I was honored and beyond excited to get the chance to visit my former Master’s and PhD program at Iowa State to share my journey from academia to WordPress to Automattic.
It never gets old telling the story of how I was first introduced to WordPress while teaching rhetoric and composition, and eventually worked on the Online Learning Team to help build a massive multisite WordPress network for ePortfolios. Raising my hand at the chance to pilot this thing called WordPress changed my entire career trajectory.
The best part of the story? Chance encounters that lead to friendships make all the difference in our lives.
While I was still wading through grad school, our young daughters auditioned to play small roles in Iowa State’s stage play for A Christmas Carol. Thanks to my wife’s personable and outgoing nature, she struck up a conversation with another couple with young boys in the play. A simple conversation about life, kids, homeschooling, and other random things led to a lasting friendship.
Thank you to Mike Bal for sharing a job opening you knew I would be a good candidate for and for taking a chance on recommending me. #Automattic has been the best job I’ve ever had because it doesn’t feel like a job; it feels like I’m part of a mission.
This is only a short version of the whole story. I have so many more moments and details to share, and I plan to in the near future. Let’s call this the TL;DR version of my journey to WordPress, open source, and Automattic. The important thing to take away today is that you reflect on your journey regularly. Consider the points in your life where things change and how personal connections and people are at the center of those changes.
What’s your WordPress journey? Who are the people who made an impact on you in your life?
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