The outbreak inside of a pandemic
Published: 2020-07-14 21:23:10

I know the title is a bit out there but strap in. 

#Storms before Lightning

While living life you come into contact with brands every day. You can't go a second in life without a brand, so you become invested in them. No one can blame you; this is just a part of life. Yea, Mike cool so what brand are you talking about? And no this is not a hashtag ad, you have nothing to fear. The brand is Microsoft. I think about Microsoft in two ways: the present in-your-face product and the other product, like air. Don't worry I will go into it a bit further. But first, we have to address the storms part. 

Microsoft has been my dream company for a while but that can sound a bit off-putting when someone else says it. So I will try to explain why I care about this company so much. Early on in life, I had to take care of this thing called hip dysplasia (if you are a German Shepherd owner, you know what I am talking about). The long and short of it is, I had three major surgeries growing up and was in a body cast and braces with only my thumbs to twiddle. It left me with a few options - namely toy cars and video games. Being fortunate I had both. I leaned into video games hard. 

Fast forward to my brother's birthday party (if I remember correctly it was his 13th). We were on our way back from Funzone in Oceanside, NY and it was just starting to snow, just barely. When we got back to the house I asked my mom "what did James get for his birthday?" She said a Sydney Crosby jersey. I knew and loved my mom very much, but I knew she hadn't seen a minute of hockey in her life. Then as we waltzed into the den, there it was an original white brand new Xbox 360![for reference](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Xbox360_white_HDMI_203W_front_vertical.jpg) This interesting looking box had me captivated from the start. It was total frustration playing my brother in NHL and gave me pure joy becoming my own level designer in the Halo 3 Universe (with Forge). Although escaping into worlds all by yourself is good, the power of connection was brought to us later in the form of a headset. It was white and had a piece of gray foam at the end. My brother and I would sneak out of our room to play Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 online. Later on, Xbox One (when I was not living at home) gave me an excuse to talk with family and make friends that I still have today. 

This is what I think of as the in-the-moment, in-your-face product, or a product that has high user engagement. But when I think about the intangible products, I don't have to search far and wide for them. Whenever I would go to a doctor's office, they are never using Apple products. The comforting glow of the blue screensaver is there to greet me. Admittedly that thought is fleeting, like a gust of wind. Microsoft's suite of products is like air. Surrounding us at every turn. 

#The Lightning 

In March, I graduated from The Flatiron School. I was and still am very excited that I am doing something that I love. It was technically rigorous and tough as nails but every day I wake up happy because I get to do what I love. I have a cohort mate that I was working closely with from the beginning. He is incredibly smart but he didn't get there overnight. Talking with him, he put the hours in like a mad man. Truthfully, I think he is allergic to the word break, still waiting on the tests to come back. All jokes aside, he's a true inspiration. So when he got a job at a company that he was truly passionate about, we cheered. We talked about the next steps for him with his new career and doing something that he loves. It lit a fire under me that I have no clue was possible. I have done some soul searching looking for what I am going to do. I decided to take a break and play Xbox with some friends (the same friends that I had made connections only through Xbox). Then like the gravity hammer itself, it hit me. I knew where I wanted to work; a company that has helped me in more ways then I can imagine. It's a huge goal of mine to work there and give back to this company that has helped me!

# A goal without a timeline is just a dream

So what's the play? What's the plan to get there Mike? Well, looking at the technical careers at Microsoft, the Technical Consultant role really spoke to me. Helping clients understand what products and services work best for them and their business seems like a terrific way to have an impact and love what I do. So first, I have to get up to speed on the products and services, but lucky for me there are certifications that I will be working on. This is my action plan by mid-August I will have that certification and will apply to the big Tortuga and go after my dream job!

#I am still lost on the outbreak part!

The outbreak in this pandemic for me was seeing the success of another individual, an individual who just worked for it put his nose to the grindstone, and got the results he was looking for. His positivity was and still is contagious. This is the only bug I want during this pandemic and I think I am coming down with a case of it. I will keep working towards it and keep the blog updated on my progress. 

-Thanks, Mike