Ten Forward co-owner shared her journey to tech at Connectaha 2021

Ten Forward co-owner Hilary Stohs-Krause was invited to "tell a story" at Connectaha 2021. She chose to share how she went from preteen coder to journalist to tech company co-owner, and the process of overcoming self-imposed stumbling blocks along the way.

We can be pretty skillful at talking ourselves out of opportunities: ‘I wouldn’t be any good at it; someone else deserves it more. It sounds too stressful; I probably wouldn’t like it.’

A decade ago, I believed I wasn’t the right kind of person to be a programmer, despite enjoying it as a pre-teen. Once I finally joined tech fourteen years later after a stint in journalism, I specifically didn’t want any extra responsibility, convinced that a management role wasn't for me.

Fast-forward to today, and I’m now almost two years into being co-owner of the tech company where I started as an intern. Sometimes the roles we think we’re least suited for turn out to be the most fulfilling.

Watch Hilary's talk below, and see all stories from the conference here!