August 1, 2025 • 25 mins
This summer, All Things STEM With Ashley is hosting a new series starring Men In STEM!
Please welcome back our guest, Abdie Mohamed!
🚀 In this inspiring episode of All Things STEM With Ashley, we sit down with Abdie Mohamed, a tech leader and expert in cloud governance, cybersecurity, and GRC (Governance, Risk, and Compliance).
Abdie shares his powerful career journey, transitioning from a background in Management Information Systems (MIS) to becoming a Lead Cloud Governance Engineer in the Aerospace Industry. 💼
Whether you're a STEM student, an early-career IT professional, or someone curious about breaking into cybersecurity, this episode is packed with career tips, actionable advice, and real-world insights from a seasoned tech professional. Learn how Abdie used education, certifications (AWS, CompTIA, FinOps), and strategic networking to rise in the tech industry.
🔥 Keywords covered in this episode: Cybersecurity careers, cloud governance jobs, how to get into tech, tech career advice, STEM success stories, MIS to cybersecurity, cloud cost optimization, GRC frameworks, AWS certifications, career growth in tech, and more!
🎯 Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more powerful STEM stories and career guidance from leaders across the tech space. #Cybersecurity #STEMCareers #CloudGovernance #TechSuccess #AllThingsSTEMWithAshley #CareerInTech
Meet Abdie Mohamed!
Abdie Mohamed is a seasoned professional with over six years of experience in the tech industry, specializing in cloud governance, risk, and compliance (GRC). Currently serving as a Lead Cloud Governance Engineer in the Aerospace Industry, Abdie has made significant strides in reducing organizational waste, saving millions of dollars through innovative strategies for cloud cost optimization.
He also addresses complex security risks in cloud environments by implementing robust governance frameworks and scalable risk management practices. A passionate public speaker, mentor, and educator, Abdie is dedicated to inspiring and empowering others to take action in their careers and in the tech space.
Abdie holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management Information Systems from San Diego State University and a Master’s Degree in Cybersecurity Management and Policy from the University of Maryland Global Campus.
His impressive list of certifications includes AWS Certified Solutions Architect Associate, AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner, CompTIA Security+, LPI Linux Essentials, HashiCorp Terraform Associate, and Certified FinOps Engineer.
With a strong focus on leadership, communication, and technical expertise, Abdie is not only an advocate for effective cloud governance but also a driving force behind modernizing GRC practices. Whether it's through speaking engagements, mentorship, workshops, or helping others achieve their life goals, he remains committed to fostering innovation, building secure cloud environments, and guiding others to achieve their professional and personal aspirations.
👉 Like, comment, and subscribe for more videos on career growth, career journey tips, and more
Please welcome back our guest, Abdie Mohamed!
🚀 In this inspiring episode of All Things STEM With Ashley, we sit down with Abdie Mohamed, a tech leader and expert in cloud governance, cybersecurity, and GRC (Governance, Risk, and Compliance).
Abdie shares his powerful career journey, transitioning from a background in Management Information Systems (MIS) to becoming a Lead Cloud Governance Engineer in the Aerospace Industry. 💼
Whether you're a STEM student, an early-career IT professional, or someone curious about breaking into cybersecurity, this episode is packed with career tips, actionable advice, and real-world insights from a seasoned tech professional. Learn how Abdie used education, certifications (AWS, CompTIA, FinOps), and strategic networking to rise in the tech industry.
🔥 Keywords covered in this episode: Cybersecurity careers, cloud governance jobs, how to get into tech, tech career advice, STEM success stories, MIS to cybersecurity, cloud cost optimization, GRC frameworks, AWS certifications, career growth in tech, and more!
🎯 Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more powerful STEM stories and career guidance from leaders across the tech space. #Cybersecurity #STEMCareers #CloudGovernance #TechSuccess #AllThingsSTEMWithAshley #CareerInTech
Meet Abdie Mohamed!
Abdie Mohamed is a seasoned professional with over six years of experience in the tech industry, specializing in cloud governance, risk, and compliance (GRC). Currently serving as a Lead Cloud Governance Engineer in the Aerospace Industry, Abdie has made significant strides in reducing organizational waste, saving millions of dollars through innovative strategies for cloud cost optimization.
He also addresses complex security risks in cloud environments by implementing robust governance frameworks and scalable risk management practices. A passionate public speaker, mentor, and educator, Abdie is dedicated to inspiring and empowering others to take action in their careers and in the tech space.
Abdie holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management Information Systems from San Diego State University and a Master’s Degree in Cybersecurity Management and Policy from the University of Maryland Global Campus.
His impressive list of certifications includes AWS Certified Solutions Architect Associate, AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner, CompTIA Security+, LPI Linux Essentials, HashiCorp Terraform Associate, and Certified FinOps Engineer.
With a strong focus on leadership, communication, and technical expertise, Abdie is not only an advocate for effective cloud governance but also a driving force behind modernizing GRC practices. Whether it's through speaking engagements, mentorship, workshops, or helping others achieve their life goals, he remains committed to fostering innovation, building secure cloud environments, and guiding others to achieve their professional and personal aspirations.
👉 Like, comment, and subscribe for more videos on career growth, career journey tips, and more
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:12):
Hello everyone, and welcome to All Things Sam with Ashley.
I'm your host, Ashley, and I'm so glad to have
Abdi Mohammad here with us today. Abby is a seasoned
tech professional with over six years of experience specializing in
cloud governance, risk and compliance and as a lead Cloud
Engineer Governance engineer, he saved to his organization millions of
dollars while tackling complex security risk in the cloud. Abdy
(00:35):
is not only a practitioner in the GRC space, but
also a passionate public speaker, mentor, and educator. He's dedicated
to inspiring others to achieve their professional and life goals.
With a master's in Cybersecurity Management and Policy and a
wealth of certifications including AWS Solutions Architect Associate and certified
FINOPS Engineer, Abdy brings a unique perspective to modernizing GRC
(00:58):
practices and building secure, cost effective cloud environments. We're thrilled
to have him here today to share his insights, experiences
and advice for those looking to excel in the tech industry.
So welcome, all being welcome, tell us think about where
you are from to start out, and then we'll get
into your career journey yeah.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
Yeah, Well, first off, thanks for the biggest hyper introduction
I ever had in my life.
Speaker 3 (01:21):
I felt amazing. Thank you so much. So, yeah, getting
started my STEM journey.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
So it was in community college when I was studying
to become an economist. Originally that was my plan, and
I studied economics. I got my social student in economics, okay,
and after transferring to San Diego State University, I realized,
you know what, I don't want to be in school
for a long time to get a pH d in economics.
Speaker 3 (01:45):
You know what about this tech thing? What's with this techno?
I'm interested in that.
Speaker 2 (01:49):
And as you know, technic technologies are part of that
STEM stem you know stem word that we have here.
And yeah, I changed my major from economics to Management
information Systems for studying how technology is used to solve
business problems center. And yeah, I was fortunate enough to
meet a lot of talented black professionals, talented professionals, law
(02:10):
walks of life, you know, all my time university, and
I kind of inspired my step journey.
Speaker 4 (02:15):
I love that. Thank you for that.
Speaker 1 (02:18):
So can you tell us about any role models or
mentors that you had? Can you start us from like,
what made you pick the type of engineer you studied.
I know you said you have went to San Diego
Ago State, State State after transferring and all that, But
what specifically was like, I want this major and why?
Speaker 4 (02:36):
What motivated that?
Speaker 3 (02:38):
That's a great question.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
So I studied management information system so it's not quote
unquote considered an engineering discipline. It's like computer engineering, however,
managers information systems. It really taught me the importance of
using technology to solve business problems. So I would say,
you know, for me, when I realized because I had
an economics major, I had economics was just a great
(03:00):
I didn't want to start all the way back to
computer science, right, So I was like, all right, you
know I already have most of the classes for the
MIS major when I just changed the miass So taking
business classes wants technical courses together.
Speaker 4 (03:12):
I love that.
Speaker 3 (03:14):
Is that's good.
Speaker 1 (03:16):
This is really great because it lets people know how
you can pivot and navigate and still be successful in
STEM even if you don't particularly study that in school.
Speaker 4 (03:23):
And it shows how.
Speaker 1 (03:24):
You're super successful in your feeling. You made it like
the journey's not always linear.
Speaker 3 (03:28):
Oh yes, you.
Speaker 4 (03:28):
Can make it.
Speaker 3 (03:29):
Well.
Speaker 2 (03:30):
I love that.
Speaker 1 (03:31):
Thank you and I didn't even sell all my guests,
I know, but I learned about them as I interviewed them.
To still, y'all know, so I'm learning about obvious you
all do, and so that's super cool.
Speaker 4 (03:40):
I learned about the economics, that's cool.
Speaker 1 (03:42):
So were there any challenges you faced growing up while
pursuing your degree or getting navigating into this impath?
Speaker 4 (03:49):
Were there any challenges you have along the way to
get to where you are today.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
Yeah, that's a great question. So during my time in undergrad,
you know, there were quite a few challenges.
Speaker 2 (03:58):
One of the challenges that I had was I had
a lot of self doubt and undergrad because you know,
growing up, you know, I didn't really see a lot
of type professionals that looked like me. And you know,
if you were quote unquote smart, you were called a nerd.
It wasn't it wasn't cool to be smart, you know,
it wasn't cool to be you know, very competent in
(04:20):
reading and writing, math, et cetera. You know, So for me,
one of the biggest struggles in undergrad was kind of
breaking out of that mold and understanding that you know,
I had this false narrative that I'm incompetent at these things.
But really I just haven't been applying myself. So, you know,
for me, a big hurdle was was was changing my identity.
(04:44):
You know, instead of saying that, hey, I'm not good
at math, or I'm not I'm not good at you know,
writing papers, or I'm not good at you know, stem,
I told myself, you know, hey, I'm not good yet,
and I can get good, you know, so with with
with a lot of help, with a lot of two
and ring, with a lot of reading, writing, et cetera.
Speaker 3 (05:02):
You know, we didn't. We didn't make it happen.
Speaker 2 (05:05):
But I would say that one of the biggest hurdles
during undergrad for me was having that identity shift.
Speaker 4 (05:10):
Yeah, thank you, super super great.
Speaker 3 (05:14):
You want to share that.
Speaker 1 (05:15):
Were there any what is one particular project or accomplishment
that you are particularly proud of in your STAM career?
Speaker 5 (05:23):
Okay?
Speaker 3 (05:25):
Problem?
Speaker 1 (05:26):
Yeah, Like, what is one of your hugest and accomplishments.
It could be graduating with your masters, Yeah, it can
be anything you wanted to be. It could be a
project where you you know, resolved what the customer needed,
the step cleadings were happy, or something that even brought
in their horizons that you're really excited about.
Speaker 4 (05:42):
That's like one of your top accomplishments.
Speaker 2 (05:45):
Yeah, I would say one of my biggest accomplishments amongst
amongst everything else that I want to talk about to
the biggest one for me was was when I got
into an engineering engineering leadership building a program at the
company I kind of worked for.
Speaker 3 (06:00):
And to be honest, I didn't think I got in.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
I didn't think I was qualified, right, you know, looking
at all these qualified engineers, knowing that you know, there's
hundreds of engineers that apply, like over three hundred engineers
apply at a time, maybe four hundred, yeah, and only
roughly about less than twenty five if that get in.
So you know, you do the math by twenty five
out of three hundred, that's not a lot of people
that are getting into that leadership buildment program, right. So
(06:25):
when I did get in, you know, I think that
was one of one of the biggest accomplishings I had
because because it reaffirmed that I am doing the right
things to develop.
Speaker 3 (06:34):
Myself as a leader.
Speaker 2 (06:35):
Otherwise I wouldn't have been chosen to be a part
of such a such an impactful program.
Speaker 4 (06:39):
I love that and he was one of like two
minority emails in the program.
Speaker 3 (06:44):
Yeah, so that many of us, it was not that many.
Speaker 4 (06:47):
I was a major accomplishment.
Speaker 1 (06:49):
Like you said, I was in that group with him,
and it was twenty three four different locations. They picked
twenty three out of all of those and like that.
At the time, the managers told us that was the
most people that have fed in the history of the
program that they had seen. And so and it was
the beginning of the pandemic, so that was going on. So,
like you said, it was super great accomplishment for you
(07:10):
getting in that And that's how we met, just a
small tidbit, that's how we met, and we kept in
touch and we're great. And like I said, today, I'm
learning about him as you are. And I asked him
to be a guest because he has such an amazing
story and so many gens of knowledge that I feel
like all of us can apply in our different journey.
Speaker 4 (07:26):
So thank you for that.
Speaker 1 (07:29):
So, how have women in STEM impacted your journey to
where you are today?
Speaker 3 (07:34):
Oh? Wow, that's a lot of question. Okay, how have
women impacted my STEM journey?
Speaker 5 (07:40):
Okay?
Speaker 6 (07:41):
So I would say there are few women I'd like
to give a shout out to on my stem journey.
So early on, when I was a young child, I
was fortunate to have an older sister and she well.
Speaker 3 (07:55):
I still have her. She still gonna kill me when
she sees this video. Yeah, unfortunately, my older sister.
Speaker 2 (08:03):
You know, she she pretty much set the standard of
what what does it mean to achieve an education? And
you know she said, standards really high in the household
as far as studying.
Speaker 3 (08:13):
What does it mean to be a student, What does
it mean to be a high performing student? A good
effective student?
Speaker 2 (08:19):
You know, So that inspired my journey to go to
college because seeing my older sister go to college, from
my older cousins who have to be women also go
to college and pursue their interests in different fields.
Speaker 3 (08:30):
And then you know, that played a pivot role.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
I mean, my mom, she definitely played a pivotal role
in my step journey. She inspired me a lot, you know,
growing up with my mom. You know, she woke up
at the same time till the day. She works at
the same time every day. It doesn't matter what time
she slept. She wakes up at like fourish for every morning,
gets and gets her day started.
Speaker 3 (08:51):
You know, and that watching.
Speaker 2 (08:53):
That every day growing up as a child, you know,
it definitely inspired my STEM journey because it shows me
what commitment looks like.
Speaker 3 (09:00):
My mom was.
Speaker 2 (09:00):
Community and sharing that her children were just fun in
the household was taken care of, so she would make
up earning morning all the time. And the third person
I'd like to give a shout out, and there's plenty
of women in my life that have been phenomenal things
for me. The third person i'd give a shout out
too is one of my one of my current mentors.
Speaker 3 (09:17):
Her name was Alexis Robinson. She works at a big
tech company.
Speaker 2 (09:20):
She's a director there, and you know, she she has
helped me so much, you know, in my in my
development and you know, just just seeing what she's done
on the global stages and her commitment to being a
great mom as well as being a great engineer by practice,
you know, that's been really inspiring. I've known her for
(09:42):
three years and she's she she still plays pivotal today.
And I'll give one more shout out.
Speaker 3 (09:48):
There was this.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
I've had a few promotions in my career and my
biggest promotion I've got.
Speaker 5 (09:53):
To senior engineer.
Speaker 2 (09:54):
Actually came from a woman, and and you know she
was she It was one of the kindness and the
coolest managers I ever had, and she taught me a
lot about what it means to be an empathetic yet
effective leader. Sometimes people think kindness can be weakness, but
I think real great leaders that they don't want to
(10:15):
inspire you, but that that kindness also pushes you to
do more. You know, I can't let my manager down.
They looked out for me, and now I've got to
look out for them, and I got.
Speaker 3 (10:24):
To look out for the team.
Speaker 2 (10:26):
So yeah, women have played a pivot role in my
STEM career, and they still play a pivot role my
stem career, my stem journey.
Speaker 3 (10:32):
So shout out to all the women that stamboard the
big things.
Speaker 4 (10:35):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (10:37):
So next, I want to talk about what is the
best piece of career advice that you've ever received and
how it shaped your path?
Speaker 7 (10:45):
Best piece of career advice, the best piece of career
advice that I got.
Speaker 5 (10:59):
So tough, that is so tough, So much great advice
I've been given. Good God, all right.
Speaker 7 (11:08):
Best feace of advice I would say, I would say
I would say it was.
Speaker 5 (11:18):
For my tech lead when I first got started.
Speaker 7 (11:21):
He's talking to me about the importance of of of
work versus complete work, and he was telling me that,
you know, if you want to excel in your career,
don't just get the job done. Get the job done
and some right, don't just solve the problem. Solve solve,
solve the problem that you see in front of you,
(11:43):
but also solve a problem that has yet to be identified,
you know, by the team, you know. And I think
that that is something you know that that hit me
real hard because he challenged me to think, Okay, I
know this is the problem that we're dealing with today,
but you know, are the other problems that you foreseen
the future by self what we're doing right now?
Speaker 5 (12:02):
And can you solve that before it even gets that.
Speaker 7 (12:04):
I love that, you know, So that was that was
one of the things I learned.
Speaker 5 (12:08):
It was the philosophy of you know, as people say, oh,
it's not my job, not going to do it.
Speaker 7 (12:13):
You know, that attitude only takes you so far, you know,
And I get it. People have to have boundaries when
it comes to their work. However, that philosophy is not
my job. That could be hindering your career because if
you're trying to grow within your career, maybe lead a.
Speaker 5 (12:27):
Team, will become a distinguished engineer.
Speaker 7 (12:29):
You can't just be good at your your practice. You
can't just be good let's just say software engineer. You
got to be good at other things to be a
distinguished software engineer, not just get at software. At that point,
you get at a bunch of other things. You're good
at security, you're good at cloud, you're good at your hardware.
You know, that's what it means to be at the
top level within your field. So you know, it was
such a valuable lesson because I was doing it. He
(12:51):
told me I was doing a good job, he says.
He challenged me and said, don't just do what I'm
telling you to do whatever we're required to do here,
but I challenge you to take more ownership and solve
problems that we have got to see.
Speaker 1 (13:03):
I love that.
Speaker 4 (13:04):
Thank you, Aftie.
Speaker 1 (13:05):
That's such a great tip, So many great tips. Every
guest has such great things to say, and that's why,
of course I invited them here. But it's just great
things to learn, because if you don't have someone to
mentor you or show you, you don't know until you
learn by trial and error. So it's good to have
those people that will pour into you, that will see, hey,
you have great potential if you can just work on
(13:25):
this exactly. Well, so thank you for sharing that. The
next thing I want to ask you is looking back.
Is there anything you would have done differently navigating your
stim journey?
Speaker 7 (13:38):
Yeah, so a couple of things. Okay, Number one, I
wouldn't have looking back. I would beat myself up a lot,
you know, early in my career about not getting that
next promotion. You know, hey, I'm doing all this work,
I'm doing all these big projects. How come I'm not
(13:59):
getting the promotion? And you know, you have to understand
that there's only so much you control when it comes
to promotions or a big new job opportunity.
Speaker 5 (14:13):
There's a lot of factors that go into it.
Speaker 7 (14:15):
Right, you could be the best engineer on your team, right,
best engineer in the company.
Speaker 5 (14:21):
However, there's so many other factors that go into why
you didn't get a promotion.
Speaker 7 (14:26):
It's not that your manager's against your managers probably campaigning
for you night and day to get that promotion, to
get that big pay.
Speaker 5 (14:32):
Bump, that new big project assignment. Right. However, you know
there are other people that.
Speaker 7 (14:38):
Have to sign off, yes, finance hr HR right, director,
the director probably have to.
Speaker 1 (14:44):
Sign up sometimes senior.
Speaker 7 (14:46):
Managers or even like sometimes the VP has to sign
up because it's a big, big promotion and weren't a
tight budget right now right.
Speaker 5 (14:52):
So there's so many different factors. And when I found
out originally.
Speaker 7 (14:56):
That I didn't I didn't get a promotion when I
put myself in for when my manager put myself in
put myself in for a promotion, I took a person.
I was heartbroken by that I didn't get it. But
it made me realize, wait a minute, that's me focusing
on things that I can't control. If my manager says, hey,
you're doing great work, keep up the great work. Right,
if my teammates are saying, hey, you're doing great work,
(15:18):
keep up the great work. You know, and there are
other teams saying the same thing, yes, then then I
shouldn't beat myself up why I didn't get the promotion.
I didn't get the promotion because there are factors outside
of my control. I can't just tell a trice should
give me the promotion. That is not how it works, right.
So it's one of those things realizing that you put
(15:41):
your best foot forward and let the matter.
Speaker 5 (15:43):
Take it and the rest.
Speaker 1 (15:44):
I love that. That is super great, great knowledge. I
think it's so important for us to understand when we're
talking with you as that the journey isn't linear, but
you can still make it and you can still be successful,
and that those obstacles help you grow and they help you,
like he said, look back and say what did I
wish I could do different? So thank you for sharing that, Omni.
(16:05):
My next question is what's next for you in your
career and what do you hope to achieve in the future.
Speaker 5 (16:11):
Yeah, so what's what's next is.
Speaker 1 (16:14):
Definitely one second? Mind you. He is like a world
renowned speaker. He goes and pours into people speaks and conferences.
He's an amazing mentor. But we still want to ask
what's next?
Speaker 5 (16:25):
Thank you for the kind kind of flood. Yeah, so
what's next for me?
Speaker 7 (16:30):
Definitely as you see with this this industry that we're in,
you know, we're all working with technology in our daily lives.
So for me, what's next is doing a lot more
learning in the AI space, you know, figuring out you
know what risks come with those tools, understanding you know
what cost risks, what security risks, what operational risks come
(16:52):
with these tools, these these you know, the the AI agents,
the machine learning, all these buzzwords.
Speaker 5 (16:58):
I don't know nothing about it.
Speaker 7 (17:00):
I'm still learning this stuff, but yeah, I would say
for me, definitely, you know, evolving into that domain as
as you know, as you know, in the near future,
hopefully an expert in that space who understands the risks,
the cost risk, the operational risk, and security risks of
this technology. Because with every new technology that a business adopts,
(17:23):
that we adopt, there's inherent risk with it.
Speaker 5 (17:25):
So hopefully, you know, for me, I want to be
that person.
Speaker 7 (17:28):
Who's an advisor to organizations on how to properly use
these technologies, you know, in a safe way, yet yet
not compromising.
Speaker 5 (17:37):
The success of the business. So that's that's pretty big
for me. And what's next is continuing to.
Speaker 8 (17:44):
Read a lot more books and building my leadership skills
and eventually you know, getting into the leadership consulting space.
Speaker 1 (17:55):
I love that. We look forward to seeing you accomplish
all your dreams and goals. Can you explain to us
a little bit about what cloud engineers do?
Speaker 5 (18:04):
Right?
Speaker 7 (18:04):
So, cloud engineering looks a little different depending on the
organization and the role. In my role specifically, I help,
you know, I help the organization build applications in AWS
and I use you know, programming skills as well as
networking skills as well as security skills, so different technical skills.
Speaker 5 (18:23):
But ultimately a cloud engineer their job is to build build.
Speaker 7 (18:28):
Things in the cloud, build things using it resources in
the cloud.
Speaker 5 (18:32):
And for me, I do.
Speaker 7 (18:34):
A lot of cloud governance engineering, so making sure that
that risks are properly, properly addressed, such as cost risks
in the cloud, making sure you know, engineering teams understand
the compliance risks that exist, the data sensitivity risks that exist,
and really educating them and making sure that they are
(18:55):
using the tools necessary to have a successful application in
the cloud.
Speaker 4 (18:59):
Thank you Healty for that.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
Now to close out with us today, what are three
tips of success while navigating your STEM journey?
Speaker 7 (19:07):
Three tips? Number one, be kind to yourself. Have high standards,
but be kind to your stuff. I think you know,
sometimes when you consider yourself a high performer, you're aspiring
to be a high performer.
Speaker 5 (19:22):
We tend to critique ourselves to a fault.
Speaker 7 (19:25):
Granted, we should be able to take criticism sometimes a
little bit of self criticism is good. You gotta hold
yourself accountable, right right, that being said, sometimes we beat
ourselves up too much, yes, right, And you have to
ask yourself this criticism that I'm giving myself right now,
the way I'm talking to myself right now, when I
talk that same way to a friend, right, if you
(19:45):
wouldn't do that to a friend, then you that yeah,
yeah right, so definitely, you know, I W I would
say that, you know, be be kind to yourself. Number two,
understand that the most successful careers are are not measured
in a couple of years.
Speaker 5 (20:03):
They're not measured in five years, not measured in ten years.
Speaker 7 (20:06):
They're measured over decades, you know, twenty thirty, forty years, right.
Speaker 9 (20:11):
I've been fortunate and fortunate to meet a lot of
practitioners in the tech space who have been in this
game for a long long time, and I have noticed
a consistent trend that that the most successful.
Speaker 7 (20:25):
Individuals they they they operate at a high level over
a long period of time. So it ties into my
first point, don't beat yourself up and understand that you
know where you're trying to get. You might take you
a little longer right, and that's okay. You know we're
on social media. I'm on social media. Actually, you're on
social media everybody, you know. You know, if you're on
(20:46):
social media, understand that it feels like at times like, wow,
how come I'm.
Speaker 5 (20:50):
Not further ahead than I actually am. You know, we
have to remind.
Speaker 7 (20:53):
Ourselves, well, success is not you know, it's not microwave.
Speaker 5 (20:57):
It's not slow cooked. Slow cook, that's not microwaved.
Speaker 7 (21:02):
And real success not the success where you know you
got lucky, you hit the lout them. Now I'm talking
about success like over a long period of time. You know,
it's it's slow cooked. So understand it's it's gonna take
time for a foundation. Yeah, yeah, foundations everything. And then
number three, I learned this from Jim Ron And and
(21:25):
he's one of the coolest speakers, greatest speakers on the planet.
He's some people consider him the father of self development
or really yeah, he's been around for a long time.
Speaker 5 (21:34):
I mean he passed away back to those he's uh,
he's still feeling. Tony Robbins. Tony Robbins, Okay, we'll put
that in the look him up.
Speaker 7 (21:44):
So if you know, if you know Tony Robbins, then
Tony Robbins like the greatest you know, leadership development and
public speaker on the one of the greatest of public speakers.
Speaker 5 (21:50):
That are live right now. Or Less Brown you know
Le's Brown. No, that's Brown ayr.
Speaker 7 (21:59):
For those of you who know Less Brown, you know this,
This was Less Brown's like like mentor right.
Speaker 5 (22:04):
So Jim Ron is a legend. And what I what
I want to close this out with.
Speaker 7 (22:09):
You know, one of the greatest courts that Jim Ron
has is that do what you can, do the best
you can with a little that you have, do what
you can and put your best for Ford, do the
best you can, right, because we obsessed at times, you know,
over what we don't have.
Speaker 5 (22:30):
Right. For example, I can't bench three hundred pounds right now.
I can't. Yes, yes, yes, that's yes, right, But what
I can do?
Speaker 7 (22:42):
You know what, maybe maybe I can hit two hundred,
all right, So I'm gonna do the best I can.
Speaker 5 (22:46):
I'm gonna hit two hundred, and I'm gonna have a
couple more pounds. I might have a couple more pounds, right,
I'm gonna do what I can. I'm gonna do the
best I can. Right.
Speaker 7 (22:53):
If I try to hit some push ups right now,
I can get let's say I get thirty in right
in a row, not stopping, all right, and the goal
is to.
Speaker 5 (22:59):
Get to get you know, one hundred. Well, guess what
I'm gonna do.
Speaker 7 (23:02):
I'm gonna stop at thirty, take a quick break, and
I'm gonna get back to it right right.
Speaker 5 (23:05):
I'm gonna do what I can. I'm gonna do the
best I can, right right. So with little that you have,
you can make something work. I love that.
Speaker 4 (23:13):
Thank you, Opdi so Omdi.
Speaker 1 (23:15):
I know you have a lot of certifications, including with
aws and things like that. How did you seek out
your professional development? What motivated you? How do you find
these programs? How do you apply to them? Are there
any tips you could give our audience for that are
interested in certifications so that they can get them? Ass
you have?
Speaker 7 (23:33):
Yeah, So when it comes to certifications, I think certifications
are great. I would say, don't obsess over the certifications
as if like.
Speaker 5 (23:43):
Hey, if I get the certification, it's gonna give me X.
What you should obsess.
Speaker 7 (23:48):
More about is the persson you're becoming, the skills you're
developing along the way.
Speaker 2 (23:52):
Yeah.
Speaker 7 (23:52):
For example, for me, certifications, what they do for me?
Is they keep me accountable to my learning? Okay, Hey,
I got that exam book in three months. If I
don't pick up the book, I'm for sure going to
fail that exam.
Speaker 5 (24:04):
Right, And that certification is not cheap. These certifications cost money.
Speaker 7 (24:09):
Yeah, I don't know about y'all, but I don't have
money to block, right, I don't, Right.
Speaker 5 (24:15):
So you know, I would say.
Speaker 7 (24:17):
With certifications, they helped me a lot with holding myself
accountable to my learning. I would say that when it
comes to certifications, understand that you know there's a highly
like high likelihood that your company will compensate you for
those certifications as and they'll pay for it. Right, But
I would say, don't don't always bank on your company
to pay for it. You've got to invest in your
own education because that's the investment for the future.
Speaker 1 (24:39):
Right now, how do you find these certifications? Do you
just google it?
Speaker 2 (24:43):
Right?
Speaker 5 (24:43):
What do you do? Right? So to find certifications? Definitely?
You know, like picking the right certification right.
Speaker 7 (24:49):
So, first you got to figure out what your career
goals are, right, Understand what type of roles that you want.
You got to talk with industry practitioners. Don't don't just
talk to just the recruiters. Talk to the hired managers
you know in your industry. Talk to the distinguished engineers
and fellows, talk to the to the CEOs.
Speaker 5 (25:06):
Ask Pety, what skills are you looking for? Right? And
what what? What? What are the credentials are you looking for?
Speaker 3 (25:13):
Right?
Speaker 5 (25:14):
Shirts. I don't think searts make or break you.
Speaker 7 (25:16):
However, they are a great way right like anything else right,
Just like a degree, they're a great way to showcase
that you're committed to your continuous education and your self development.
Speaker 8 (25:25):
Right.
Speaker 4 (25:26):
Thank you Avdy for that.
Speaker 1 (25:27):
Thank you, Thank you so much Addy for coming on
the show today. I hope everyone learned a lot of
great gyms and knowledge for success and tools on navigating
your career journey. We thank you for being here today
on all Things and with Ashley. Please like and subscribe
and look out for our next video. Bye.
Hello everyone, and welcome to All Things Sam with Ashley.
I'm your host, Ashley, and I'm so glad to have
Abdi Mohammad here with us today. Abby is a seasoned
tech professional with over six years of experience specializing in
cloud governance, risk and compliance and as a lead Cloud
Engineer Governance engineer, he saved to his organization millions of
dollars while tackling complex security risk in the cloud. Abdy
(00:35):
is not only a practitioner in the GRC space, but
also a passionate public speaker, mentor, and educator. He's dedicated
to inspiring others to achieve their professional and life goals.
With a master's in Cybersecurity Management and Policy and a
wealth of certifications including AWS Solutions Architect Associate and certified
FINOPS Engineer, Abdy brings a unique perspective to modernizing GRC
(00:58):
practices and building secure, cost effective cloud environments. We're thrilled
to have him here today to share his insights, experiences
and advice for those looking to excel in the tech industry.
So welcome, all being welcome, tell us think about where
you are from to start out, and then we'll get
into your career journey yeah.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
Yeah, Well, first off, thanks for the biggest hyper introduction
I ever had in my life.
Speaker 3 (01:21):
I felt amazing. Thank you so much. So, yeah, getting
started my STEM journey.
Speaker 2 (01:25):
So it was in community college when I was studying
to become an economist. Originally that was my plan, and
I studied economics. I got my social student in economics, okay,
and after transferring to San Diego State University, I realized,
you know what, I don't want to be in school
for a long time to get a pH d in economics.
Speaker 3 (01:45):
You know what about this tech thing? What's with this techno?
I'm interested in that.
Speaker 2 (01:49):
And as you know, technic technologies are part of that
STEM stem you know stem word that we have here.
And yeah, I changed my major from economics to Management
information Systems for studying how technology is used to solve
business problems center. And yeah, I was fortunate enough to
meet a lot of talented black professionals, talented professionals, law
(02:10):
walks of life, you know, all my time university, and
I kind of inspired my step journey.
Speaker 4 (02:15):
I love that. Thank you for that.
Speaker 1 (02:18):
So can you tell us about any role models or
mentors that you had? Can you start us from like,
what made you pick the type of engineer you studied.
I know you said you have went to San Diego
Ago State, State State after transferring and all that, But
what specifically was like, I want this major and why?
Speaker 4 (02:36):
What motivated that?
Speaker 3 (02:38):
That's a great question.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
So I studied management information system so it's not quote
unquote considered an engineering discipline. It's like computer engineering, however,
managers information systems. It really taught me the importance of
using technology to solve business problems. So I would say,
you know, for me, when I realized because I had
an economics major, I had economics was just a great
(03:00):
I didn't want to start all the way back to
computer science, right, So I was like, all right, you
know I already have most of the classes for the
MIS major when I just changed the miass So taking
business classes wants technical courses together.
Speaker 4 (03:12):
I love that.
Speaker 3 (03:14):
Is that's good.
Speaker 1 (03:16):
This is really great because it lets people know how
you can pivot and navigate and still be successful in
STEM even if you don't particularly study that in school.
Speaker 4 (03:23):
And it shows how.
Speaker 1 (03:24):
You're super successful in your feeling. You made it like
the journey's not always linear.
Speaker 3 (03:28):
Oh yes, you.
Speaker 4 (03:28):
Can make it.
Speaker 3 (03:29):
Well.
Speaker 2 (03:30):
I love that.
Speaker 1 (03:31):
Thank you and I didn't even sell all my guests,
I know, but I learned about them as I interviewed them.
To still, y'all know, so I'm learning about obvious you
all do, and so that's super cool.
Speaker 4 (03:40):
I learned about the economics, that's cool.
Speaker 1 (03:42):
So were there any challenges you faced growing up while
pursuing your degree or getting navigating into this impath?
Speaker 4 (03:49):
Were there any challenges you have along the way to
get to where you are today.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
Yeah, that's a great question. So during my time in undergrad,
you know, there were quite a few challenges.
Speaker 2 (03:58):
One of the challenges that I had was I had
a lot of self doubt and undergrad because you know,
growing up, you know, I didn't really see a lot
of type professionals that looked like me. And you know,
if you were quote unquote smart, you were called a nerd.
It wasn't it wasn't cool to be smart, you know,
it wasn't cool to be you know, very competent in
(04:20):
reading and writing, math, et cetera. You know, So for me,
one of the biggest struggles in undergrad was kind of
breaking out of that mold and understanding that you know,
I had this false narrative that I'm incompetent at these things.
But really I just haven't been applying myself. So, you know,
for me, a big hurdle was was was changing my identity.
(04:44):
You know, instead of saying that, hey, I'm not good
at math, or I'm not I'm not good at you know,
writing papers, or I'm not good at you know, stem,
I told myself, you know, hey, I'm not good yet,
and I can get good, you know, so with with
with a lot of help, with a lot of two
and ring, with a lot of reading, writing, et cetera.
Speaker 3 (05:02):
You know, we didn't. We didn't make it happen.
Speaker 2 (05:05):
But I would say that one of the biggest hurdles
during undergrad for me was having that identity shift.
Speaker 4 (05:10):
Yeah, thank you, super super great.
Speaker 3 (05:14):
You want to share that.
Speaker 1 (05:15):
Were there any what is one particular project or accomplishment
that you are particularly proud of in your STAM career?
Speaker 5 (05:23):
Okay?
Speaker 3 (05:25):
Problem?
Speaker 1 (05:26):
Yeah, Like, what is one of your hugest and accomplishments.
It could be graduating with your masters, Yeah, it can
be anything you wanted to be. It could be a
project where you you know, resolved what the customer needed,
the step cleadings were happy, or something that even brought
in their horizons that you're really excited about.
Speaker 4 (05:42):
That's like one of your top accomplishments.
Speaker 2 (05:45):
Yeah, I would say one of my biggest accomplishments amongst
amongst everything else that I want to talk about to
the biggest one for me was was when I got
into an engineering engineering leadership building a program at the
company I kind of worked for.
Speaker 3 (06:00):
And to be honest, I didn't think I got in.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
I didn't think I was qualified, right, you know, looking
at all these qualified engineers, knowing that you know, there's
hundreds of engineers that apply, like over three hundred engineers
apply at a time, maybe four hundred, yeah, and only
roughly about less than twenty five if that get in.
So you know, you do the math by twenty five
out of three hundred, that's not a lot of people
that are getting into that leadership buildment program, right. So
(06:25):
when I did get in, you know, I think that
was one of one of the biggest accomplishings I had
because because it reaffirmed that I am doing the right
things to develop.
Speaker 3 (06:34):
Myself as a leader.
Speaker 2 (06:35):
Otherwise I wouldn't have been chosen to be a part
of such a such an impactful program.
Speaker 4 (06:39):
I love that and he was one of like two
minority emails in the program.
Speaker 3 (06:44):
Yeah, so that many of us, it was not that many.
Speaker 4 (06:47):
I was a major accomplishment.
Speaker 1 (06:49):
Like you said, I was in that group with him,
and it was twenty three four different locations. They picked
twenty three out of all of those and like that.
At the time, the managers told us that was the
most people that have fed in the history of the
program that they had seen. And so and it was
the beginning of the pandemic, so that was going on. So,
like you said, it was super great accomplishment for you
(07:10):
getting in that And that's how we met, just a
small tidbit, that's how we met, and we kept in
touch and we're great. And like I said, today, I'm
learning about him as you are. And I asked him
to be a guest because he has such an amazing
story and so many gens of knowledge that I feel
like all of us can apply in our different journey.
Speaker 4 (07:26):
So thank you for that.
Speaker 1 (07:29):
So, how have women in STEM impacted your journey to
where you are today?
Speaker 3 (07:34):
Oh? Wow, that's a lot of question. Okay, how have
women impacted my STEM journey?
Speaker 5 (07:40):
Okay?
Speaker 6 (07:41):
So I would say there are few women I'd like
to give a shout out to on my stem journey.
So early on, when I was a young child, I
was fortunate to have an older sister and she well.
Speaker 3 (07:55):
I still have her. She still gonna kill me when
she sees this video. Yeah, unfortunately, my older sister.
Speaker 2 (08:03):
You know, she she pretty much set the standard of
what what does it mean to achieve an education? And
you know she said, standards really high in the household
as far as studying.
Speaker 3 (08:13):
What does it mean to be a student, What does
it mean to be a high performing student? A good
effective student?
Speaker 2 (08:19):
You know, So that inspired my journey to go to
college because seeing my older sister go to college, from
my older cousins who have to be women also go
to college and pursue their interests in different fields.
Speaker 3 (08:30):
And then you know, that played a pivot role.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
I mean, my mom, she definitely played a pivotal role
in my step journey. She inspired me a lot, you know,
growing up with my mom. You know, she woke up
at the same time till the day. She works at
the same time every day. It doesn't matter what time
she slept. She wakes up at like fourish for every morning,
gets and gets her day started.
Speaker 3 (08:51):
You know, and that watching.
Speaker 2 (08:53):
That every day growing up as a child, you know,
it definitely inspired my STEM journey because it shows me
what commitment looks like.
Speaker 3 (09:00):
My mom was.
Speaker 2 (09:00):
Community and sharing that her children were just fun in
the household was taken care of, so she would make
up earning morning all the time. And the third person
I'd like to give a shout out, and there's plenty
of women in my life that have been phenomenal things
for me. The third person i'd give a shout out
too is one of my one of my current mentors.
Speaker 3 (09:17):
Her name was Alexis Robinson. She works at a big
tech company.
Speaker 2 (09:20):
She's a director there, and you know, she she has
helped me so much, you know, in my in my
development and you know, just just seeing what she's done
on the global stages and her commitment to being a
great mom as well as being a great engineer by practice,
you know, that's been really inspiring. I've known her for
(09:42):
three years and she's she she still plays pivotal today.
And I'll give one more shout out.
Speaker 3 (09:48):
There was this.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
I've had a few promotions in my career and my
biggest promotion I've got.
Speaker 5 (09:53):
To senior engineer.
Speaker 2 (09:54):
Actually came from a woman, and and you know she
was she It was one of the kindness and the
coolest managers I ever had, and she taught me a
lot about what it means to be an empathetic yet
effective leader. Sometimes people think kindness can be weakness, but
I think real great leaders that they don't want to
(10:15):
inspire you, but that that kindness also pushes you to
do more. You know, I can't let my manager down.
They looked out for me, and now I've got to
look out for them, and I got.
Speaker 3 (10:24):
To look out for the team.
Speaker 2 (10:26):
So yeah, women have played a pivot role in my
STEM career, and they still play a pivot role my
stem career, my stem journey.
Speaker 3 (10:32):
So shout out to all the women that stamboard the
big things.
Speaker 4 (10:35):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (10:37):
So next, I want to talk about what is the
best piece of career advice that you've ever received and
how it shaped your path?
Speaker 7 (10:45):
Best piece of career advice, the best piece of career
advice that I got.
Speaker 5 (10:59):
So tough, that is so tough, So much great advice
I've been given. Good God, all right.
Speaker 7 (11:08):
Best feace of advice I would say, I would say
I would say it was.
Speaker 5 (11:18):
For my tech lead when I first got started.
Speaker 7 (11:21):
He's talking to me about the importance of of of
work versus complete work, and he was telling me that,
you know, if you want to excel in your career,
don't just get the job done. Get the job done
and some right, don't just solve the problem. Solve solve,
solve the problem that you see in front of you,
(11:43):
but also solve a problem that has yet to be identified,
you know, by the team, you know. And I think
that that is something you know that that hit me
real hard because he challenged me to think, Okay, I
know this is the problem that we're dealing with today,
but you know, are the other problems that you foreseen
the future by self what we're doing right now?
Speaker 5 (12:02):
And can you solve that before it even gets that.
Speaker 7 (12:04):
I love that, you know, So that was that was
one of the things I learned.
Speaker 5 (12:08):
It was the philosophy of you know, as people say, oh,
it's not my job, not going to do it.
Speaker 7 (12:13):
You know, that attitude only takes you so far, you know,
And I get it. People have to have boundaries when
it comes to their work. However, that philosophy is not
my job. That could be hindering your career because if
you're trying to grow within your career, maybe lead a.
Speaker 5 (12:27):
Team, will become a distinguished engineer.
Speaker 7 (12:29):
You can't just be good at your your practice. You
can't just be good let's just say software engineer. You
got to be good at other things to be a
distinguished software engineer, not just get at software. At that point,
you get at a bunch of other things. You're good
at security, you're good at cloud, you're good at your hardware.
You know, that's what it means to be at the
top level within your field. So you know, it was
such a valuable lesson because I was doing it. He
(12:51):
told me I was doing a good job, he says.
He challenged me and said, don't just do what I'm
telling you to do whatever we're required to do here,
but I challenge you to take more ownership and solve
problems that we have got to see.
Speaker 1 (13:03):
I love that.
Speaker 4 (13:04):
Thank you, Aftie.
Speaker 1 (13:05):
That's such a great tip, So many great tips. Every
guest has such great things to say, and that's why,
of course I invited them here. But it's just great
things to learn, because if you don't have someone to
mentor you or show you, you don't know until you
learn by trial and error. So it's good to have
those people that will pour into you, that will see, hey,
you have great potential if you can just work on
(13:25):
this exactly. Well, so thank you for sharing that. The
next thing I want to ask you is looking back.
Is there anything you would have done differently navigating your
stim journey?
Speaker 7 (13:38):
Yeah, so a couple of things. Okay, Number one, I
wouldn't have looking back. I would beat myself up a lot,
you know, early in my career about not getting that
next promotion. You know, hey, I'm doing all this work,
I'm doing all these big projects. How come I'm not
(13:59):
getting the promotion? And you know, you have to understand
that there's only so much you control when it comes
to promotions or a big new job opportunity.
Speaker 5 (14:13):
There's a lot of factors that go into it.
Speaker 7 (14:15):
Right, you could be the best engineer on your team, right,
best engineer in the company.
Speaker 5 (14:21):
However, there's so many other factors that go into why
you didn't get a promotion.
Speaker 7 (14:26):
It's not that your manager's against your managers probably campaigning
for you night and day to get that promotion, to
get that big pay.
Speaker 5 (14:32):
Bump, that new big project assignment. Right. However, you know
there are other people that.
Speaker 7 (14:38):
Have to sign off, yes, finance hr HR right, director,
the director probably have to.
Speaker 1 (14:44):
Sign up sometimes senior.
Speaker 7 (14:46):
Managers or even like sometimes the VP has to sign
up because it's a big, big promotion and weren't a
tight budget right now right.
Speaker 5 (14:52):
So there's so many different factors. And when I found
out originally.
Speaker 7 (14:56):
That I didn't I didn't get a promotion when I
put myself in for when my manager put myself in
put myself in for a promotion, I took a person.
I was heartbroken by that I didn't get it. But
it made me realize, wait a minute, that's me focusing
on things that I can't control. If my manager says, hey,
you're doing great work, keep up the great work. Right,
if my teammates are saying, hey, you're doing great work,
(15:18):
keep up the great work. You know, and there are
other teams saying the same thing, yes, then then I
shouldn't beat myself up why I didn't get the promotion.
I didn't get the promotion because there are factors outside
of my control. I can't just tell a trice should
give me the promotion. That is not how it works, right.
So it's one of those things realizing that you put
(15:41):
your best foot forward and let the matter.
Speaker 5 (15:43):
Take it and the rest.
Speaker 1 (15:44):
I love that. That is super great, great knowledge. I
think it's so important for us to understand when we're
talking with you as that the journey isn't linear, but
you can still make it and you can still be successful,
and that those obstacles help you grow and they help you,
like he said, look back and say what did I
wish I could do different? So thank you for sharing that, Omni.
(16:05):
My next question is what's next for you in your
career and what do you hope to achieve in the future.
Speaker 5 (16:11):
Yeah, so what's what's next is.
Speaker 1 (16:14):
Definitely one second? Mind you. He is like a world
renowned speaker. He goes and pours into people speaks and conferences.
He's an amazing mentor. But we still want to ask
what's next?
Speaker 5 (16:25):
Thank you for the kind kind of flood. Yeah, so
what's next for me?
Speaker 7 (16:30):
Definitely as you see with this this industry that we're in,
you know, we're all working with technology in our daily lives.
So for me, what's next is doing a lot more
learning in the AI space, you know, figuring out you
know what risks come with those tools, understanding you know
what cost risks, what security risks, what operational risks come
(16:52):
with these tools, these these you know, the the AI agents,
the machine learning, all these buzzwords.
Speaker 5 (16:58):
I don't know nothing about it.
Speaker 7 (17:00):
I'm still learning this stuff, but yeah, I would say
for me, definitely, you know, evolving into that domain as
as you know, as you know, in the near future,
hopefully an expert in that space who understands the risks,
the cost risk, the operational risk, and security risks of
this technology. Because with every new technology that a business adopts,
(17:23):
that we adopt, there's inherent risk with it.
Speaker 5 (17:25):
So hopefully, you know, for me, I want to be
that person.
Speaker 7 (17:28):
Who's an advisor to organizations on how to properly use
these technologies, you know, in a safe way, yet yet
not compromising.
Speaker 5 (17:37):
The success of the business. So that's that's pretty big
for me. And what's next is continuing to.
Speaker 8 (17:44):
Read a lot more books and building my leadership skills
and eventually you know, getting into the leadership consulting space.
Speaker 1 (17:55):
I love that. We look forward to seeing you accomplish
all your dreams and goals. Can you explain to us
a little bit about what cloud engineers do?
Speaker 5 (18:04):
Right?
Speaker 7 (18:04):
So, cloud engineering looks a little different depending on the
organization and the role. In my role specifically, I help,
you know, I help the organization build applications in AWS
and I use you know, programming skills as well as
networking skills as well as security skills, so different technical skills.
Speaker 5 (18:23):
But ultimately a cloud engineer their job is to build build.
Speaker 7 (18:28):
Things in the cloud, build things using it resources in
the cloud.
Speaker 5 (18:32):
And for me, I do.
Speaker 7 (18:34):
A lot of cloud governance engineering, so making sure that
that risks are properly, properly addressed, such as cost risks
in the cloud, making sure you know, engineering teams understand
the compliance risks that exist, the data sensitivity risks that exist,
and really educating them and making sure that they are
(18:55):
using the tools necessary to have a successful application in
the cloud.
Speaker 4 (18:59):
Thank you Healty for that.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
Now to close out with us today, what are three
tips of success while navigating your STEM journey?
Speaker 7 (19:07):
Three tips? Number one, be kind to yourself. Have high standards,
but be kind to your stuff. I think you know,
sometimes when you consider yourself a high performer, you're aspiring
to be a high performer.
Speaker 5 (19:22):
We tend to critique ourselves to a fault.
Speaker 7 (19:25):
Granted, we should be able to take criticism sometimes a
little bit of self criticism is good. You gotta hold
yourself accountable, right right, that being said, sometimes we beat
ourselves up too much, yes, right, And you have to
ask yourself this criticism that I'm giving myself right now,
the way I'm talking to myself right now, when I
talk that same way to a friend, right, if you
(19:45):
wouldn't do that to a friend, then you that yeah,
yeah right, so definitely, you know, I W I would
say that, you know, be be kind to yourself. Number two,
understand that the most successful careers are are not measured
in a couple of years.
Speaker 5 (20:03):
They're not measured in five years, not measured in ten years.
Speaker 7 (20:06):
They're measured over decades, you know, twenty thirty, forty years, right.
Speaker 9 (20:11):
I've been fortunate and fortunate to meet a lot of
practitioners in the tech space who have been in this
game for a long long time, and I have noticed
a consistent trend that that the most successful.
Speaker 7 (20:25):
Individuals they they they operate at a high level over
a long period of time. So it ties into my
first point, don't beat yourself up and understand that you
know where you're trying to get. You might take you
a little longer right, and that's okay. You know we're
on social media. I'm on social media. Actually, you're on
social media everybody, you know. You know, if you're on
(20:46):
social media, understand that it feels like at times like, wow,
how come I'm.
Speaker 5 (20:50):
Not further ahead than I actually am. You know, we
have to remind.
Speaker 7 (20:53):
Ourselves, well, success is not you know, it's not microwave.
Speaker 5 (20:57):
It's not slow cooked. Slow cook, that's not microwaved.
Speaker 7 (21:02):
And real success not the success where you know you
got lucky, you hit the lout them. Now I'm talking
about success like over a long period of time. You know,
it's it's slow cooked. So understand it's it's gonna take
time for a foundation. Yeah, yeah, foundations everything. And then
number three, I learned this from Jim Ron And and
(21:25):
he's one of the coolest speakers, greatest speakers on the planet.
He's some people consider him the father of self development
or really yeah, he's been around for a long time.
Speaker 5 (21:34):
I mean he passed away back to those he's uh,
he's still feeling. Tony Robbins. Tony Robbins, Okay, we'll put
that in the look him up.
Speaker 7 (21:44):
So if you know, if you know Tony Robbins, then
Tony Robbins like the greatest you know, leadership development and
public speaker on the one of the greatest of public speakers.
Speaker 5 (21:50):
That are live right now. Or Less Brown you know
Le's Brown. No, that's Brown ayr.
Speaker 7 (21:59):
For those of you who know Less Brown, you know this,
This was Less Brown's like like mentor right.
Speaker 5 (22:04):
So Jim Ron is a legend. And what I what
I want to close this out with.
Speaker 7 (22:09):
You know, one of the greatest courts that Jim Ron
has is that do what you can, do the best
you can with a little that you have, do what
you can and put your best for Ford, do the
best you can, right, because we obsessed at times, you know,
over what we don't have.
Speaker 5 (22:30):
Right. For example, I can't bench three hundred pounds right now.
I can't. Yes, yes, yes, that's yes, right, But what
I can do?
Speaker 7 (22:42):
You know what, maybe maybe I can hit two hundred,
all right, So I'm gonna do the best I can.
Speaker 5 (22:46):
I'm gonna hit two hundred, and I'm gonna have a
couple more pounds. I might have a couple more pounds, right,
I'm gonna do what I can. I'm gonna do the
best I can. Right.
Speaker 7 (22:53):
If I try to hit some push ups right now,
I can get let's say I get thirty in right
in a row, not stopping, all right, and the goal
is to.
Speaker 5 (22:59):
Get to get you know, one hundred. Well, guess what
I'm gonna do.
Speaker 7 (23:02):
I'm gonna stop at thirty, take a quick break, and
I'm gonna get back to it right right.
Speaker 5 (23:05):
I'm gonna do what I can. I'm gonna do the
best I can, right right. So with little that you have,
you can make something work. I love that.
Speaker 4 (23:13):
Thank you, Opdi so Omdi.
Speaker 1 (23:15):
I know you have a lot of certifications, including with
aws and things like that. How did you seek out
your professional development? What motivated you? How do you find
these programs? How do you apply to them? Are there
any tips you could give our audience for that are
interested in certifications so that they can get them? Ass
you have?
Speaker 7 (23:33):
Yeah, So when it comes to certifications, I think certifications
are great. I would say, don't obsess over the certifications
as if like.
Speaker 5 (23:43):
Hey, if I get the certification, it's gonna give me X.
What you should obsess.
Speaker 7 (23:48):
More about is the persson you're becoming, the skills you're
developing along the way.
Speaker 2 (23:52):
Yeah.
Speaker 7 (23:52):
For example, for me, certifications, what they do for me?
Is they keep me accountable to my learning? Okay, Hey,
I got that exam book in three months. If I
don't pick up the book, I'm for sure going to
fail that exam.
Speaker 5 (24:04):
Right, And that certification is not cheap. These certifications cost money.
Speaker 7 (24:09):
Yeah, I don't know about y'all, but I don't have
money to block, right, I don't, Right.
Speaker 5 (24:15):
So you know, I would say.
Speaker 7 (24:17):
With certifications, they helped me a lot with holding myself
accountable to my learning. I would say that when it
comes to certifications, understand that you know there's a highly
like high likelihood that your company will compensate you for
those certifications as and they'll pay for it. Right, But
I would say, don't don't always bank on your company
to pay for it. You've got to invest in your
own education because that's the investment for the future.
Speaker 1 (24:39):
Right now, how do you find these certifications? Do you
just google it?
Speaker 2 (24:43):
Right?
Speaker 5 (24:43):
What do you do? Right? So to find certifications? Definitely?
You know, like picking the right certification right.
Speaker 7 (24:49):
So, first you got to figure out what your career
goals are, right, Understand what type of roles that you want.
You got to talk with industry practitioners. Don't don't just
talk to just the recruiters. Talk to the hired managers
you know in your industry. Talk to the distinguished engineers
and fellows, talk to the to the CEOs.
Speaker 5 (25:06):
Ask Pety, what skills are you looking for? Right? And
what what? What? What are the credentials are you looking for?
Speaker 3 (25:13):
Right?
Speaker 5 (25:14):
Shirts. I don't think searts make or break you.
Speaker 7 (25:16):
However, they are a great way right like anything else right,
Just like a degree, they're a great way to showcase
that you're committed to your continuous education and your self development.
Speaker 8 (25:25):
Right.
Speaker 4 (25:26):
Thank you Avdy for that.
Speaker 1 (25:27):
Thank you, Thank you so much Addy for coming on
the show today. I hope everyone learned a lot of
great gyms and knowledge for success and tools on navigating
your career journey. We thank you for being here today
on all Things and with Ashley. Please like and subscribe
and look out for our next video. Bye.
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