Finding Your Motivation

It's clear that when you enjoy something, you are more likely to engage deeply with it. If an activity doesn’t excite you, why dedicate extra time to it?

Ideally, your career aligns with your passions. Consider the following illustration on passion versus skill. If you lack both passion and ability for a task, you're likely to struggle. Conversely, if you love something but aren't yet skilled, you're entering a growth phase that will compel you to improve.

When you possess skills in an area but lack motivation, you might plateau. However, when you discover something that you excel at and love, you hit the jackpot. That intersection of passion and proficiency is where true motivation lies.

Not everyone finds this ideal balance. Some individuals are perfectly content excelling at tasks they may not love. That's completely valid. Yet, for many of us, the goal is to integrate our passions into our daily lives, fueling our drive to wake up each morning.

Creating Your Own Opportunities

My career has always been steeped in technology. For a significant portion of it, I was focused solely on coding. However, during my cloud journey, I discovered my passion for writing. Unfortunately, there was little overlap between the roles of developer and writer.

Thus, I had to carve out my own path. In 2019, I began writing on Medium during my spare time, sharing insights about my work and the early successes I experienced as a manager. I didn’t wait for opportunities to come to me; instead, I took the initiative to create them.

Looking back, it’s fortunate that I took this proactive approach, as opportunities within my job didn’t materialize as I had hoped. I started small, gradually becoming comfortable with writing, which led me to establish my own website to better control my content's presentation.

Through consistency, I wrote about my work experiences and began attracting an audience that appreciated my insights. This engagement opened doors for guest blogging, conference speaking, and podcasting.

While I continued to fulfill my job responsibilities, I realized that writing significantly elevated my career. My work quality improved, my eagerness to learn deepened, and my confidence soared.

I had indeed found my sweet spot. Though writing may not have been directly related to my daily tasks, the connections became increasingly apparent.

Building a Strong Foundation

Last year, I planted a grapefruit tree. Initially, it stood about two feet tall and resembled a stick with a few leaves. I diligently watered it and provided necessary nutrients. Within three months, I noticed fruit beginning to form, which excited me. I allowed it to grow, eager for the harvest.

However, I overlooked a crucial factor: it was a young tree that needed to establish its roots and grow larger before producing fruit. My impatience led to a situation where the tree was focused on fruiting rather than developing a robust foundation.

Six weeks later, I was left with a disappointing harvest. The fruit didn't reach maturity because the tree lacked the necessary support. Had I removed the fruit early on, the tree could have directed all its energy towards growth, resulting in a stronger trunk capable of supporting multiple fruits in the future.

The lesson here is not to rush into new endeavors. Focus on building a strong foundation and understanding the intricacies of what you're learning. Strengthen your expertise before expanding into new areas.

I spent three years honing my writing before branching out into a newsletter. This preparation allowed me to launch a successful newsletter that continues to grow in both subscriber numbers and quality. Each issue teaches me something new and allows me to apply lessons from other areas to streamline the writing process.

A year later, I ventured into podcasting, a completely different medium that pushed me beyond my comfort zone. However, thanks to my solid foundation in content creation, I was able to embrace this new challenge and create engaging material. I developed a network of industry experts willing to share their insights on trending cloud topics.

By not rushing, I set myself up for a smoother launch, avoiding the overwhelming stress of juggling too many new responsibilities at once.

The Long-Term Vision

Recently, someone asked me, "What will make you feel successful when you retire and reflect on your career?" I stumbled over the answer, unsure of how to respond.

Five years ago, I might have focused on the number of applications I built or lines of code I wrote. However, my perspective has shifted. My priorities have evolved, and I now value enabling others to achieve their best selves, both personally and professionally.

Mentoring has always been part of my journey, but as I progressed, I realized that empowering others is my true definition of success.

In my last year at Tyler Technologies, I embraced a long-term approach, engaging in research and development projects that explored various topics—from serverless computing to application design for scalability. I distilled my learning into blog posts and shared them with my colleagues, helping them avoid the research burden.

If you can identify what motivates you and define success in your career, seize that opportunity. Cultivate your growth around it.

For me, enabling others has become my measure of success. To further this mission, I made the challenging decision to leave my job in pursuit of opportunities that more directly support the serverless community.

As you continue to evolve, your own definition of success may change, and that's perfectly fine. Regularly assess your goals to ensure they remain relevant to you.

I cherish my time at Tyler Technologies and the relationships I've built, but I’ve come to realize that my passions have shifted. I aspire to dream bigger.

Final Reflections

Unbeknownst to me, I cultivated a growth mindset, positioning myself to thrive in areas that excite me. My focus on content creation led me to understand that my greatest desire is to help others succeed.

I aim to develop tools for developers, simplify complex topics, and highlight the perspectives of industry leaders. Ultimately, I want to be a catalyst for your growth as an engineer. Perhaps this drive contributed to my recognition as an AWS serverless hero.

With this vision in mind, I made the difficult choice to leave my job after 11 years. I’ve maximized my growth in this position and am immensely grateful for the opportunities, friendships, and knowledge I've gained.

Embrace the courage to make tough decisions.

As I transition to my new role as an Ecosystem Engineer at Momento, I will focus on my passions. While moving from a large enterprise to a startup is daunting, the journey to growth is rarely straightforward.

I grappled with self-doubt and unnecessary stress while contemplating my next steps, questioning whether I was making the right choice or if I should wait for a better time. Ultimately, once I clarified my passions and the opportunities available, the decision became evident. This may be the hardest career choice I've faced, but it feels like the best one.

I hope you will follow my journey and that we can collaborate in the future. Above all, I aspire to inspire you to create your own opportunities, cultivate your expertise, and keep your long-term vision in focus.

Happy coding!

Explore insights and strategies for advancing your tech career in this informative video.

Discover the secret to finding a fulfilling career in technology you'll love in this engaging video.