5 things i wish i knew then & the fire starter's manifesto
TRANSCRIPT
Sarah Bird, CEO of Moz@Sarah Bird
I Wish I Knew Then…
Things I wish I knew then…5
The Fire Starter’s Manifesto
TransparentAuthenticGenerousFunEmpatheticExceptionalHold me to it!
Brief Intro to Moz
Moz Basics
$35.6 million/year in total revenue
155 talented team members
Moz BasicsMoz Basics
Over 30,000 paying customersfrom all over the globe.
Moz Basics
Moz makes software that helpsmarketers
understand and improvetheir SEO, business listings, social media,
links and brand mentions.
It looks a little like this…
And this…
And this…
Lots of Awards ‘N Stuff
Best Places to Work
Brief Intro to Me…
I’m on my journey.
I started as a cleaning lady.
Chains!
College Librarian
Studied Literature & Philosophy
So… Law school then!
Practiced lawFor a few years…
Rand’s company was taking off right at the moment I decided to leave the firm.
Joined Moz as General Counsel in 2007
I can’t go on.
Fuck it.
That’s my job!
Things I wish I knew then…5
1 Get out of your own way.
This Is Water by David Foster Wallace
“The most obvious and important realities are often the hardest to see and talk about.”
We don’t see the world as it is. We see it as we are.
Initial conditions
We’ve inherited layers of culture.
Helen taught me that you can fly, if you want to.
Find people who ‘see’ your potential better than you do.
Find people who ‘see’ your potential better than you do.
The Confidence Gap
I’m still growing.
ALL YOUR MENTORS ARE BELONG TO US2
They don’t come with a capital ‘M.’
Take what you want, and leave the rest.
Invest heavily in professional
development.3
It takes technique.
It’s not like riding a bike.
It’s more like
weight training.
Manage your energyLike an athlete.
Why?
Shit happens
Don’t pray for easy times, pray for the
strength to endure hard times.
--Bruce Lee
“Do not pray for an easy life, pray for the strength to
endure a difficult one.”
--Bruce Lee
Google It4
Let go of the guilt.5
Figure out matters to you, and let go of the rest.
What my dad taught me.
McBird Family Dinner
Don’t lose track of what’s important.
Keep reminding
yourself “this is water.”
Make your subconscious
choices…
Conscious.
The Fire Starter’s Manifesto
Access to technology is not optional. It is not a
lifestyle.
Technology fundamentally transforms…
Access to capital and critical services
Technology fundamentally transforms…
Access to capital and critical servicesEmployment opportunities
Technology fundamentally transforms…
Access to capital and critical servicesEmployment opportunities
Human connections
Technology fundamentally transforms…
Access to capital and critical servicesEmployment opportunities
Human connections Health & wellness
Technology fundamentally transforms…
Access to capital and critical servicesEmployment opportunities
Human connections Health & wellness
Education
The rate of innovation is increasing.
Technologists, therefore, have an outsized impact on our experience of the world.
There is a widening chasm between the urgent need for qualified technologists and our ability to
develop them.
The technology industry does not
reflect the diversity of
experiences, perspectives, and backgrounds that
make up our communities.
The overwhelming
homogeneity of the tech pipeline
is acute early on…
The overwhelming
homogeneity of the tech pipeline
is acute early on…
And becomes excruciating at
executive levels.
We believe a person’s opportunity should not be limited by gender, skin color,
religion, or socio-economic background.
Fostering a diverse and rich tech industry is a
moral imperative.
Access to technologies created by and for diverse perspectives will
improve income equality and social justice.
Although we face powerful structural barriers that erode the tech talent
pipeline…
…there is nothing inherent about technology that makes it unfriendly to
women and underrepresented minorities.
The structural barriers are man-made and they will be unmade.
We believe in tackling big, seemingly
insurmountable challenges by breaking them
down into smaller tasks.
As Martin Luther King reminds us, “The arc of the moral universe is long but it bends towards justice.”
Every small act of virtue
creates a ripple effect beyond measure.
Together, we are creating a more
welcoming, enriching, and equitable
technology industry.
It is difficult to dream about
something that you have never seen.
Many people are discouraged from pursuing tech careers simply because they either do not know anyone who works in these fields, or they do not understand what people in
these fields do.
We believe that telling our stories matters.
You can change the course of someone’s life by
sharing the right idea at the right moment.
Telling someone “It’s important to me that you’re here” and “You can do this” makes a profound
difference.
"Education isn't the filling of a pail, but
the lighting of a fire."
--William Butler Yeats
We believe in lighting the fire and inspiring everyone -
We believe in lighting the fire and inspiring everyone -
especially women and underrepresented minorities
We believe in lighting the fire and inspiring everyone -
especially women and underrepresented minorities - to explore the compelling
world of technology.
We are the fire starters.
It’s important to me that you’re here. You can do this.
The last thing that I wish I knew then…
I wish I knew then, that I belong here, with you.
Fin