Normally I do not like to use this blog to talk about my personal life but I wanted to talk about the month of September because of its significance. The month was very trying and stressful at work, our team took on a mobile project that involved us rewriting a mobile application in 1.5 months that a previous team took 1yr to write. I am happy to report that we did succeed thanks to the heroic efforts of ever member of the team. We have now entered a period of hardening the application.

In addition to this, I am proud to say that on September 7, 2016 I proposed to my girlfriend of 3yrs at the same User Group we had our first “date”. Yes, you heard that right, I proposed to my girlfriend at a User Group (the WMP office specifically). She laughed and cried and said yes, and it was the unique proposal she always dreamed of; definitely found a good one.

Later in the month, I received another surprise, I was selected to present on Xamarin.Forms at Codemash. Codemash, for those who do not know, has become one of the largest conferences in the US and being selected is extremely difficult; this was my 5th attempt. I am very honored by this charge and am going to be spending the time ahead of the event making sure I prepare fully for this experience.

I also, learned that I was promoted to the elite PAM level at West Monroe. PAM stands for Principal, Architect, and Manager; essentially the three paths the general consultant path divides into; you pick based on your preferences. For me, I am going to he Principal route, basically a Tech Lead and Tech expert. After my experiences at Centare which made me wonder if I had lost a step to have the success at West Monroe was gratifying and inspiring. I really cant thank WMP enough for the chance to be successful. I would also be amiss if I didn’t thank the great people I have gotten to work with; this promotion is a much a reflection of them as it is of me.

Then on the final day in September (ok Oct 1) I was informed I had become a Microsoft MVP, fulfilling a lifelong dream that, honestly, I never thought I would attain. I know that I am very active in local communities, but I know people who are much more active so I always thought the bar was out of reach. I am very humbled to be counted among the many other outstanding individuals who hold this honor. I promise to do my very best to uphold the sterling reputation MVPs have; also I am looking forward to the Summit.

Frankly, it would be hard to ever have a month like that again and I am still getting used to many of the changes (being engaged, being an MVP, and being a Principal) but I will get there. It really was an amazing month and I look forward to the next month.