Adapting and Thriving: Tracy’s Journey from Oilfields to Tech
After a sudden career shift from over two decades in the oilfield to software development due to a pandemic layoff, Tracy embraced change and found a new purpose at CITI. His journey illustrates the power of adaptability, self-reflection, and the importance of community support in overcoming challenges and pursuing personal growth. Tracy's story is a testament to resilience and the willingness to learn, positioning him for future opportunities in an ever-evolving job market.
His Professional Story: Making the best of drastic change
Tracy's career Journey, like many others, began in the oilfield as an oil and gas land surveyor. He held this position for over 20 years when he was suddenly laid off due to the pandemic. Never one to let challenges get in the way for long, Tracy began researching in which direction he wanted to go next when he landed on software development.
Motivation: Finding his own inspiration
Tracy believes his purpose is to help people, something that the position he currently holds here at CITI allows him to thrive in. He values honesty, integrity, and dependability, and his strengths are adaptability and willingness to learn new things. “One of the guys at my last job used to call me the Swiss army knife of the office because I would just take on whatever work was coming in no matter what it was.”
Career Advice: The importance of self reflection
Advice he wants to share with others in their career journey is to reflect on what's important to them and really understand their strengths. “It takes a lot of self reflection and I think that's the hardest thing for a lot of people to do is to look at themselves and see what they’re really good at and what they wanna do as far as making an impact in the world.”
Lessons Learned: Embracing mistakes
When it comes to mistakes Tracy made in his journey, he didn't regret any, as they helped shape him into the role he is in today. Tracy is very happy with his current role despite the lack of defined title because of the flexibility that comes along with it, allowing him to utilize his many skills.
Joining CITI: Becoming part of the team
Tracy's reasons for joining CITI, was the strong support and understanding of the challenges faced by our members. His enjoyment of being part of the CITI community comes mostly from his love of helping its members in any way he can. “The organization that was supporting us through our software development program had a speaker come in and he mentioned Zac's name. So I looked up Zac, I reached out and connected to him and I started going to meetings and immediately the first meeting I knew this is where I needed to be.”
Future Aspirations: Continuing to give back
Tracy is unsure about his next steps but considered remote work opportunities to have multiple income streams in the future. Tracy feels there is great importance in adapting to changing employment opportunities and has a desire to continue helping people in his possible future roles.
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