Hello World

Alright let's do this!!

First of all, let me say this post was months in the planning. Like every card-carrying procrastinator out there, I really wanted to write this post way back in March. Or was it February? But it always kept finding its way to that elusive wasteland known as the back burner.

Until now.

Until I realized I was fortunate to have so many opportunities to interact with inspiring people, attend innovative events and engage in interesting discussions - but was held back by the need to write that perfect post.

I have been inspired greatly by a number of women speakers, bloggers and activists who have put themselves out there, sharing both their successes and their failures, embracing their imperfections as simply a vital step in personal growth. I've often asked myself: how do they do it? How do they come across as authentic and empowered without feeling vulnerable or second-guessing their decisions?

As a parent, I worry constantly that in our pursuit of false perfection, we send a terrible message to our kids on what success means. Instead of fostering self-confidence and celebrating individuality, we try relentlessly to fit into someone else's definition of success. So the message that "failure is a necessary step to self-improvement" is one that has begun to resonate greatly with me for many reasons.

About My Goals

For me, the key was to realize that writing was about self-expression first and not about catering to any audience. So in my case, I want to start by seeing this as something I am doing for an audience of one: me.

I want to document interesting events or inspiring interactions I have had. I want to capture my thoughts on various topics but in a manner that allows me to revisit them later and understand (and fix) my own gaps in understanding.

And I want to document my failures - not to sugarcoat them (and pretend they didn't happen) or obsess over them (and let them define me) but to frame them in the context of that moment so that I can potentially revisit them later and reflect on their truths (or falsehoods) with the benefit of time and perspective.

And hopefully, as I document, reflect and revisit my own journey, I will cross paths with other users and learn from their journeys too.

About Me

That's a tough one. After nearly two decades spanning industry, academia, consulting and community, I find it hard to put myself in a box or attach a label. Instead, I think that there are three traits that define me:

• I like to build things to help people { products & communities }
• I like to help people to build things { training & mentoring }
• I'm a proud parent who believes in equality, empathy and enterprise

Alright -- I think that's enough pontificating for now.
Time to ship it!!

(The good thing about an audience of 1 is that the user testing is easy)