Nice post! I had a somewhat different path but our trajectories are pretty similar — I grew up in a family of engineers (my dad and brother both studied engineering) but I wanted to become a musician once I entered college. (Lucky my mom was supportive of my decision, there.) I got my BA and MFA in composition/performance and eventually found myself doing a PhD in musicology, when I realized that being a professor wasn’t really the career for me.

I started doing data-related work and discovered that I had a knack for it, and it was a lot of fun, too. And a lot of the things I learned from music (abstract thinking, the discipline to practice/improve, focus) were applicable to the job too. Eventually I found myself doing more product management types of roles since my experiences forming bands and getting pieces performed translated well into leadership skills and contexts.

I still do make music when I can — I think it helps the juices flow, so I like to think of it as a form of exercise/therapy that’s good for me. Since I’m a keyboard player, oddly enough spending a lot of time on the computer doesn’t feel all that much different. Just different kinds of keys, I guess.

I have a lot of respect for string players, by the way — I’m terrible at anything string related (even guitars) cause my hands aren’t really made that way. I just like having a button to press. :)