I haven't got a PhD but I can (at least) learn and think on that level. I am looking to learn by doing rather than go to an university and spend the next four years studying books. What should I look for when searching for this not so standard job? Obviously the person(s) I'll be working with are much more important than the job or company itself. I can write PHP, Python, js(by choice) and HTML/CSS. I want to learn the ins and outs of bizdev, as well as an ability to test, validate and deploy ideas very fast + grow a product from 0 to +/- 100k users. I know this sounds much like all the things you do when running a startup, but I don't want to go trough all the obvious mistakes the first time.