We had a blast with Cali Lewis during our #womenwhotech Google+ Hangout on Air series yesterday. Couldn’t make it? Here are five not-to-be-missed highlights from the conversation, and the link to watch the hangout.
1. Fear not if you are self-taught: Cali is a self-learner! She taught herself how to code by joining chat rooms, picking up books, and referring to htmlhelp.com. When she was 14 she built her first about-me website in HTML.
2. Want to get your product in front of GeekBeat? Ship it! : “We get so many products every day, the UPS guys hate us” said Lewis. At the end of the show on Fridays, GeekBeat does an unboxing segment, where they open all products that came in that week. “Either John, myself, or one of our team members will review a product, and if it doesn’t meet our standards, you’ll never hear us talk about it again.”
3. Get comfortable with evolution and letting go: When you build a business you have to offload some tasks. “Coding is an important thing for people to be doing, but it’s just not where my time is needed. As your time is more demanded you have to let some things go.”
4. On finding the latest tech: Relationships are really important, noted Lewis. “Our viewers send in tips and links to us all day, which we adore, because they are often finding stuff that is useful to them and telling us about it. Then we get to tell them about something we love—it’s one big happy family.”
5. Cali’s advice to young women who are interested in learning how to code: “Just do it. Nike has a great motto that applies to everything in life. If you’re interested or thinking about it—just try it. You have to be willing to fail. I think specifically in terms of coding for girls, there’s a block that happens in school where it seems like a boys world but girls have a lot of ability in this area. Ignore the fact that it may seem like a man’s job, because it’s not and we’re seeing those changes dramatically these days. You never know what you’re going to be good at it until you try it.”
Cali Lewis is the Host of GeekBeat.TV. Follow her on Twitter @CaliLewis. ______________________________________________________ This post was created by Raine Dalton, WIM’s editorial and community innovation intern. Raine is passionate about finding creative ways to empower women globally through tech. In addition to WIM, Raine has written, tweeted, and posted for the Global Banking Alliance for Women, WITNESS, and 90.7 WFUV News. You can find her work at www.rainedalton.com or get in touch with her through Twitter @rainedalton, or by emailing raine@wim.co.