Chapter 6: Laying the Network

Now and again, my boss sends me to lead large, “what’s cool about Google Cloud,” events. The audience is always excited; excited about the technology and excited to be around others in the industry doing the same thing they are. And I’m an excitable guy, and all that excitement in a big room builds energy all its own. Typically, there are too many people to allow questions during the event itself, but at the end, I like to open the floor and do a Q/A session.

I was teamed up with some people from Google one time doing a gig in Dallas, TX. We were way up high in this hotel ballroom with a spectacular view out of a floor-to-ceiling side window. When the time for Q/A arrived, a young lady stood up and said, “I’m about to graduate with a degree in computer science and my specialty is networking. After listening to your talk, I feel like I might have picked a bad specialization. Will I be able to get a job in the...