Last night I had the honor of speaking to the Association of Information Technology Professionals (AITP) at the University of Central Oklahoma about my experience as a computer specialist for the Federal Aviation Administration.
Approximately 100 students showed up last night to listen to me ramble about my life as a federal employee. I had originally planned to focus my presentation about experiences working with security, but a couple of weeks ago I learned that last month’s guest was a security pen tester, so I decided to expand the scope of my presentation a bit and cover my entire career instead. Whether I was working in security, communications, or as a domain/enterprise admin, my official job title has always been “Computer Specialist,” and so that was the theme of my talk — that even in the FAA alone, there are lots of varied job opportunities for IT professionals to pursue.
Fifteen minutes before I was scheduled to go on, my heart was racing. Even though the auditorium was relatively small, public speaking always gets my adrenaline pumping. By the time I hit my second slide, my nerves began to calm and I hit my stride, such as it is.
I had an hour time slot for both my presentation and any questions. I prepared 30 slides, planned to talk for 45 minutes, and actually hit 50, leaving me ten minutes for questions. I was afraid I’d put the audience to sleep, but I got a question, then two, then five or six more — so many that I went fifteen minutes over my allotted time, and got cut off! Imagine that — me talking too much!
I like speaking opportunities because it gives me a chance to practice a skill I don’t know that I’m great at, but I especially enjoy it when I’m speaking to an audience that, for lack of a better term, wants to be there. I once spoke to a college class about the history of video game development, and thirty seconds into my presentation a kid on the front row inserted ear buds into his ears and closed his eyes — always great for the morale! Fortunately, that was not the case last night. As I looked out into the auditorium seats I saw a the next generation of IT professionals about to start their own journeys politely listening to a battle-worn computer specialist recalling some of his own adventures. I know those students are going to do great, and whatever company they end up working for will be lucky to have them.
Thanks to Patty Blevins and the Association of Information Technology Professionals at the University of Central Oklahoma for having me out last night. I felt privileged for the opportunity.
Now I’m off to find some more training so I can stay one step ahead of these guys!