Prof Nye's Digital Lab is a weekly blog about the creativity, the game industry, artificial intelligence, distributed computing, and everything creatives and designers might find interesting in tech.
This week's essay is my advice to graduating seniors... which this year, is a little bit different.
It's that time of year again.
They come find me between classes, or stop me in the hall with a near desperate fear about June. They've spent countless nights, face glued to a monitor, obsessing over whether the project will compile, if the design is compelling, or if their art station will impress anyone. Then suddenly, graduation is imminent. Panic sets in.
"Who's going to hire me? What am I even doing with my life?"
This year, more than others, I find myself saying a somewhat more direct advice.
Instead of the usual "update your LinkedIn and pray" advice, (my classic) I'm going to suggest something that might sound crazy at first: Start a company.
Not because it's easy (it's definitely not), but because it might be the best path for the world you are entering.
...
Let's be real—the traditional job market is becoming a gladiator arena.
Thousands of graduates with nearly identical degrees and work are fighting for the same diminishing number of entry-level positions, all claiming to be "detail-oriented team players with excellent communication skills."
What if, instead of trying to fit yourself into someone else's box, you created your own?
The most valuable thing you have isn't your GPA. It's your unique perspective—the way your brain connects dots that nobody else sees. Maybe you're the person who can explain complex coding concepts through baking analogies, or perhaps you create art that combines traditional techniques with digital innovations in ways nobody's thought of. Maybe you are just the funniest one on your team.
When you start a company—even if it's just you working from your bedroom—you're saying: "This is what makes me different, and I'm betting there are people out there who will value it." You're not asking permission to be hired; you're creating something only you could create.
The beauty of today's world is that you don't need millions in venture capital to start. With AI tools, social platforms, and website marketplaces, you can find the people who resonate with your vision more easily than ever before. You don't need everyone to love what you do—you just need enough people who truly get it.
Remember: Netflix started because someone was annoyed about late fees. Airbnb began because some friends needed to pay rent. Your weird obsession or frustration you see, from your unique perspective, might be the exact problem that needs solving.
...
Here's something I'm not really supposed to say:
failure isn't just okay—it's essential.
Almost every successful entrepreneur has a graveyard of failed projects behind them. Each "failure" is actually a masterclass in what doesn't work, which customers don't respond, which business models fall flat. These aren't wasted efforts—they're investments in your understanding of how the world works.
I've learned things throughout my life without much rhyme or reason. Every idea and thing I work on adds learning a new skill on top of another previous skill. Webcomics, blogs, games, movies, writing, startups - I'm a disaster of half baked pursuits. I don't always finish, or often "succeed", (whatever that means...) but what I do know how to do is:
Start Something.
Starting something, even if it doesn't become the next unicorn, gives you an incredible runway for your career. It shows potential employers that you can:
Identify problems worth solving
Take initiative without someone assigning you tasks
Handle uncertainty (the ultimate job skill in AI world)
Learn rapidly across multiple disciplines
Build something from nothing
Even if your company doesn't "take off," (again, what does that even mean?) the skills you develop will make you incredibly valuable to other organizations who are struggling just as much as you just did. Many founders who "failed" end up getting job offers specifically because of what they learned during their entrepreneurial journey. I think that entrepreneurs, even those within companies, will suddenly become very valuable.
And here's the nagging old person part of the essay : what's the shame in grinding?
I see tears of agony from students who won't get their dream studio job at 22 years old. Hey, I learned how to man a register at Kinko's copies as much as I learned motion capture in the movie business. The aggregate of your skills, regardless of what society thinks, is what is valuable. In a future where everyone is quite literally, "making it up," they will need others that demonstrate that they can "make it up."
The blank canvas of entrepreneurship lets you define what winning looks like for you. Just start, have fun with it, fail spectacularly.
...
I'm willing to bet something inside is telling you "He doesn't mean me. I can't do that."
Your brain will offer a thousand reasons why you should play it safe instead. Other reasons don't need much to distract you from the fear of whats inside you. Here's some classics.
"I don't have enough experience yet."
"I should save money first."
"What if everyone thinks my idea is stupid?"
"I don't know the first thing about business."
These aren't reasons to avoid entrepreneurship—they're the universal soundtrack of doing anything worth doing. The truth is, they will think your idea is stupid. The truth is, it will most likely be a horrible experience where you will fail embarrassingly.
I've said yes to things I had no capability doing. I've risked things in my life, where I could have gone home at 6 pm and escaped into Netflix. The difference between entrepreneurs and dreamers isn't courage or brilliance—it's simply the willingness to start before feeling ready.
Seriously, f*ck it.
So how do you actually do this?
Start ridiculously small. Don't try to build the full vision on day one. What's the smallest version you could create in a weekend? A prototype? A single blog post? A character drawing on Instagram? Build that, share it, and learn. I have all of my students write devlogs for a reason. Record your process. Write and express yourself.
Find your people. Look for others who share your passion or complementary skills. The most successful ventures come from teams with diverse strengths. Your classmates right now might be your future co-founders or first supporters. (Or maybe you just start a band for the summer after you graduated. That works too!) Great stuff comes from the energy between creatives.
Set concrete milestones. "Start a company" is overwhelming. "Design a logo by Friday" is doable. Break your vision into small, specific steps that you can actually accomplish between classes and social life. Make an outcome - i.e. - MVP with 100 players, A website with a sign up form, Have coffee with three people, etc.
Ship something real. It needs to be playable! Get your work in front of real people as quickly as possible. It's ok if the set dressing isn't done, or you only have a first pass. Get it in front of people.
If you are game developer, you ship. If you don't have a shipped game, make it a priority. Shipping shows you are real. Do it.
Document your journey. Share what you're learning, building, and struggling with. This transparency builds connections and creates opportunities you couldn't predict. This is how real jobs are landed - not recruiter generic resume jobs - the real creative collaboration jobs. Documenting your process is important because they need to see your unique value in solving problems.
The beautiful thing about starting now, is that your risk is low. You have access to resources, potential teammates, mentors. You have a built-in excuse if things don't work out (I was young and stupid). And you have time to pivot multiple times before rent and other adult responsibilities fully kick in.
oh right... mortgage, kid's soccer games, life...
...
The world is changing faster than curriculum can keep up. By the time you finish reading this, some job that existed will be obsolete, and some opportunity that didn't exist will appear.
In this environment, the most valuable skill isn't mastery of today's tools—it's the ability to adapt, create, and find your own path forward. Starting a company, even a tiny one, forces you to develop this ability in ways no class or internship can match. Go weird with it, imagine the crazy future and then make it.
Your fear is the only thing truly holding you back. Not your age, not your experience, not your connections. Seriously --- Just fear.
And on the other side of that fear? The chance to build something meaningful. The freedom to define your own success. The satisfaction of bringing something new into the world. The jobs of the future will definitely be different -- It's up to you to make value.
So as graduation approaches and panic sets in, channel it.
The best job for you is the one you create yourself.
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We'll see you next time. Thanks for reading.
Nye Warburton is an educator and systems designer from Savannah, Georgia. This essay was inspired from a series of conversations with students. It was improvised with Otter.ai and revised and edited with Claude.ai. For more information visit: https://nyewarburton.com
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