We Belong Here: Lessons from Unconventional Paths to Tech
139 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 1 year ago - ★★★★★ - 22 ratingsA podcast that aims to interview career changers & folks that are diversifying the tech industry. Sharing stories about the different routes people have taken to enter the industry and chatting about the skills they learned in their prior jobs, schooling, or life experiences & how they apply them to their current roles in tech. https://WeBelongPodcast.com/
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Episodes
Ep. 14 - Chris Evans: Lessons from 30 Years in the Biz
June 19, 2019 20:00 - 38 minutes - 26.6 MBToday, Chris and I chat about his path to becoming an Architect at Microsoft. After graduating from college with a degree in communications, Chris tried his hat at pioneering podcasts and shares the challenges of trying to circulate content without the internet in the ’80s. He eventually learned to program while working in IT. And although his first company believed that a requirement to be an engineer was to have a CS degree, he soon found a company that was excited for him to join thei...
14. Chris Evans: Lessons from 30 Years in the Biz
June 19, 2019 20:00 - 38 minutes - 26.6 MBToday, Chris and I chat about his path to becoming an Architect at Microsoft. After graduating from college with a degree in communications, Chris tried his hat at pioneering podcasts and shares the challenges of trying to circulate content without the internet in the ’80s. He eventually learned to program while working in IT. And although his first company believed that a requirement to be an engineer was to have a CS degree, he soon found a company that was excited for him to join thei...
14. Chris Evans: Lessons from 30 Years in the Biz
June 19, 2019 20:00 - 38 minutes - 26.6 MBToday, Chris and I chat about his path to becoming an Architect at Microsoft. After graduating from college with a degree in communications, Chris tried his hat at pioneering podcasts and shares the challenges of trying to circulate content without the internet in the ’80s. He eventually learned to program while working in IT. And although his first company believed that a requirement to be an engineer was to have a CS degree, he soon found a company that was excited for him to join thei...
Ep. 13 - Lauren Granger: From Social Services to Software Engineering & the Power of Doing Good
June 05, 2019 16:00 - 41 minutes - 19 MBLauren Granger began their career working with adults experiencing homelessness in Seattle. Lauren’s path to social work began on the night of Barack Obama’s inauguration when during his speech, he encouraged every person to get involved and volunteer. And that they did; Lauren dedicated the next decade of their life to giving back to their community. They managed low-income houses and did incredible work for individuals facing homelessness in Seattle's community. Pivoting from work in soc...
13. Lauren Granger: From Social Services to Software Engineering & the Power of Doing Good
June 05, 2019 16:00 - 41 minutes - 19 MBLauren Granger began their career working with adults experiencing homelessness in Seattle. Lauren’s path to social work began on the night of Barack Obama’s inauguration when during his speech, he encouraged every person to get involved and volunteer. And that they did; Lauren dedicated the next decade of their life to giving back to their community. They managed low-income houses and did incredible work for individuals facing homelessness in Seattle's community. Pivoting from work in soc...
12. Jessica Dene Earley-Cha: Community & Developer Advocacy at Google
May 27, 2019 22:00 - 25 minutes - 11.8 MBToday, Jessica and I chat about the path she took to become a Developer Advocate at Google. After studying Sociology and Education in college, Jessica dedicated herself to working for both Girls Inc. and Girl Scouts. After five years of doing that, she transitioned her focus onto mental health advocacy work. After facing some extremely difficult tragedies in that role and receiving encouragement from friends and family, she decided to take a class at her local college to learn C++ in hopes o...
Ep. 12 - Jessica Dene Earley-Cha: Community & Developer Advocacy at Google
May 27, 2019 22:00 - 25 minutes - 11.8 MBToday, Jessica and I chat about the path she took to become a Developer Advocate at Google. After studying Sociology and Education in college, Jessica dedicated herself to working for both Girls Inc. and Girl Scouts. After five years of doing that, she transitioned her focus onto mental health advocacy work. After facing some extremely difficult tragedies in that role and receiving encouragement from friends and family, she decided to take a class at her local college to learn C++ in hopes o...
Ep. 11 - Becca Rosenthal: How to Find your People and Pull Each Other Up Together
May 20, 2019 00:00 - 41 minutes - 19 MBBecca Rosenthal is a Middle East Studies major turned software engineer. After college, she spent a few years working at a Jewish non-profit in Jackson, MS. And when she moved back home to Oakland, she realized quickly that tech would be her ticket to stay in her beloved city. Thus, she decided to learn to code by attending Hackbright Academy. After graduation, she quickly landed an engineering job at Reddit. Today, Becca and I dive deep into how she did just that. A year into her tech car...
11. Becca Rosenthal: How to Find your People and Pull Each Other Up Together
May 20, 2019 00:00 - 41 minutes - 19 MBBecca Rosenthal is a Middle East Studies major turned software engineer. After college, she spent a few years working at a Jewish non-profit in Jackson, MS. And when she moved back home to Oakland, she realized quickly that tech would be her ticket to stay in her beloved city. Thus, she decided to learn to code by attending Hackbright Academy. After graduation, she quickly landed an engineering job at Reddit. Today, Becca and I dive deep into how she did just that. A year into her tech car...
Ep. 10 - Jessica Owens: The Parallels Between Knitting & Coding
May 12, 2019 18:00 - 34 minutes - 15.9 MBMy guest today is a Software Engineer at Snapchat. She was a child actor on Bill Nye the Science Guy, studied architecture in college, and went on to work in a fiber arts store for over a decade in Seattle before attending a coding bootcamp to learn to code. Jessica and I chat about how both knitting and weaving compliment the process of learning to code in such a remarkable way. In fact, little did I know that we owe computers to the jacquard loom! She tells the story of her weaving store...
10. Jessica Owens: The Parallels Between Knitting & Coding
May 12, 2019 18:00 - 34 minutes - 15.9 MBMy guest today is a Software Engineer at Snapchat. She was a child actor on Bill Nye the Science Guy, studied architecture in college, and went on to work in a fiber arts store for over a decade in Seattle before attending a coding bootcamp to learn to code. Jessica and I chat about how both knitting and weaving compliment the process of learning to code in such a remarkable way. In fact, little did I know that we owe computers to the jacquard loom! She tells the story of her weaving store...
10. Jessica Owens: The Parallels Between Knitting & Coding
May 12, 2019 18:00 - 34 minutes - 15.9 MBMy guest today is a Software Engineer at Snapchat. She was a child actor on Bill Nye the Science Guy, studied architecture in college, and went on to work in a fiber arts store for over a decade in Seattle before attending a coding bootcamp to learn to code. Jessica and I chat about how both knitting and weaving compliment the process of learning to code in such a remarkable way. In fact, little did I know that we owe computers to the jacquard loom! She tells the story of her weaving store...
9. Abby Tiffany: From Sign Language to Coding Language
April 28, 2019 23:00 - 28 minutes - 13.3 MBMy guest today is a Software Engineer who was an Interpretive Sign Language Translator prior to learning to code. In 2018, she completed a Full Stack Web Development program at The Lambda School and is now an IOS mobile app developer in Seattle. Today she & I dive deep into topics such as gatekeeping, toxic companies, nerd culture, tips to technical interviewing and how important representation is in this industry. She’s a massive advocate for career changers and supports her community as a...
9. Abby Tiffany: From Sign Language to Coding Language
April 28, 2019 23:00 - 28 minutes - 13.3 MBMy guest today is a Software Engineer who was an Interpretive Sign Language Translator prior to learning to code. In 2018, she completed a Full Stack Web Development program at The Lambda School and is now an IOS mobile app developer in Seattle. Today she & I dive deep into topics such as gatekeeping, toxic companies, nerd culture, tips to technical interviewing and how important representation is in this industry. She’s a massive advocate for career changers and supports her community as a...
Ep. 9 - Abby Tiffany: From Sign Language to Coding Language
April 28, 2019 23:00 - 28 minutes - 13.2 MBMy guest today is a Software Engineer who was an Interpretive Sign Language Translator prior to learning to code. In 2018, she completed a Full Stack Web Development program at The Lambda School and is now an IOS mobile app developer in Seattle. Today she & I dive deep into topics such as gatekeeping, toxic companies, nerd culture, tips to technical interviewing and how important representation is in this industry. She’s a massive advocate for career changers and supports her community as a...
8. Nora Peters: From Americorps to Amazon
April 21, 2019 23:00 - 30 minutes - 14.2 MBNora is nonprofit fundraising professional turned coder. Today, she & I chat about her journey to tech after dedicating her career and education to mission-driven companies and how she used to perceive corporate Americas as the “dark-side.” She shares that it was in fact her therapist, who told her about Ada Developers Academy and encouraged her to pursue software development. She’s so thankful for that advice, as she has now discovered a way to blend her passion for tech with her love for...
Ep. 8- Nora Peters: From Americorps to Amazon
April 21, 2019 23:00 - 30 minutes - 14.1 MBNora is nonprofit fundraising professional turned coder. Today, she & I chat about her journey to tech after dedicating her career and education to mission-driven companies and how she used to perceive corporate Americas as the “dark-side.” She shares that it was in fact her therapist, who told her about Ada Developers Academy and encouraged her to pursue software development. She’s so thankful for that advice, as she has now discovered a way to blend her passion for tech with her love for...
Ep. 7 - Jamie Pilgrim: From Bootcamp Instructor to Software Engineer
April 07, 2019 07:00 - 28 minutes - 13.2 MBJamie & Lauren talk today about her path to attending a coding bootcamp after feeling frustrated with the traditional 4-year college path that so many are encouraged to take. She calls for a rethinking of the way we push that route onto young adults as the expected route and encourages us all to consider exploring our interests and passions to help discover what we will be good at but more importantly, what will bring us joy. In 2014, Jamie attended a program called Dev Bootcamp and went o...
7. Jamie Pilgrim: From Bootcamp Instructor to Software Engineer
April 07, 2019 07:00 - 28 minutes - 13.2 MBJamie & Lauren talk today about her path to attending a coding bootcamp after feeling frustrated with the traditional 4-year college path that so many are encouraged to take. She calls for a rethinking of the way we push that route onto young adults as the expected route and encourages us all to consider exploring our interests and passions to help discover what we will be good at but more importantly, what will bring us joy. In 2014, Jamie attended a program called Dev Bootcamp and went o...
7. Jamie Pilgrim: From Bootcamp Instructor to Software Engineer
April 07, 2019 07:00 - 28 minutes - 13.2 MBJamie & Lauren talk today about her path to attending a coding bootcamp after feeling frustrated with the traditional 4-year college path that so many are encouraged to take. She calls for a rethinking of the way we push that route onto young adults as the expected route and encourages us all to consider exploring our interests and passions to help discover what we will be good at but more importantly, what will bring us joy. In 2014, Jamie attended a program called Dev Bootcamp and went o...
6. Kate Spitzer: From Fashion Design to Software Engineering
March 30, 2019 07:00 - 20 minutes - 9.46 MBToday, Kate and Lauren talk about her time as a fashion designer and her eventual desire to find a career that surprisingly or not, demanded even more creativity: software engineering. We chat about her decision-making process behind choosing backend over frontend development and the magic that it holds. She explains the many overlapping parallels between fashion design and engineering and we discuss vocational training programs versus more formal four-year programs. Kate implores listener...
Ep. 6 - Kate Spitzer: From Fashion Design to Software Engineering
March 30, 2019 07:00 - 20 minutes - 9.45 MBToday, Kate and I talk about her time a fashion designer and her eventual desire to find a career that surprisingly or not, demanded even more creativity: software engineering. We chat about her decision making process behind choosing backend over frontend development and the magic that it holds. She explains the many overlapping parallels between fashion design and engineering and we discuss vocational training programs versus more formal four-year programs. Kate implores listeners to do ...
5. Megan Slater: From French Horn to Full Stack
March 28, 2019 07:00 - 31 minutes - 14.3 MBToday Megan and Lauren talk about her upbringing in Montana, her education and pursuit of playing the french horn professionally, how she wound up working full time in finance before ultimately finding a career counselor and seeking advice on how to apply all of her interests and skills towards a new career. She discovered tech and decided to take a leap of faith to attend Code Fellows in 2015. She now works for a really neat consulting firm in Seattle called GenUI as a Full Stack Web Develo...
4. Kate Pond: From Alaskan Park Ranger to Programmer at Alaska Airlines
March 28, 2019 07:00 - 33 minutes - 15.5 MBKate recently graduated from Ada Developers Academy and is a Developer Apprentice at Alaska Airlines. She has an infectious laugh and such a zest for life that it’s hard not to smile while listening to her talk about her journey today. Although she eventually transitioned to tech, she studied to become a park ranger from a very early age and has her Masters in Environmental Education. Today she shares with me her obsession with nature and her love for storytelling, all Meetups, and geocachin...
Ep. 5 - Megan Slater: From French Horn to Full Stack
March 28, 2019 07:00 - 31 minutes - 14.3 MBToday Megan and I talk about her upbringing in Montana, her education and pursuit of playing the french horn professionally, how she wound up working full time in finance before ultimately finding a career counselor and seeking advice on how to apply all of her interests and skills towards a new career. She discovered tech and decided to take a leap of faith to attend Code Fellows in 2015. She now works for a really neat consulting firm in Seattle called GenUI as a Full Stack Web Developer. ...
Ep. 4 - Kate Pond: From Alaskan Park Ranger to Programmer at Alaska Airlines
March 28, 2019 07:00 - 33 minutes - 15.5 MBKate recently graduated from Ada Developers Academy and is a Developer Apprentice at Alaska Airlines. She has an infectious laugh and such a zest for life that it’s hard not to smile while listening to her talk about her journey today. Although she eventually transitioned to tech, she studied to become a park ranger from a very early age and has her Masters in Environmental Education. Today she shares with me her obsession with nature and her love for storytelling, all Meetups, and geocachin...
5. Megan Slater: From French Horn to Full Stack
March 28, 2019 07:00 - 31 minutes - 14.3 MBToday Megan and Lauren talk about her upbringing in Montana, her education and pursuit of playing the french horn professionally, how she wound up working full time in finance before ultimately finding a career counselor and seeking advice on how to apply all of her interests and skills towards a new career. She discovered tech and decided to take a leap of faith to attend Code Fellows in 2015. She now works for a really neat consulting firm in Seattle called GenUI as a Full Stack Web Develo...
4. Kate Pond: From Alaskan Park Ranger to Programmer at Alaska Airlines
March 28, 2019 07:00 - 33 minutes - 15.5 MBKate recently graduated from Ada Developers Academy and is a Developer Apprentice at Alaska Airlines. She has an infectious laugh and such a zest for life that it’s hard not to smile while listening to her talk about her journey today. Although she eventually transitioned to tech, she studied to become a park ranger from a very early age and has her Masters in Environmental Education. Today she shares with me her obsession with nature and her love for storytelling, all Meetups, and geocachin...
3. Stephanie Wilkinson: Blending a Love for Education with Tech
March 22, 2019 07:00 - 25 minutes - 11.6 MBStephanie and Lauren have a shared passion for education and technology and she talks today about how fun it is to have found a role that balances those two worlds. As the Director of Systems Architecture for the National Association of Independent Schools, Stephanie thrives as she manages, innovates, and inspires her distributed team each day. She tells the story of facing a gatekeeper in college and the reasons behind not pursuing a more traditional educational path to tech. She's manife...
Ep. 3 - Stephanie Wilkinson: Blending a Love for Education with Tech
March 22, 2019 07:00 - 25 minutes - 11.6 MBStephanie and I have a shared passion for education and technology and she talks today about how fun it is to have found a role that balances those two worlds. As the Director of Systems Architecture for the National Association of Independent Schools, Stephanie thrives as she manages, innovates, and inspires her distributed team each day. She tells the story of facing a gatekeeper in college and the reasons behind not pursuing a more traditional educational path to tech. She's manifesting...
3. Stephanie Wilkinson: Blending a Love for Education with Tech
March 22, 2019 07:00 - 25 minutes - 11.6 MBStephanie and Lauren have a shared passion for education and technology and she talks today about how fun it is to have found a role that balances those two worlds. As the Director of Systems Architecture for the National Association of Independent Schools, Stephanie thrives as she manages, innovates, and inspires her distributed team each day. She tells the story of facing a gatekeeper in college and the reasons behind not pursuing a more traditional educational path to tech. She's manife...
Ep. 2 - Severin Wiggenhorn: From Congress to Code
March 19, 2019 07:00 - 35 minutes - 16.4 MBSeverin and I talk today about all things ballet dancing, law school, and her passion for logic problems and patterns! We discuss our shared experience as students at Ada Developers Academy, our mutual feelings of imposter syndrome, celebrate the fact that we’ve both cried in front of our managers, and unfortunately discover that neither one of us were ever encouraged to explore a career in tech when we were young. Severin dives deep on the importance of internships, asking questions, and ...
2. Severin Wiggenhorn: From Congress to Code
March 19, 2019 07:00 - 35 minutes - 16.4 MBSeverin and I talk today about all things ballet dancing, law school, and her passion for logic problems and patterns! We discuss our shared experience as students at Ada Developers Academy, our mutual feelings of imposter syndrome, celebrate the fact that we’ve both cried in front of our managers, and unfortunately discover that neither one of us were ever encouraged to explore a career in tech when we were young. Severin dives deep on the importance of internships, asking questions, and ...
2. Severin Wiggenhorn: From Congress to Code
March 19, 2019 07:00 - 35 minutes - 16.4 MBSeverin and I talk today about all things ballet dancing, law school, and her passion for logic problems and patterns! We discuss our shared experience as students at Ada Developers Academy, our mutual feelings of imposter syndrome, celebrate the fact that we’ve both cried in front of our managers, and unfortunately discover that neither one of us were ever encouraged to explore a career in tech when we were young. Severin dives deep on the importance of internships, asking questions, and ...
1. Ben Greenberg: From Rabbi to Developer Advocate
March 18, 2019 07:00 - 32 minutes - 15.1 MBToday Ben & I talk about the lessons he learned from his time as a community organizer and Rabbi and how he applies them in his role today as a Developer Advocate at Nexmo, the Vonage API platform. He shares the story of his brave decision to pursue his dreams and learn to code by attending the Flatiron School. He and I discuss the value of embracing the qualities that make us different in addition to the importance of diverse perspectives and backgrounds on a technical team. His passion...
1. Ben Greenberg: From Rabbi to Developer Advocate
March 18, 2019 07:00 - 32 minutes - 15.1 MBToday Ben & I talk about the lessons he learned from his time as a community organizer and Rabbi and how he applies them in his role today as a Developer Advocate at Nexmo, the Vonage API platform. He shares the story of his brave decision to pursue his dreams and learn to code by attending the Flatiron School. He and I discuss the value of embracing the qualities that make us different in addition to the importance of diverse perspectives and backgrounds on a technical team. His passion...
Ep. 1 - Ben Greenberg: From Rabbi to Developer Advocate
March 18, 2019 07:00 - 32 minutes - 15.1 MBToday Ben & I talk about the lessons he learned from his time as a community organizer and Rabbi and how he applies them in his role today as a Developer Advocate at Nexmo, the Vonage API platform. He shares the story of his brave decision to pursue his dreams and learn to code by attending the Flatiron School. He and I discuss the value of embracing the qualities that make us different in addition to the importance of diverse perspectives and backgrounds on a technical team. His passion...
0. Introducing: We Belong Here
March 10, 2019 05:00 - 1 minute - 715 KBIntroduction to the new podcast, We Belong Here: Lessons from Unconventional Paths to Tech Sharing stories about the different routes people have taken to enter the industry and chatting about the skills they learned in their prior jobs, schooling, or life experiences & how they apply them to their current roles in tech. New episodes every Tuesday! We Belong Here Podcast: Follow Lauren on Twitter @LoLoCoding WeBelongPodcast.com website Subscribe on Apple Podcasts Subscribe on Spo...
Ep. 0 - Introducing: We Belong Here
March 10, 2019 05:00 - 1 minute - 708 KBIntroduction to the new podcast, We Belong Here: Lessons from Unconventional Paths to Tech Sharing stories about the different routes people have taken to enter the industry and chatting about the skills they learned in their prior jobs, schooling, or life experiences & how they apply them to their current roles in tech. Checkout out our website: https://webelongpodcast.com/