All careers have a stochastic component, so
are a key component of almost any suc-
we should look to dynamic programming as a
cess story, and whatever you can do to
model for continual reappraisal of our situations
build strength in this area will repay your
and ways that may better them. This implies a
efforts. If English is not your native lan-
portfolio analysis perspective: We each have a
guage, that can be an obstacle, but per-
different mix of strengths and weaknesses, and
sonality and style are much more impor-
we should try to adaptively invest our energy in
tant. Feng Liang of Duke University and
combinations that seem most likely to pay off.
Xiao-Li Meng of Harvard, whose native
Some skills that apply to employment in all sec-
language is not English, give wonderful
tors are the following:
talks, and there are many others.
Technical Strength. This is the
Writing. It is crucial to be able to write
foundation when you are starting out,
clearly, correctly, and briefly. This is a
but it often becomes less important as
lifelong learning process—anyone who
you advance. Especially in business and
writes well is constantly studying how to
government, one needs breadth more
write and attending to their prose.
than depth at the higher levels.
Social Networking. This is crucially
Computational Ability. Anyone
important, and it sometimes seems statis-
who can do solid statistical program-
ticians study it more, while learning less,
ming will never miss a meal. It is a blue
than those in any other field. You need a
chip skill and a way of thinking that has
diverse network; having a lot of friends
unique value. But, it is hard to become
who work on local asymptotic minimaxity
rich or famous on this alone.
is not as helpful as having friends with
Public Speaking. Every member of
the ASA has survived at least 1.5 decades
of dull lectures in school, which is why it
amazes me that so many of us have not
learned enough from that experience to
avoid giving bad talks. Good presentations
SEPTEMBER 2008 AMSTAT NEWS 35
SEPTEMBER AMSTAT FINAL.indd 35 8/20/08 2:27:00 PM
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