Switching careers is a scary thing. To admit (out loud) “I don’t know the answer” or “I don’t know how to do that.” To look sub-par or try something new. To question the four walls around us that keep us comfortable and safe and protect us from the unknown. Yeah, it’s all scary. But if you accept that it’s just too hard and do nothing, then it’s not only scary, it’s paralyzing. You will always be stuck, right where you are, wondering what’s on the other side.

Here at Kolbeco, we value exploration. We are all explorers. We recognize that it is difficult to question our comfort level, but we encourage each other to do just that; to admit that we may not have all of the answers, but we’re sure as hell going to find them. We are willing to push ourselves outside of our comfort zones in order to better ourselves and further our careers. If we don’t push ourselves, we will forever be trapped where we are, and never grow.

When I was hired here at Kolbeco, I was hired for accounting and web work. With a business degree and office experience, it was a great fit. But I quickly realized that I enjoyed web development and all of the details that go into building a new website. I had previously built websites, but never had the opportunity to learn and develop sites to the extent that I desired. At a lot of companies, you do the job you were hired for. There’s no reason to stir the pot. We are not like a lot of other companies. Instead, I found encouragement and support in my quest to try something new and explore the technical side of the company. I had a great mentor in Danieal to turn to with questions as I dove deeper into the world of web development.

It still wasn’t easy to do, to start from scratch. I knew that there would be trial and error, and I knew that I would need help. But here we are, two years and dozens of websites later, I can say that the ability to explore and grow into a new role has been a welcome challenge and something that would not have been possible without our commitment to being explorers. I am now working solely as a web developer at Kolbeco and we have hired someone to take over the accounting aspect. I love having a supportive team who stood by me as I tackled this quest and pushed myself.

So I leave you with this message: today, be an explorer. Try something new. Replace “I can’t do it” with “I’ll figure it out.” It’s a scary thing to know that you may fail (more than once). But it’s even scarier to realize that if you don’t try, you will always be stuck in your comfort zone, within those 4 confining and unforgiving walls trying to peek through the cracks at what could have been.