13. The leap from engineering to building a SaaS company
Aref Abedi, CEO & Co-founder of Jobylon, shares his journey from engineer to entrepreneur, offering insights on emotional decision-making, leadership, cash flow management, and the evolving landscape of talent acquisition.
The leap from engineering to building a SaaS company with Jobylon’s CEO Aref Abedi
“I follow my heart, what I feel, and maybe not always what makes sense.” – Aref Abedi
For many young professionals, success seems like a linear path—study hard, land a stable job, and climb the corporate ladder. But what if real success comes from trusting your instincts, embracing uncertainty, and making choices that don’t always seem logical?
Aref Abedi, CEO and co-founder of Jobylon, proves that emotional decision-making and personal values can shape an extraordinary career. From engineering to sales to entrepreneurship, his journey is full of lessons for those eager to grow. Whether it’s learning from failure, surrounding yourself with great people, or mastering delegation, Aref’s insights can help any ambitious professional succeed.
Here are the key takeaways from his journey—and how you can apply them to accelerate your own career.
1. Embrace the unknown
Many overanalyze career moves, worrying about what looks good on a CV. But Aref took a different approach. “I ended up working for a company called Meltwater, which was a pure sales position. And my thought of that was sales. That’s not my thing. I’m an engineer.”
Instead of resisting, he embraced the challenge. He quickly saw that sales wasn’t just about pushing products—it was about understanding business and people. His story proves that great career moves often come from stepping into the unknown. Research from Indeed shows that young professionals who embrace unexpected opportunities grow faster in their careers.
2. Surround yourself with great people
“Having great people around you, preferably way stronger than yourself in certain areas, is key—not only for the success of the company but for day-to-day fun.”
Aref credits much of his success to the people he has worked with. Many of Jobylon’s core team members have been there since the beginning. Even in difficult times, it was the relationships and shared vision that kept him going.“I’ve been lucky enough to work with great people, not only from a board level but also the team itself.” Whether in sales or leadership, surrounding yourself with the right people can push you forward. The right mentors, colleagues, and leaders make all the difference.
3. Learn from failures, but don’t let them define you
Failure can feel discouraging, but Aref sees it differently. “We’ve failed many ideas until we kind of ended up in what we’re doing today, which is working really well.” The journey wasn’t a straight line—there were pivots, missteps, and tough decisions.
“In the early days, I did question it a lot in terms of like, why are we doing this? Because it’s not working.” But instead of stopping, he kept going.
His perseverance paid off, proving that resilience is one of the most valuable career skills. Forbes research shows that learning from failure is a common trait among successful professionals.
4. Master the art of delegation
Early in his career, Aref struggled to let go of control. “I was kind of a control person, like, I’ll do it, I know what I’m doing. But you can’t scale anything doing it like that.”
The breakthrough came when he finally delegated a major task and saw it done even better than he expected. “I kind of proved it to myself in a way. Like, this is how you should do it. This is how you scale a business.”
Trusting others not only helps scale a company but also allows sales professionals to focus on high-impact tasks.
5. Control your own destiny through financial awareness
Aref learned early on that financial discipline is key. “Knowing your cash flow—I think that has, for us, been extremely important, especially if you’re bootstrapped, of course.”
In sales, cash flow translates to revenue, commissions, and growth. Whether running a company or managing your own sales targets, financial awareness is crucial. Forbes highlights that financial discipline often separates thriving businesses from those that fail.
7. Align your career with what truly makes you happy
Success isn’t just about numbers—it’s about fulfillment. “The fear of having a job that you don’t like… if I try and follow what makes me happy, that’s where I do my best work.”
Many chase titles or salaries, but Aref believes that true success comes from passion. When you align your career with what excites you, you perform at your best. Indeed research shows that professionals who align their work with their values experience higher satisfaction and motivation.
Conclusions: Love what you do
Aref Abedi’s journey from engineer to CEO started with embracing unexpected opportunities. Build strong relationships. Learn from failure. Delegate wisely. Understand financial fundamentals. And most importantly, follow what truly makes you happy. As Steve Jobs once said, “The only way to do great work is to love what you do.” For young professionals eager to grow, success isn’t about following a set formula—it’s about forging your own path and making choices that align with your values.
