy Kassem
To make a long story short, I started to exercise and gained a sliver of muscle. But that doesn’t make for an interesting story, nor does it capture the scope of this post. This post is about the creation of a habit (working out), and analysis of my reason, resolve, and results.
To start off, I want to answer the question “why?”. I found one image on the internet that I feel answers this question in great detail.
In September of 2015, I had a physical check up, and these were the results of my blood test:
| Component | Value | Healthy Range |
| Triglyceride | 184 mg/dL | <=149 mg/dL |
| HDL | 37 mg/dL | >=40mg/dL |
Triglycerides are essentially fats, and high concentrations in the blood indicate an elevated risk of stroke. As you can see in the table above, my Triglyceride levels are well above the healthy range. HDL is GOOD cholesterol. According to webmd.com, High HDL levels reduce the risk for heart disease — but low levels increase the risk. From the above test, you can clearly see that my HDL levels are just below the healthy range. As you can see, in september of 2015, I wasn’t exactly in the healthiest condition.
Reason:
My good cholesterol was sparse and my bad cholesterol was abundant. My arteries and veins were set up perfectly to create life endangering fatty clogs. However, I wasn’t interested in becoming a heart attack statistic, nor having the following stone ever made:
Unfortunately for me, to be not interested in high triglycerides meant to be interested in exercising and healthy eating. It meant interest in investing time and energy now to prevent a disastrous future.
Thus, I chose to work out, not out of aesthetic desire but out of genuine concern for my longevity. My raison d’etre was to drastically lower my triglycerides and raise my HDL.
However, when I first started to workout, I didn’t know how to use any piece of gym equipment. Luckily, I had a friend to go to the gym with me, Leonar Gharib, who generally set everything up and showed me how to work out. To this day, I pretty much follow Leo’s routine exactly (although I have made some minor adjustments). I highly recommend finding a gym buddy to work out with, because when both of you are committing to going to the gym, it holds you both accountable for that action. If one of you misses, you not only let yourself down, but also your friend. However, neither of you are truly accountable until there is actually some money on the line. If you place X dollars on the line as a penalty for not attending the gym, (i,e if you skip a day, you pay your friend X dollars) there is another added incentive to show up. Either way, there needs to be a strong incentive for you to go to the gym, or else you’ll stop.
Resolve:
Many times, personal health isn’t enough to create change-causing motivation. In order to stay motivated, I set some physical benchmark goals for myself, and as I inch closer to each of these goals, I invigorate my motivation.
- I want to be able to benchpress my own body weight
- I want to be able to run a 6 minute mile ( 6:59 is approximately 6 minutes)
- I want to be able to dunk a basketball on a 10 foot rim
The general weekly workout plan I’m using to accomplish my goals is:
Monday (Chest+Upperback):
Tuesday (Triceps, Biceps, Shoulders):
Wednesday (Legs+Lowerback):
Thursday (Chest+Upper back):
Friday (Triceps, Biceps, Shoulders):
Saturday (Legs):
Sunday REST:
Result:
Ultimately, I’ve only gained about 5 pounds since I started working out, going from a measly 130 to a slightly more toned 135. However, I have improved on nearly all of the exercises since I started to work out, going from the bar to lifting 35’s on each side on the bench press- going from a max of 65 to a max of 80 on the lap-pulldown, and so on.
I attribute my lack of weight gain to the fact that I have not been consuming my body weight (lb:grams 1:1) in protein daily. Just like how some people gain weight easily after overeating, I have the exact opposite problem-struggling to keep on even a single pound.
These physical analysis are nice and all, but are far from what truly concerns me. I simply want to know how exercising has affected the concentration of triglycerides and HDL in my blood. In the past few months, I’ve been regularly exercising atone to the above schedule, yet I have done little to change my diet, (meaning I still eat those glorious fat filled in-and-out burgers). However, I won’t have this data until much later this summer (thus, I’ll save it for another post).
As for my progress on obtaining my goals
1. I’ve benched 115 lbs (5 reps), so I’ve still got about 20 lbs to go. (I’m pretty sure I will be able to do 135 as a 1 rep max within a week or so)
2. I can run at the 6 minute pace for a little over 3 minutes until I stop due to extreme exhaustion. This goal will take me a long time to finish. Here is a graph to illustrate my pain.
The first 0.2 miles are easy, no burning and I feel like I can keep going forever. But, as soon as I go pass 0.2, my muscles began to burn slightly and this pain increases linearly until 0.4 miles, at which point I’m gasping for air as my muscles scream.
3. I can jump high enough to just barely touch the bottom of the basketball rim. (I need about 1 more inch to actually grab the rim, and then I’ll need another 6 or so inches to actually dunk the basketball. I’ll probably need another year to accomplish this goal).
Although I’ve spent all this time training, I have not actually achieved any significant results. Yeah, I can bench 85% of my body weight, run half of a 6 minute mile, and almost scrape the metal basketball hoop, but so can millions of other people. What I have done that actually holds value is that I created a healthy habit out of thin air. I committed to going to the gym consistently, and created a healthy habit that will return enormous dividends over the course of my life. If you’re ever in a tough spot and want to improve your situation, simply taking the first step and committing to a healthy habit creates momentum- something that holds unimaginable power when used correctly.
-Until I officially graduate
Akash Sky
Perhaps I should learn how to invest?
Now, before we get into this post, I thought I would engage my readers a bit. I plan on releasing my next post June 6, 2016. I currently have two post prepared- Vote here for the one you want posted!
http://www.strawpoll.me/embed_1/10243077
“I would rather have my money work hard for me, than work hard for my money”
As my younger years come to a close, I decided that learning how to properly invest money would be a good idea. In my case, as a soon to be Chemical Engineer graduate, entry level jobs typically pay on the order of $65,000 a year. After the government steals my money through taxes and forces me to pay social security, I would end up with roughly $3,800 a month in free cash.
Generally, people set up a budget to provide guidelines for their spending and managing their finances. As for myself, I am comfortable being frugal, and that I am quite used to the frugal life being fresh out of college. At any rate, let’s conjure a fake budget that might apply to me after I get a job.
Housing(Rent+Utilities): ~$900 w/ roommate
Food: ~$400
Gas: ~$50 (I don’t drive that much)
And that’s it in my case, at least for the next few years. (Considering that my parents paid for my college and car). There may very well be things like health insurance, etc that I’m missing on this budget. But since I am currently covered by my parents and the fact I think that insurance is a scam, (which may not be true, but that’s a story for another day) I’ll omit these costs from my fake budget. Unfortunately, being spoiled in this regard is slightly toxic, as it takes away responsibility on my end which will ultimately lead to unsustainability down the road. But I’ll learn the hard way when the time comes. Anyways, let’s assume the above as my minimum monthly budget (As I have probably forgotten some necessary expenditures).
My imaginary total monthly expenses are ~$1,350 a month living with a roommate.
Taking into account that I am bringing in $3,800 a month, and spending $1,350 a month, each month I have $2,450 in free cash. With the current figures in mind, I am living on 35.52% of my monthly income. According to networthify.com, I could retire in 10.9 years if I invest every single penny of my free cash.
For the numerically inclined here is a table. Whenever your investment returns cover 100% of your living expenses + inflation, you are free to retire, as there is no financial reason for you to work anymore.
**You have to be able to reinvest enough to make your yearly returns keep up with 3.22% inflation, which is the average rate in the US.**
| Year # | Income after Taxes | Yearly Expenses | Return on Investment @ 5%- |
| 1 | 45,600 | 16,200 | 735 |
| 2 | 45,600 | 16,200 | 2,242 |
| 3 | 45,600 | 16,200 | 3,824 |
| 4 | 45,600 | 16,200 | 5,485 |
| 5 | 45,600 | 16,200 | 7,229 |
| 6 | 45,600 | 16,200 | 9,061 |
| 7 | 45,600 | 16,200 | 10,984 |
| 8 | 45,600 | 16,200 | 13,003 |
| 9 | 45,600 | 16,200 | 15,123 |
Unfortunately, this model does not take into account that my expenses will rise if I get anything remotely close to a life, nor does it take into account the fact that investments don’t always work out. Sometimes, you end up losing the principal you invest. Regardless, investing seems like a valuable life skill and something worth pursuing.
Given your current budget, how many years would it take for you to retire? If you want to find out, I encourage you to head over to networthify.com/ and see how long it would take you to retire.
Of course, it’s kind of a waste to retire after only 11 years in the work force. At this point you could start a second career, literally doing whatever you wanted. You are monetarily free to pursue whatever gives your life meaning. In my case I would probably start up a business or become a writer. Whether or not I have the finances to “retire” in 11 years, I most definitively will not “retire” in the traditional sense.
-Till June 6, 2016
Akash Sky
The road to an Engineering Job
Calm and Collected
Nervous and Frantic
“If you know your enemies and know yourself, you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles” – Sun Tzu
Today, I want to talk about the first interview I have ever had, that is relevant to my engineering career. Whenever you are about to walk into an interview, its hard to not be nervous. However, although you may be nervous, its important to be excited for the opportunity as well. In doing so, you may feel a bit split, but make sure that your nervousness does not overwhelm your enthusiasm and excitement at the opportunity to interview.
In order to obtain this interview, I applied to about 6 different companies. I got this interview because I had thoroughly researched EA (Enterprise Automation) and impressed Luke Stephenson at UCSD’s spring career fair. At any rate, I had this interview at April 28, 2016 at UCSD’s career services center. I don’t think this interview went particularly fantastic, but it wasn’t a train wreck either, (for I solved their train question). Regardless, I don’t think I have a high chance of being called in for a second interview.
This is how the interview went: first, I was asked to introduce myself and my interests. Afterwords, they asked me “what’s your favorite class at UCSD and why?”. I couldn’t answer with heart or conviction. They also asked “where do you see yourself in 5 years? 10 years?”. I wasn’t able to answer with fiery passion. Next time I get another interview, I’m going to straighten up myself and streamline my purpose and ambitions. My problem was that I only researched my enemy, (enterprise automation), and didn’t research myself, and thus, although I knew my enemy, I did not know myself and thus found myself imperiled in this interview.
However the interview wasn’t a complete train wreck- I was able to answer their technical train question correctly. Essentially the situation was as follows: we have a train going forward on a track, and we have an analog sensor that can tell us how far the train is away from the intersection of the road and the track. What we want to know is using this information, how would you know when to close the gate so the train can pass through?
The answer to this was kind of simple. You can take two measurements with your sensor at a time interval to determine the speed of the train. After you know its speed, and its last distance, you can calculate the time it would take for the train to reach the intersection. Then, knowing any sort of delay between sending the signal for the intersection to close, you can then plan a time to send the signal. Of course, we were asked to describe this in a programming sort of context, but it’s still rather simple regardless.
One week later, on May 4, 2016, I got an email from Enterprise Automation stating that they want me to come visit their main office in Irvine for a second interview. It’s coming up in 3 weeks, and will last about 3 hours. So, it seems that the most important thing for an interview is to know your enemy (or research the company extensively!). I plan on prepping for this interview by rectifying the mistake I made in my first one, which was not knowing myself.
Overall, I would strongly recommend applying to Enterprise Automation because the people who interview you are actually people who work there because it’s a small company. They are also very friendly and have a direct connection with their company. Regardless of whether or not I get this job, I have gained practical interview experience, which shall help me succeed with any future opportunities I obtain.
-Akash Sky
Akash Sky 