I’m honored to announce that as of July 1st, 2015 I was awarded the Microsoft MVP Award for Office 365… I know.. I’m as shocked as you are. I would like to start off by thanking everyone who has been a part of my journey through the years. You guys are awesome and I’d list every single one of you if I had a week to do it. Thank you.
For those of you who don’t know what a Microsoft MVP is, it’s a distinction received from Microsoft recognizing those professionals who are seen as experts in their respective fields and give back to the community in various ways through speaking, blogging, forums, writing books, etc. You get some perks for being an MVP and it helps you connect with other MVP’s who are the best of the best in what they do. Being an MVP (to me) IS a big deal because it immediately grows my professional network and gives me access to knowledge that will help me be better at my job. It’s been a bumpy road for me to get here. Many people assumed I was already an MVP or asked “Why aren’t you an MVP??”. and of course many people said “It doesn’t really mean anything”. Well, you know what? It does mean something to me. It means that I can truly feel like a peer to my other MVP friends, it means I can be better at my job, it will improve my chances to get to speak at conferences, and the free MSDN will sure come in handy! Now… if only it could increase my access to bacon…
My journey to MVP
I’ve always admired my MVP friends. When I started with SharePoint back in 2007 there was such a void of knowledge out there and so few people actually knew anything about SharePoint. I still remember banging my head against my desk just trying to do the simple things. It was a very frustrating time.
Then (and many of you know this story already) I went to my very first conference. Tulsa Techfest. They had a SharePoint track. There I met Becky Isserman, Corey Roth, and Eric Shupps (The SharePoint Cowboy). Eric was the first person I met in the SharePoint community (and I’m quick to point out this is all his fault) that really knew what he was talking about, and he was helpful. I looked up to him, and not just because he’s a lot taller than me. I began to realize that I was not alone with this headache of a product.
I slowly became aware that within the SharePoint community there where these people called MVP’s. Not only did they actually know what they were talking about, but they had insight that others didn’t have; they had a camaraderie; they understood each other and they really knew their stuff… I wanted to be a part of that. I wanted to be seen as a peer and that MVP Summit thing sounded pretty cool too.
Let me be clear… The things I was doing (blogging, speaking, organizing conferences, forums, etc) was not to because I wanted to be an MVP. I did/do those things because I enjoy them. I enjoy giving back. I enjoy the friendships I’ve made because of them. My professional network is amazing and it’s made me better at my job.
And the years went by… I was nominated several times to be an MVP, but failed to get it for various reasons… “It doesn’t matter” they would say… Still, it stung…
Whenever I would apply to speak at a new conference and there was a checkbox for “Are you an MVP”… When I was a conference with friends and wanted to grab dinner and they were like “We can’t, there’s an MVP dinner tonight.”.. I admit it.. it bothered me.
I even got to a point in 2011 that I remember vividly. I didn’t get the MVP award and I remember how bitter I felt. I hated that feeling. It was a real eye opener for me. At the point where the award becomes the goal of your journey and not a result of your journey I think you need to look at your priorities.
So, I did my thing. I spoke. I organized (Registration is open for the SharePointalooza on Sept 18th and 19th by the way). I blogged. I built relationships… and I enjoyed it.
And today… well.. yesterday.. I didn’t finish this post in time. I was awarded. You know what? It meant more because of the long path it has taken me to get here. The point I’m trying to make is, that this IS an honor, and it does open up doors previously closed to me. If you are on your own path that you hope leads you to MVP some day I would urge you to not make it your goal. Enjoy the ride, and if you don’t enjoy it, maybe look for a different career. SharePoint and Office 365 is a weird beast. It’s frustrating and some days painful, but there’s nothing else I’d rather be doing than working with it day in and day out with my awesome team at PAIT Group.
Life is good. Thank you friends.Thank you community, and thank you Microsoft.
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Congrats again, Mark. Much deserved.
Congrats Mark! Well deserved!