I don’t know what I’m doing here. All of the faces on the Zoom screen know more than I do. They can write code and teach workshops and probably even know what the HTML stands for. After repeated comparisons of their work and mine I can find several examples to back up my claim.
I mean, yes, my resume says I was a technology teacher. And maybe I started the first website for my school’s 5th level in 2002. I am the one whose slideshows are almost made fun of for their “fanciness”, and I’m the one showing people how to do something. Regularly.
But that doesn’t mean I’m a tech person.
I like to try new things. I’m always on a learning curve. I forget things all the time, but also all the time I get better and faster at figuring out how to remember. I know how to find answers.
But that doesn’t mean I’m a tech person.
What is a “tech” person anyway? My professor? My husband, the CTO? Bill Gates? Elon Musk? Do these people that I hold in high esteem have other character traits that make them “techie”?
Technology: the practical application of knowledge especially in a particular area.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
Maybe all it takes is a mindset. Could a “techie” just be the person with the willingness to figure things out? The one with the curiosity? The person who wants to do it a new way? The one quick to see that I DON’T have all the answers, I don’t know what all the letters mean, but I DO know how to obtain the knowledge and I have the grit to apply it.
I am gingerly stepping into a place where it is okay for me to believe that I am legitimate and that my effort in this digital field is turning into a skill. Whatever you want to call me, I am not an imposter.
