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After completing my education, I had a lot of uncertainty about my future career path. How should I start? When would I get a job?

 

When opportunity knocks

In 2007, my company took on a Salesforce project. I thought about my Dad and the values he instilled in me. My heart told me that Salesforce was the right path, and I decided to continue my career journey. There was no turning back.

I dove into Salesforce, working with big clients like Symantec, VMWare, and P&G and skilled up on many new things on every project. I am so thankful for my managers and team members who helped me at every step in my career.

Learning Salesforce helped me explore new opportunities, too. In India, I helped teach Salesforce skills to students, some who went on to work for big multinational customers like Verizon and VSP. Now, when I catch up with them, they inspire me with stories about where they are today and how Salesforce changed their career trajectories.

I moved to the U.S. in 2013, and today I lead the Salesforce Platform team at Grubhub. At first, I used to travel from my home in the suburbs to attend the Chicago User Group, which was difficult on my schedule due to the long commute. I noticed that other people from the suburbs faced the same issue, so I started the Schaumburg User Group. Today, we have more than 230 members and I lead regular meetings with at least 25 people in attendance.

 

Spreading the #SalesforceOhana love

Salesforce significantly changed my life and I want to pay it forward — I’m always available to anyone interested in Salesforce. I’ve helped 26 people (and counting) take a position in the Salesforce ecosystem and have trained about 35 one-on-one.

As a Salesforce evangelist, I worked hard to earn 15 Salesforce certifications, attended Dreamforce three times and Connections twice, went to TrailHeaDX ‘19, and was at the first Trailblazer Summit this year.

I felt like I had achieved something very big in my life when I saw my face on the TrailheaDX website and promotional pages for the Schaumburg Trailblazer Community. I’m so thankful that I got to be involved. I felt like I was on cloud nine!
 

My journey continues

In August 2019, I became a Lightning Champion and continue to give back through the Trailblazer Community. While my journey has had some ups and downs, I’m grateful for all of my experiences. I believe that big things are still to come for me. And as long as I stay true to my values and continue to work hard, I can achieve my goals.

No matter where you are in your career journey, you can create a path to the career you want. Here are the top tips I have learned on my journey that can help you too:

  • Never give up. And better yet, never worry about failure. If you always win, you will get bored with success. I failed one of my certification exams twice. I knew that I was missing something in my preparation, so I studied well and passed on my third attempt.
  • Give 100% effort. To achieve big, always do your best.
  • Lend a helping hand. We all need a little help from time to time. Whether it’s personal or professional, show up for the people in your life when they are in need. You never know when the shoe will be on the other foot.
  • Express gratitude. No matter how big or small, the actions of others have probably helped you a time or two. Remember the people who have supported you along the way, and the role they played in your success.
  • Share your knowledge. We’re all in this together—help each other grow.

Above all else, believe in yourself. Don’t let the opinions of others pull you back or decrease your self-confidence. Keep up the good work and continue to do what you do!