With Sincerity and Gratitude
New year, new company, new blog post…wow, I am on a roll. It has been a while since I have submitted a blog for rAVe. The past three months have been a crazy ride. I probably should have written about the feeling of leaving a company I have been at for nine years — more specifically a company in which I am a vested partner. I probably should have written about my new opportunity with FSR and the excitement that surrounds the intense challenge of learning new products, company culture, business model, etc. And I probably should have written about the creation of my home office and the ordeal of moving from a primarily office based position to a traveling/ work from home position (FYI — getting up in the morning and heading straight to the laptop before taking a shower results in showering around lunchtime if you are lucky – NOT a good schedule.)
I will save those topics for another time. Instead, I have decided to write about an interesting phenomenon that occurred to me during this new transition — specifically, the support and kindness given to me by my colleagues and friends in this industry. I know we have all said it at one time or another — the AV industry is so small, or — our industry in incredibly incestuous. There are reasons for that… having training in skills specific to an industry makes you more marketable to other companies in the same industry, which makes you more likely to receive job offers from and stay within the industry. But beyond that, and what I think is most notable about AV, is I believe people generally and genuinely love this industry, the technology and the individuals.
We have very active social and informational opportunities from twitter discussions to many LinkedIn groups. But beyond that, there are groups that seemingly formed organically out of the intrinsic desire for those in AV to help educate and support their own. An example (but not the only one) is AVNation –– covering relevant topics specifically for audiovisual professionals. They actively seek out other enthusiastic and talented AV pros to offer an opportunity for others to hear a number of well-formed opinions from different levels of experience and backgrounds. There is no concern for mean-spirited competition. Competition, while prevalent, doesn’t inhibit the sharing of valuable information. Ultimately, tt is about education and building a stronger industry.
When I moved on from one company to another within the industry, my mind was blown. Not only were my colleagues and friends sincerely happy for me, but they were pleased that I chose to remain in AV. Further, they didn’t just support my choice to take on a new opportunity, they reached out asking how they could help MAKE MY MOVE SUCCESSFUL! This speaks volumes for the wonderful people that we work with every day. And for whom I will never stop being grateful.
So today and every day I thank those within our industry for the support, education, friendship, community and motivation that keeps me moving toward success within our own little AV nation.
