How Did I Get Here

It’s been a long winding road as an adult to make money and keep my artsy side alive. How did I get here?

How It Began

I found web development purely by accident. I was working at Sun Microsystems as an administrator. Managing schedules, creating presentations, event planning etc… when my manager challenged me to find something new to add to my skill sets. Luckily for me Sun had lot’s of internal classes and at the time the internet had come into play.

I took classes about the World Wide Web, how to code with HTML, and writing content for the web. Next thing I knew I was creating internal websites for the groups I supported at Sun. That led me to the path of becoming a web professional.

What’s great about web development is that you create a visual piece of art online that lives and breathes! Web development incorporates my analytical side and my artsy side. It was amazing to me that I could understand the language that looked like nothing to most people and actually create a tool someone could use.

Making The Transition

After I took the classes and started building websites I was hooked! I saw everything in code! It was a different mind set for me and I loved it! I now knew what was next!

Even though I was creating websites for teams in the organization I was still the group administrator. I knew that I needed to move on and find a web job. I lucked out because my old boss was looking to hire an administrator and he wanted me. I loved working for Tom and I was excited to work for him again. I told him up front that I had plans to broaden my horizons and get into web development. We agreed that I would work for him and eventually I could move on to the career path I wanted.

Tom’s organization happen to have a web team that supported the internal communications for the group. I eventually was given the opportunity to show what I could do and I passed the test! After months of working as an administrator and on the web team I eventually moved over full time on to the web team. It was a dream come true!

Working As A Web Professional

I worked at Sun for several years on a couple of different web teams. I learned a lot through out the years at Sun. In the beginning it was just flat html pages no content management system. So managing big sites was a lot of work. I added to my skill sets with CSS, JavaScript, PHP, Graphics, and Project Management.

I love the web! I love being a part of the communication process that the web provides! I am not into flashy websites. I don’t believe websites have to be like a video game. I do believe they need to provide the user the information or tools they are looking for.

Down the road some really smart people started creating content management systems. A CMS is a powerful tool for web development! I became an expert at being able to use and help others use a variety of content management systems. Which leads me to WordPress!

Finding WordPress

I joined the web team at a healthcare provider in Reno, Nevada in 2010. Fortunately for me this is where I was introduced to WordPress! Our main website was on another platform but we had a micro site that was built on WordPress. After going through the back end of the website I knew I wanted to know more! So, I found my first WordCamp. I attended and knew this was definitely a tool I wanted to use.

Going Out On My Own

I took a leap of faith and started my own business building WordPress websites & social media consulting in 2012. Lucky Dog Consulting was born! I worked with non-profits & small business owners to help them build professional websites that they could update themselves. I also did social media consulting that included community management, training, and strategy.

What I Am Doing Now

Now it’s 2016 and I am a freelancer and a Digital Marketing Manager for an events management & green meetings company called MeetGreen. In my freelance time I build websites with WordPress and provide social media consulting. I am still loving WordPress and the amazing things you can do with it!