For the first 6 years of my career in technology & sales, my office was in the center of the city of Pittsburgh. Then for the next 4 years, my headquarters was just a few blocks outside of the city in a gentrifying warehouse district that was rapidly being converted to a high tech hot spot.
Many of my customers were headquartered in downtown Pittsburgh so, due to proximity, I was in the middle of the action all the time. Half the time, my other customers who were located in the suburbs or surrounding small towns would make a trip into town so they could see me and spend a few hours visiting the city.
Every morning hundreds of thousands of people (me included) would commute into the city center for work. I worked with CEOs, art directors, small business owners, manufacturing execs, non profit directors, educators, actors, lawyers, accountants, doctors, engineers, local celebrities, and many other movers and shakers.
Looking back, I realize it was a ideal place for me to start my career.
It was small enough that I could make an impact, get to know a lot of people and build my professional reputation. It was large enough that there were sufficient sales and business opportunities to launch my career.
The second half of my sales career, I worked remotely and/or from offices located in suburban office parks. My customers were still regional and national businesses – I just traveled to them when necessary.
The suburbs had some nice perks including shorter commute times, less traffic, newer office buildings, and free parking. But working for suburban tech startups never matched the experience of working in heart of the city, in the midst of the energy generated by customers, movers and shakers.
Working from home was undoubtedly my personal favorite. The focus, the scheduling flexibility and being able to work 100% self-directed was an environment where I was quite comfortable and productive.
I can see now though that I would never have been as successful if I had not worked at headquarters, in the center of it all for many years. I imagine if I had done that for my entire career, I would have risen higher in terms of my role, responsibilities and salary.
Now I can see why location matters so much. If I was to advise someone starting out, I’d strongly urge them to consider working in a major metro area, downtown at headquarters. I can only imagine the energy, business and contacts you could make in New York, London, San Francisco or Chicago that would put you in a place to accelerate your career.
Not to mention, it would be a lot of fun rubbing shoulders with so many people you would otherwise never meet.