“Most recent graduates don’t spend more than a couple years at a job.” That’s what my college communication professor said during my senior year. Basically, he explained, recent graduates get a job, try it on, gain some experience and move on. Does anyone truly expect their first place of employment to also be their last? It’s not impossible, but probably unlikely. Sometimes it takes a job or two to find the one that’s a perfect fit.

I had a couple jobs after I finished college. The first one I barely count because I was there only a month or so. It wasn’t for me and I knew it. When I sat down with my boss to give my notice, I told her I wasn’t happy. She said something that has stuck with me for all these years, “As much time as you have to spend at work, you have to do something that makes you happy.”

It took me a couple years after that, but I found what made me happy when I started with USGlass, February 14, 2000. It’s hard to believe that 20 years have come and gone so quickly.

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about all that’s changed since then, and how the world is different today … no social media, you only used a cell phone to make a call and most of us still did our shopping at the mall. Amazon was still a baby; I think I’d made one Amazon purchase and yes, it was a book.

Just for fun, here’s a look back at some other things that happened in the world back in 2000.

When I look back on the industry and all that’s changed in 20 years, I start with the February 2000 USGlass. If you want to talk about a decade of changes, this is a good place to start. Here’s just a few that jumped out at me:

Anatomy of a “Pusher”:  This was USGlass publisher Deb Levy’s interview with Leon Silverstein, who at the time was president of what was Arch Aluminum & Glass.

Glass Week, Welcome as Can Be: 20 years ago Glass Week, organized by the former Glass Association of North America (GANA) was THE place to be for the industry. Everyone who was anyone was there. While the event continued to thrive in the early 2000s, as the industry evolved, so did Glass Week, which shifted into more of a technical conference. It eventually became the GANA Annual Conference.

Attending iGm in Atlanta: Here’s another event of the past. I attended only three iGm shows. The first was in New Orleans, only two months after 9/11. People were still hesitant to fly and I’d say that somewhat affected the show’s turnout. The last one was in 2005, which was also the last year the show was held. I don’t think there was ever any formal announcement regarding the end of the show. However, many have commented that there were just too many industry shows.

We could go through the entire issue and talk about all that’s changed, from company names, to acquisitions, new hires and even new products. It’s interesting to look back on the changes, but more exciting to think about where we’re going.

I’d love to hear about the biggest changes you’ve experienced in the industry. Post your comments or email me at erogers@glass.com.