In September 2024, I was contacted by my colleague, Remon van Gijn, regarding the AWS Community Day NL event. NN was sponsoring the event, and they were looking for keynote speakers for the closing panel. Although they didn’t necessarily need to fill the panel with speakers from sponsors, they decided to ask their sponsors first—and that’s how I got the opportunity.
While I’m always open to speaking opportunities, I’m also mindful about sticking to topics I’m familiar with. The whole “fake it till you make it” mentality isn’t for me—it just makes me too nervous. So, I agreed to a preparation session to determine whether the topics were within my scope. Thankfully, the subjects were right up my alley! We discussed the Crowdstrike incident, open-source, shared responsibility and security, and even diversity in tech. I was especially excited about the Crowdstrike case, as it ties into the deep-dive global security issues I’ve studied.
One thing I was grateful for is that while we did touch on diversity, it wasn’t the focus of the entire panel. I love discussing diversity in tech, but when you’re only ever asked to speak on that topic, it can sometimes overshadow your identity as a tech professional. So, it felt good to be able to engage in discussions that also highlighted my technical expertise.
The event itself was fantastic. Although I had planned to attend more sessions, I spent a lot of time catching up with old friends and making new connections, which turned out to be just as rewarding. The panel went really well from my perspective, and I was blown away by all the positive responses afterward. It was a great reminder of how much these conversations matter, and I’m glad so many people reached out to keep the discussion going.
I also had a blast with my colleagues at the NN booth (which led to what I think was the most flattering photo of the day, haha). Overall, it was an incredible experience, and although I was completely exhausted by the end of the day, it was absolutely worth it. I hope I was able to add some value and maybe even inspire a few people along the way.
In September 2024, I was contacted by my colleague, Remon van Gijn, regarding the AWS Community Day NL event. NN was sponsoring the event, and they were looking for keynote speakers for the closing panel. Although they didn’t necessarily need to fill the panel with speakers from sponsors, they decided to ask their sponsors first—and that’s how I got the opportunity.
While I’m always open to speaking opportunities, I’m also mindful about sticking to topics I’m familiar with. The whole “fake it till you make it” mentality isn’t for me—it just makes me too nervous. So, I agreed to a preparation session to determine whether the topics were within my scope. Thankfully, the subjects were right up my alley! We discussed the Crowdstrike incident, open-source, shared responsibility and security, and even diversity in tech. I was especially excited about the Crowdstrike case, as it ties into the deep-dive global security issues I’ve studied.
One thing I was grateful for is that while we did touch on diversity, it wasn’t the focus of the entire panel. I love discussing diversity in tech, but when you’re only ever asked to speak on that topic, it can sometimes overshadow your identity as a tech professional. So, it felt good to be able to engage in discussions that also highlighted my technical expertise.
The event itself was fantastic. Although I had planned to attend more sessions, I spent a lot of time catching up with old friends and making new connections, which turned out to be just as rewarding. The panel went really well from my perspective, and I was blown away by all the positive responses afterward. It was a great reminder of how much these conversations matter, and I’m glad so many people reached out to keep the discussion going.
I also had a blast with my colleagues at the NN booth (which led to what I think was the most flattering photo of the day, haha). Overall, it was an incredible experience, and although I was completely exhausted by the end of the day, it was absolutely worth it. I hope I was able to add some value and maybe even inspire a few people along the way.