♾ My First Month at Meta
Discover more from Austin’s Newsletter
♾ My First Month at Meta
002 - Some early thoughts on working at Meta
Hey friends! 👋🏻
I can’t believe we’re almost at the end of September! Which means I’m cutting it close with this month’s issue of the newsletter. I’m currently writing this issue in a cafe in New York City 🗽 and it feels so good to be back (even if it’s just for a week)!
Since the last issue, I started working as a product designer at Meta and it seems like a good time for me to share some early thoughts! If you have any questions about working at Meta, feel free to leave them in the comments below and I’ll try to answer them to the best of my ability!
Working at Meta 👨🏻💻
My time at Meta has been a blast so far! I really like the team that I’ve joined and I’m inspired by the team’s shared mission to help people and businesses have meaningful conversations that lead to desired outcomes. Having very little experience in the advertising space, I’ve been learning lots about ads and how vital they are to businesses of all sizes around the world.
Within my first few weeks, I’ve had a series of 1 on 1 meetings with team members across different cross-functional disciplines. These introductory conversations have been tremendously fruitful. For example, I’ve never worked with a data scientist before and it’s fascinating how much data drives design at Meta. By understanding these partnerships between design and other disciplines, I’ll know who to reach out to in different situations which enables me to design better products with minimal friction.
Everyone I’ve met has been super friendly and offered to answer any questions I had. I’m also grateful to have an amazing manager who cares about my success and well-being both inside and outside of the office. I’m looking forward to developing these relationships with my peers and meeting more people in the office!
Speaking of the office, Meta’s headquarters in Menlo Park is by far the coolest place I’ve ever worked. I can see why people have referred to it as a Disneyland for adults. With tons of art on display, my creativity is often sparked as I make my way throughout the different buildings. The wide range of food options is surprisingly good too. I always try to stop by the dessert spots on campus to get ice-cream! If they’re trying to get me to come into the office more often, it’s definitely working!
I always find myself reflecting on how fortunate I am to have this opportunity to work here right after graduation. Without a referral, without a prior internship at Meta and amidst a time when many tech companies have had to layoff employees or slow down hiring, I’m extremely thankful to have this as a starting point for my career!
As for what I’m up to next, I’ll be working out of the NYC office for a week and I’m planning to enjoy my time in the city before I head back to the Bay Area! As always, feel free to share your suggestions for upcoming issues or feedback on how I can improve this newsletter.
Thanks for reading and I hope everyone’s having a wonderful weekend!
Austin