Growing up far from a tech hub, some careers aren't possibilities

Growing up far from a tech hub, some careers aren't possibilities. Not because you can't achieve them, but because you didn't think of them.

I believed I couldn't do things because I wasn't 'that type of person.'

This wasn't imposter syndrome. This was deeper: When you grow up without examples of people like you becoming engineers, founders, or leaders, those aren't even on your map of possible destinations. They're just things that exist in other people's worlds.

Growing up in rural Minnesota, I never saw anyone learn to code, build companies, or lead teams.

These were things other people did. People who were born knowing how.

It never occurred to me that everyone starts bad.

I was in my thirties when my wife heard me say I couldn't do something and said:

"You know everyone starts out terrible at things, right?"

The look on her face as she realized she'd married someone who missed this basic fact was... memorable.

"Wait, you think people just... know how to do stuff? Without practicing first?"

When you're from a non-traditional background, nobody tells you:

That senior engineer you admire? Their first code had quality reminiscent of Temu furniture assembly instructions.

That polished executive? Used to say yes to everything because they didn't know how to set boundaries.

That confident founder who seems born for this? They're still figuring it out, just at a different level.

Nobody starts out good. The only difference is some people know that's normal.

If you're from a non-traditional background, you probably never saw the journey from 'can't' to 'can.'

Everything you think you're not built for?

You're right.

You're not built for it yet.

Being willing to be bad at something while you practice? That's the only real requirement.