I Got a New Job - The Power of Community and Networking
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First off, the announcement: In a little over a week I start a new job. I’ll be an architect working for NimblePros. I’ll be helping design and implement solutions for their clients. It’s pretty much the same as I’m doing now, but in a new place, with different people. Tech is like that. But I feel like it’s the opportunity of a lifetime for me, and I’m immensely grateful for this opportunity. Why do I feel that way? Because I’ll be working with two people in the developer community around Ohio that I have admired for a long, long time: Steve “ardalis” Smith (it’s his company), and Sarah “Sadukie” Dutkiewicz. Both have been active in the developer community around Ohio for a long time. One of the very first developer conference talks I ever saw was Steve talking about some aspect of .NET. I don’t recall what exactly now, or even exactly which conference it was, but I do remember the impact it had on me, and it contributed to my eventual desire to start speaking at conferences and events myself. Like I said: I’m incredibly excited to be working with both of them. And I owe this opportunity to two things: Participating in the developer community, and the networking that comes from it.
Participation
I’ve been an advocate of participating in the developer community for quite a while. This career and the community around it have been good to me. And this new opportunity is a direct result of that participation. I’m a strong believer of the philosophy that “unto whom much is given, much is expected.” From my perspective, part of that responsibility is to give back to the community that has been so good to me. I submit sessions to quite a few conferences each year. Some of them are in the Ohio, and some of them are national. I’ve spoken at CodeMash, KCDC, CincyDeliver, Community Summit NA, and Stir Trek, among others. I’ve spoken at most of the .NET and Azure focused user groups in Ohio, and a couple outside Ohio. I’ve volunteered at multiple conferences, including Stir Trek, WITCON Columbus, and Microsoft Build. For several years I was on the board of directors for the short-lived “JavaScript & Friends” conference in Columbus (we picked a bad time to launch a new conference, just two years before COVID hit). I’ve also been a guest on nearly a dozen different podcasts over the years. Those engagements have taken me all over Ohio, and beyond to Indianapolis, Kansas City, Houston, Charlotte, San Francisco, Seattle, and Orlando. This year I’ll be adding a new stop to the Poconos, PA, and my third trip to Orlando to my travelogue.
Many of those journeys have been mostly or entirely at my own expense. It doesn’t pay well to be a conference speaker generally. In fact, in most cases the only thing a speaker gets is free admission to the conference. Most of the other expenses are on the speaker. If you’re lucky, you might have an employer that will cover some or most of the expense. For me, I’d guess maybe 30% of my trips over the years have been covered at least partially by my employer of the time. Most, though, have been out of my own pocket.
What would make me do it? Why would any dev conference speaker do it if that’s the case? Well, I’ve really already said part of it. I feel a responsibility to give back. It’s why I speak. It’s why I blog. It’s why I create videos. I certainly don’t do it for the fame and fortune. :) It pays nothing, money-wise. But I do get a lot out of it. I get the enjoyment of being at a conference. If you haven’t attended an in-person developer conference, there really isn’t a substitute for it. I am a devoted introvert. I will take any opportunity to avoid going out into public, among people. But I will do it for developer conferences. It’s worth it. If you haven’t been, I don’t know that I can really explain it to you. It’s a chance to learn, and for those of us who speak, to also teach. But even as a speaker, we learn far more than we teach by being there. I also have one primary rule when I go to conferences, even if I’m not speaking: At least half of the sessions I attend have to be on topics I know little to nothing about. It’s a fantastic opportunity to get exposed to new ideas and new technologies. You should never attend a conference to learn about things you already have exposure to.
But one of the things that conferences really do, especially speaking at them, is to help me grow my list of contacts. That’s the other benefit:
Networking
Attending conferences is how I connected with Steve. When you attend someone’s session, take the opportunity to connect with them. Regardless of whether you connect with them in person, connect with them online. Follow them on social media, connect with them on LinkedIn, and send them a message to tell them thank you for their talk. Also take just one or two sentences to tell them what you got out of it. They absolutely appreciate it. There is nothing better as a speaker than getting positive feedback on their session, or even negative feedback if it’s constructive. They want to know that their session had an impact on someone. Even if it’s just one, single person. I have spoken to groups as small as 2, and as large as 150 or more. I get as much out of the small groups as I do the large ones. In fact, speaking to a small group can be even more rewarding since you have better opportunities to interact during the session. I love those types of interactive sessions. I think there has only been one single instance where I didn’t get at least one new connection from a speaking or volunteering opportunity. That grows my network. A good network is important.
Virtually every good job opportunity I’ve had has come from networking, from the people I know. It’s the people you know that get you in the door. That’s more true in a tight job market like we have right now. In fact, in this market, it’s almost critical to have a good network of people. Having that network and, even more important, paying attention to and interacting with that network, is vital. This opportunity was no different.
Opportunity
Connecting with Sarah through Codemash and Stir Trek over the years, and paying attention to what she posts on social media, meant I was at the right place at the right time to see this opportunity arise. My involvement in the community over the years, both as a content creator and a volunteer, meant that when I saw the opportunity and reached out, Sarah and Steve thought that maybe I would be someone worth considering for this position. The result of that participation and networking is an opportunity offered and accepted. Is that why I do it though? Was the point of it to find a job? No. That’s not why I do it at all. It shouldn’t be why anyone does it. I do it because I value the community and the people in it and I’m grateful for all it provides me. But it’s nice when a side benefit of that is an opportunity like this. I’m really excited for what’s next. I’ll let you know how it goes.