this week has been an emotional one for me. it’s the Microsoft MVP summit in redmond — the event that shaped so much of my career and so many of my closest friendships. for more than a decade, that week was my world. I poured everything into building that community, and it gave so much back to me.
it’s strange to watch it all happen from the outside this year. there’s a little ache in not being part of something I helped build from scratch. and at the same time, there’s a lot of gratitude for the people who still reach out, who still feel like home.
what most people don’t know is what I’ve been up to since leaving microsoft. the short version: I’ve been building something new, something rooted right here in my own community.
in february, I opened māk, a creative studio in oregon city where people come to slow down, use their hands, and reconnect with themselves. it’s analog, it’s local, and it’s been one of the biggest growth moments of my life. running a brick‑and‑mortar means I’m responsible for everything — the operations, the finances, the programming, the marketing, all the tiny details no one ever sees. it’s humbling, exhausting, and incredibly empowering.
alongside all of that, I’ve been spending more time with my family and helping care for my dad. it’s another reason this chapter feels so meaningful. I’m building a life that lets me show up where I’m needed, and that matters to me.
what’s been hardest – and what I haven’t really said out loud – is how much of my identity was tied to my role at Microsoft. for years, I was “the community person” inside a huge engineering organization. people knew me. they trusted me. they counted on me. and somewhere along the way, when the joy started to fade, I lost a little bit of myself. not in a dramatic way, more in that quiet, cumulative way that happens when you stay committed to something long after it stops feeling like the place where you shine.
after a few months away, i can see that and now I’m a small business owner in a town where no one knows who I was or what I built. customers walking in the door have no idea what I accomplished over the last 20 years – all the places I traveled, all the young women in tech I mentored in far away places. it feels a little like starting over at microsoft all those years ago when people weren’t sure if I’d be able to do the job, or stay long enough to make an impact. here I am again, building from the ground up. proving myself in a completely different way. it’s exciting and it’s hard and it stretches me every single day.
even though my day‑to‑day looks very different now, I haven’t “left tech.” I’m just engaging with it differently. i’m using it intentionally, and to support the business. from time to time, I feel the pain of my previous customers (to my friends in the microsoft 365 SMB org, hit me up. I’ve got a few things to share:)). I still follow the industry. I still care deeply about the community. and someday, I might find my way back. I’m not closing any doors.
for now, I’m here – covered in paint, surrounded by people making things with their hands, and learning more about myself than I ever expected. it’s messy and beautiful and stretching me in all the right ways.
and I’m okay.
really okay.
if you’re in the portland area, I’d love for you to stop by the studio, attend a workshop, or share māk with someone who needs a creative reset. and to my friends still in the technical community: keep doing what you do. I’m cheering you on from a different vantage point, and I’m grateful for every connection that still threads us together. you can follow me on instagram (mak-makery) or facebook (māk).
— laurie
https://www.mak-space.com
