This past week felt like a checkpoint for my career. I was invited to be a panel speaker for an industry event by a former colleague. I had assumed that the audience would consist of a good number of people, but even I was surprised at the turnout. I estimate there must have been 500 people in the audience.
It's been a while since I last spoke in front of a large crowd. I did a company-wide presentation just a little under a year ago, in front of a few thousand people. Over the past few years, my position as a project owner allowed me to become really comfortable presenting in front of others since I was forced to lead so many meetings. If freshly-graduated me could see me now, she would never believe her eyes.
After the panel, I had so many people come up to me to applaud me on the talk and how much they could relate. I also ran into a former coworker who's the same age as me. He reached out to mention how much my drive had inspired him all those years ago and how proud he was to see me on stage.
I concluded the week by meeting up with one of my mentees who happened to be in town.
Looking back, I've grown so much over the past decade. I've become a person confident enough to take public speaking opportunities and become a mentor to aspiring young professionals. Despite all of this, I feel like my journey has only started, and I have so much more to learn.
I'm really proud of myself, and I'm excited to see what the next decade will bring. :)