Nerd Journey: Career Advice for the Technology Professional

When does a body of work reach completion? One answer is to end it by choice. This week in episode 356 you’ll hear the reasons behind our intentional ending of the Nerd Journey Podcast. We’ll rewind the clock and focus on the show’s trajectory and inflection points over time just like we’ve done for guests, share what we learned over the course of an 8-year journey from idea to consistently released show, and discuss our favorite moments. All of our content will remain online and accessible for listeners like you to go back and enjoy. Don’t miss our final call to action in this episode. Just because this body of work is complete, there is still work for all of us to do for our careers. Original Recording Date: 12-20-2025 Topics – A Purposeful Ending, Where We Started, Interview Format and Getting to Launch, The Why Behind the Ending, The Lessons We Learned, Our Favorite Moments, What to Expect from Us Moving Forward, There’s More to Be Done for All of Us. 1:01 – A Purposeful Ending 1:38 – Where We Started VMware Community Roundtable Podcastlaunch of the show was in July 2018 7:50 – Interview Format and Getting to Launch Episode 13 with Tom Delicati 13:58 – The Why Behind the Ending changing the release scheduleEpisode 302 – Ending with Intention: Once a Geek Whisperer with Amy Lewis (2/2) 18:02 – The Lessons We Learned Episode 113this blog postThe Practice 25:15 – Our Favorite Moments Episode 224 – Tech Marketing, Interview Questions, and Executives as Wild Bears with John Nicholson (1/3)Episode 225 – Take Stock of Your Compensation with John Nicholson (2/3)Episode 226 – Negotiating Job Offers and Personal Finance Tips with John Nicholson (3/3)Episode 64Episode 65Episode 349 – Expand Your Curiosity: Build, Own, and Maintain Relevance with Milin Desai (1/3)Episode 350 – Scope and Upside: The Importance of Contextual Communication with Milin Desai (2/3)Episode 350 – Opt In: A CEO’s Take on Becoming AI Native with Milin Desai (3/3)Episode 288 – Guardrails for Growth: A Mentor’s Experience with Dale McKay (1/2)Episode 289 – Enhance Your Personal Brand: Feedback as a Catalyst for Change with Dale McKay (2/2)principal titleprincipal engineersprincipalEpisode 127 – Countdown to Burnout with Tom Hollingsworth (3/3)Stinger metadata tagEpisode 17Chris Williams 31:05 – What to Expect from Us Moving Forward Layoff Resources PageCareer Uncertainty Action GuideJohnNicksend us an e-mail 34:59 – There’s More to Be Done for All of Us Episode 66: Three-Month Check-In as a Google Cloud Customer Engineer with John White, Part 1Episode 156 – Better Notes, Better You with Josh Duffney (1/2)Deep Work Contact the Hosts nerdjourneypodcast@gmail.com@NerdJourneyLinkedIn@vJourneymanLinkedIn@NetworkNerd_Leave a Comment on Your Favorite Episode on YouTubeLayoff Resources PageCareer Uncertainty Action Guide

Has organizational change redefined your job role? If it hasn’t yet, it will at some point. Whether acknowledged or ignored, every organizational change at a company impacts you. This is broader than just layoffs and more employees under a single manager. What are the organizational changes we might see, and what can we do to stand out and stay the course? This week in episode 355 we’re joined by guest Ryan Conley. Listen closely as we uncover different patterns of organizational change and provide practical tips to take action when those changes happen. Ryan helps us understand the corporate lifecycle and how to reframe this concept to understand where we are in the career lifecycle. You’ll hear from Ryan’s personal experience why the most resilient (and successful) technologists can identify and fill the gaps left after an organizational change whether that means working for a new boss, joining a different team, or changing job roles. Original Recording Date: 11-13-2025 Topics – Framing Our Focus on Organizational Change, Observations and Patterns, Defining the Career Lifecycle, When Colleagues Leave the Company, Layoff Resources, Working for a New Boss, Becoming Part of a Different Team, Shifting Job Roles or Job Level Changes, Parting Thoughts 2:58 – Framing Our Focus on Organizational Change Ryan Conleyrecent episode of our showAswath Damodarancorporate lifecycle 4:19 – Observations and Patterns Episode 351 15:30 – Defining the Career Lifecycle 20:34 – When Colleagues Leave the Company Episode 338 27:34 – Layoff Resources Megan WillsLayoff Resources PageCareer Uncertainty Action Guide 28:43 – Working for a New Boss Daniel LemireEpisode 84Brad PinkstonThe First 90 Days: Proven Strategies for Getting Up to Speed Faster and Smarterrecent episode of Unicorns in the Breakroom PodcastAmy Lewis 45:21 – Becoming Part of a Different Team 59:46 – Shifting Job Roles or Job Level Changes 1:06:18 – Parting Thoughts contact him on LinkedIn Mentioned in the Outro Daniel LemireMegan WillsEpisode 278 – Uncovering Empathy: The Greatest Skill of an Inclusive Leader with Marni Coffey (1/3)Episode 210 – A Collection of Ambiguous Experiments with Shailvi Wakhlu (1/2)Episode 168 – Hired and Acquired with Mike Wood (1/2)Episode 169 – A Thoughtful Personal Sabbatical with Mike Wood (2/2)Episode 84 -Management Interviews and Transitions with Brad Pinkston Contact the Hosts nerdjourneypodcast@gmail.com@NerdJourneyLinkedIn@vJourneymanLinkedIn@NetworkNerd_Leave a Comment on Your Favorite Episode on YouTubeLayoff Resources PageCareer Uncertainty Action Guide

Imagine your work day starting off like any other only to find you’ve been laid off. What would you do next? Dave Stevens lived this reality a couple of years ago and joins us this week in episode 354 to share the lessons from that experience. We’ll take you through how Dave processed the news of being laid off, the warning signs he missed, when he knew it was time to begin searching for a new role, how he thought about what to do next, and the critical importance of his personal and professional network throughout this process. Regardless of your age or the size of your professional network, Dave shares actionable suggestions for building professional connections that we all may be overlooking. Original Recording Date: 10-28-2025 Topics – Background and the Impact of a Layoff Event, Initial Forward Progress and Reliance on a Professional Network, Skills Gaps and Unexpected Positives, Elements of the Personal and Professional Network, Reaching Closure and Reflecting Back on the Lessons 2:27 – Background and the Impact of a Layoff Event Dave Stevens 10:53 – Initial Forward Progress and Reliance on a Professional Network job cuts for up to 30,000 peopleOpen to Work 19:10 – Skills Gaps and Unexpected Positives 22:27 – Elements of the Personal and Professional Network 28:22 – Reaching Closure and Reflecting Back on the Lessons Connect with Dave on LinkedInDave’s blog site Mentioned in the Outro Episode 264 – Back to Basics: Technology Bets and Industry Relationships with Brad Christian (2/2)Episode 342 – Planting Seeds: Networking and Maneuvering Unexpected Job Loss with Jason Gass (1/2)Episode 343 – The Lost Art: Marketplace Heartbeat and Finding Closure after a Layoff with Jason Gass (2/2) Contact the Hosts nerdjourneypodcast@gmail.com@NerdJourneyLinkedIn@vJourneymanLinkedIn@NetworkNerd_Leave a Comment on Your Favorite Episode on YouTubeLayoff Resources PageCareer Uncertainty Action Guide

How can we help recruiters advocate for us in a tough job market? According to people industry veteran Christy Honeycutt, our guest in episode 353, it starts with being kind and translating your experience into something a recruiter can understand. And even more importantly, it takes practice. In part 2 of our discussion with Christy, she translates deep experience in talent acquisition and recruitment that gives us insight into the current job market. You’ll hear more details about the nuances of RPOs (recruitment process outsourcers), the difference between job hugging and job abandonment, and the importance of personal branding and differentiation. Stay until the end when Christy shares her reasons for turning down C-suite positions and how clarity on her long-term goals is carrying her forward into what’s next. Now that you’ve heard someone model it for you, how will you translate your own experience? If you missed part 1 of our discussion with Christy, check out Episode 352 – People First: Systematizing Go-to-Market for Your Role with Christy Honeycutt (1/2). Original Recording Date: 09-30-2025 Topics – A Deeper Look at Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO), Translating Your Experience with 3 Wins, Bad Actors and Leadership in the People Industry, Today’s Job Market and Life Outside the C-Suite 2:56 – A Deeper Look at Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) 5:55 – Translating Your Experience with 3 Wins 11:28 – Bad Actors and Leadership in the People Industry 20:45 – Today’s Job Market and Life Outside the C-Suite HR TechInside the C-SuiteOn LinkedInOn her websiteInside the C-SuiteStrategicShift Mentioned in the Outro Do you have 3 wins from each job or at least the past several jobs you’ve held? And do you know the stories that go along with these? Episode 284 – Draft Your Narrative: Writing and Building a Technical Portfolio with Jason Belk (2/2)In the discussion with Christy, we heard about her experience losing a job. Christy shared an exercise in finding clarity. She knew a C-suite role would not match the pace that was aligned with what her family wanted. It wasn’t just about personal ambition. Remember to check out Christy’s podcasts, Inside the C-Suite and StrategicShift. Contact the Hosts nerdjourneypodcast@gmail.com@NerdJourneyLinkedIn@vJourneymanLinkedIn@NetworkNerd_Leave a Comment on Your Favorite Episode on YouTubeLayoff Resources PageCareer Uncertainty Action Guide