Dear friends,
To be frank up front, I am not reaching out to you to solve my problems nor to propose answers to questions like "should I do this or should I do that". I am well aware that I have to be the one steering the ship.
However, I use this post as a dump of thoughts. You may identify yourself with what I am about to describe and add your thoughts in a comment. Or you might merely shake your head, regret the time wasted reading it, and move on. Nonetheless, I appreciate you!
To add context, I will briefly introduce myself. I am a 23 yo student studying Data Science as a master's degree course in Germany. I started with my thesis two weeks ago. My goal is to be done by the end of January 2026. I also started working as a deliverer for food and beverages a week ago to pay the bills. My skills at the time are limited to programming and data analysis (think statistics, AI, and so on).
One possible avenue moving forward could be to finish the degree asap and start looking for jobs in my area. Entry level full-time jobs as a data scientist start at EUR 50k/year. Work there, gain market experience, identify a need, and start from there. However, the skill set and market may be that specialized to the extend that I would probably have to target larger businesses where entry barriers are typically stronger. But this of course is very hypothetical.
As I decided to be an entrepreneur, my mind immediately started thinking of people I know that are doing something similar. I remembered a guy that has a packaging consulting business. I did a project with him as a research assistant at my university. I messaged him and invited him to a call. I offered him to answer questions to related projects - if he had any - with my data science expertise. We had a nice call and he asked about a packaging size optimization idea he had in mind. Apparently, there is a new packaging law on its way in Germany and some businesses may struggle to comply. That sounded appealing to me but unfortunately I have no experience with the market itself. He also said that at the moment, he has no customer related to this exact problem. Nevertheless, he wanted to keep me posted.
On the flip side, I can imagine - after finishing the degree - to move into some kind of trade (plumbing, wood working, electrician). I believe - and have not verified yet - that there is a strong need for physical services like plumbing and so on. My father is a wood worker. I remember him doing a lot of local jobs on the side on the weekend. Additionally, I believe that many local trade businesses struggle to find potential successors taking over there legacy. The obvious downside of this is that I have to go through an apprenticeship (3 years) + a master of the craft (1 year) to take over any service or trade business in Germany.
No matter, what I will do next, I know that the most important thing on my journey is the willingness to commit to a process, being open minded and willing to change directions if appropriate, and being a problem solver, asking myself what I can do to help other people.
If you have made so far into the post, I am very grateful!
Sincerely
Louis
To be frank up front, I am not reaching out to you to solve my problems nor to propose answers to questions like "should I do this or should I do that". I am well aware that I have to be the one steering the ship.
However, I use this post as a dump of thoughts. You may identify yourself with what I am about to describe and add your thoughts in a comment. Or you might merely shake your head, regret the time wasted reading it, and move on. Nonetheless, I appreciate you!
To add context, I will briefly introduce myself. I am a 23 yo student studying Data Science as a master's degree course in Germany. I started with my thesis two weeks ago. My goal is to be done by the end of January 2026. I also started working as a deliverer for food and beverages a week ago to pay the bills. My skills at the time are limited to programming and data analysis (think statistics, AI, and so on).
One possible avenue moving forward could be to finish the degree asap and start looking for jobs in my area. Entry level full-time jobs as a data scientist start at EUR 50k/year. Work there, gain market experience, identify a need, and start from there. However, the skill set and market may be that specialized to the extend that I would probably have to target larger businesses where entry barriers are typically stronger. But this of course is very hypothetical.
As I decided to be an entrepreneur, my mind immediately started thinking of people I know that are doing something similar. I remembered a guy that has a packaging consulting business. I did a project with him as a research assistant at my university. I messaged him and invited him to a call. I offered him to answer questions to related projects - if he had any - with my data science expertise. We had a nice call and he asked about a packaging size optimization idea he had in mind. Apparently, there is a new packaging law on its way in Germany and some businesses may struggle to comply. That sounded appealing to me but unfortunately I have no experience with the market itself. He also said that at the moment, he has no customer related to this exact problem. Nevertheless, he wanted to keep me posted.
On the flip side, I can imagine - after finishing the degree - to move into some kind of trade (plumbing, wood working, electrician). I believe - and have not verified yet - that there is a strong need for physical services like plumbing and so on. My father is a wood worker. I remember him doing a lot of local jobs on the side on the weekend. Additionally, I believe that many local trade businesses struggle to find potential successors taking over there legacy. The obvious downside of this is that I have to go through an apprenticeship (3 years) + a master of the craft (1 year) to take over any service or trade business in Germany.
No matter, what I will do next, I know that the most important thing on my journey is the willingness to commit to a process, being open minded and willing to change directions if appropriate, and being a problem solver, asking myself what I can do to help other people.
If you have made so far into the post, I am very grateful!
Sincerely
Louis
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