Cultivate Community, Build Your Tribe

Read Time: 2 Minutes

Welcome to Your Tech Suite's weekly newsletter where we provide news, tips, and guidance on improving the technology posture in your startup or SMB. A holistic technical C-Suite... for the rest of us.

This Week's TLDR

Do what the title says, cultivate a community of like minded professionals.
A good professional tribe is going to guide you, challenge you, and make you better.
Be deliberate. Don't know where to start, drop me an email!
Privnote being targeted, tales of bizarre identity theft, Will another tech company bite the dust (aka be purchased)?

Cultivate Community, Build Your Tribe

Hey all!

This week's newsletter is a bit shorter but the topic is something very near and dear to me.

Something that we all face, especially if we're at smaller companies, just starting out, or moving into a new field.

Community.

Finding a robust community for professional and personal growth is challenging, yet in our era of remote work, it’s more important than ever.

As social beings, the absence of a strong tribe can leave us feeling isolated, stunting our professional development and growth opportunities.

Consider that consequences of not investing some of your time into building and cultivating a personal and professional community.

Stunted development of technical skills
Lower desire in communication and collaboration
No group to brainstorm with or bounce ideas off of.

Frankly, the value of a community extends beyond just networking; it’s about building a support system that can propel our careers forward.

Let me share a personal story that highlights the importance of finding your tribe.

When I returned to Denver years ago, reconnecting with old friends was easy. Yet transitioning from biomedical engineering to an IT focused role was hard.

That community I'd cultivated was no longer appropriate for my journey forward.

I was in a new discipline without a professional community to lean on.

The turning point came when I had the chance to interact with a small conference of like minded people all working with a specific piece of software at the time.

This connection wasn’t just about networking—it was about finding a group of individuals who were on similar paths, offering support and insight that were invaluable to my professional growth. And while most weren't local to Denver, this group became a cornerstone of my professional life, showing me the power of having a tribe in tech.

The truth is, succeeding in any discipline requires more than just individual effort; it necessitates being part of a community.

Just like regular exercise is essential for physical health, engaging with a professional community is crucial for your career’s growth and development.

Unfortunately there's no secret formula to finding or building such a community.

So, where do you start?

Take the initiative to reach out. Be deliberate.

Whether it’s reconnecting with former colleagues, starting conversations at industry events, or simply sending an email to someone whose work you admire, taking the first step is key.

My call to action for you is straightforward: start by reaching out to me.

Drop me an email to say hi, ask a question, or tell me some topic I should write about. I'm here for you.

News

Any Privnote users here? A recent lawsuit has shed some light on the sheer volume of malicious sites setup to attempt to compromise Privnote data.

You don't think identity theft is real? Meet William Donald Woods, aka Matthew David Keirans, who has been living in Idaho as Woods for 35 years. The real Woods? He was convicted of identity theft (What?!) AND committed to a psychiatric facility. After being released, he tracked down the fake Woods to get his identity back.

Tech consolidation continues! This week on the rumor block, is Google parent Alphabet thinking of buying Hubspot?! Imagine the GoogleSpot only allowing you to contact people in your CRM if they are female, native American founding fathers. (Yes, Google's AI is atrocious)