napkintech by andrew meyer

Read.  Read the news, areas you are passionate about, fiction, nonfiction…everything and anything.  Keeping informed about current events makes you a more knowledgeable citizen, one who can draw upon their knowledge to make informed decisions.  Reading more creative pieces of work (especially content outside your academic or professional career) can be inspiring.  Knowing up to date information about your field is extremely important so you can spot trends, identify competition, learn about advances in your field, etc…

Ping contacts every so often. Keep a running list of contacts you have made (anyone you find interesting, inspiring, knowledgeable, etc…), and contact them every once in a while.  Ping them with “thinking of you” or “this panel/disucssion/event looks like something you might be interested in…”   This is something you have to work at a little, but being able to call on someone for advice or to make a connection for you is invaluable.

Take yourself out of your comfort zone.  I feel like you learn a lot by trying completely new things that aren’t necessarily “comfortable.”   You’ll make some new friends along the way too.

You can do anything despite lack of resources currently controlled. To me, the most important and best thing which Stanford ingrains in its students is the “entrepreneurial spirit.”  On campus, if students see a need which isn’t being addressed, they create a group, nonprofit, startup, consortium or anything to address it.  I am always amazed at the initiative Stanford students have, and it definitely has inspired me to take on challenges despite what resources I may currently have at my disposal.