With registration for Autodesk University 2022 underway and being back in person again, it made me looked back to see how my career and, in some cases, my personal life have changed since I first attended. No, not 25 years ago, like some diehards, but back in 2017. Yes, it took me 18 years into my career to get there, but I made it and so glad I did.
AU 2017 came at just the right time. Being a CAD manager for about a year, I struggled with staff, my leadership style, and all the other ins and outs that come with a new position in the same company. I was also starting to transition to using more and more Revit in my workflow and struggling with making that change. So, I was excited to attend this conference which I heard was the place to learn.
I never thought that my future resume would include things like BIM Manager, AUGIWorld author, Digital Built Week Americas presenter, becoming an Autodesk Expert Elite member, and a few more cool things. AU was meant to help me get better; little did I realize how much better and how the spark it lit in me would change everything.
I not only learned that first year that I still had a lot to learn, but I also had a lot to give back, and there were a lot of people and organizations out there to lean on and, in turn, give back in any way I could. And that if I wanted to really get more out of my career and further it, I needed to get better at what I did and get more involved in work. Not just the work in my office but the work outside my office; this meant being more active in the AEC community as a whole.
I learned that the saying "the more you give, the more you get" is true. The more work I put into things, the more I got back. It made me happier at work and the other things I do, which made me more comfortable at home, a better father, husband, and just a better person.
Autodesk University was not the fundamental factor in every change I made and everything that has happened to me since November 2017. Still, that spark made me think that I do not know it all, I have a lot to share, I can learn, I can give back more, and I need change to change things.
The thought of wanting to be better, give back, and be like a couple of presenters I saw that year gave me the motivation, drive, and courage to realize that I could do more. So, to better myself, I gave back to the AEC community every chance. Not all of it worked out as well as I would have liked. Still not an AU presenter, but in trying to be that, I have been a presenter at other conferences. Look, you give you get.
Yes, AU is about the classes, getting better at the software you use, learning new software, and figuring out how to do that one thing. But if you take a moment and look around at the other people you meet and talk to them and get to know them, you have every chance, if you want it, to make yourself a better employee, employer, and even person.
Autodesk University 2017 had the theme "The Future of Making Things" (or something like that); I bet they never thought when they came up with that, they would be helping me make the changes I needed to be where I am today and to help guide me in the years to come. Autodesk University, yes, a career changer.
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