I’m heading to FOSDEM again. Doesn’t matter I’m not a developer.

I will be on a plane in a few hours, so it’s the right time to drop some lines here. Why am I going to this developer meeting if I don’t write the code? And this year, in contrast to the previous ones, I am not even a member of any project there. Or its booth. I’d been considering, and then, my friends and former colleagues asked me if I’m going or not, and I realized I don’t want to miss it.

Well, it’s simple; I can’t wait to feel the atmosphere again. And I will have time to volunteer for the first time!

I found out FOSDEM amazing on my first visit with Turris, and I love it since then. The ultimate quality of talks, the openness of attendees, the fun, and the possibility to learn and meet awesome people. Everything. It’s incredible how delightful event can happen just because people want to do the best and don’t want money for it. I’ve attended many different conferences, fairs, and meetups, and I always assure my non-techy friends that this one’s the best. Sometimes I’m comparing FOSDEM to World Scout Jamboree. Although it’s much smaller, the spirit is quite similar.

This weekend, I will also be looking for a job.

TL;DR version: Do you want to develop something just for money? No? Me neither. :) I do communication. Community, events, marketing, sales.

The thing I like the most to do is communication. The process when you share and learn. The chance to help people and make their lives easier, more fulfilled, and happier.
Currently, too many companies do their communication heartless, digital-only, empty, and mainly one-sided. I don’t hate things like marketing automation, I use it and like it. But when I’m caring for the community of users and developers, I like to have a connection with them. In-person and through all possible channels. Doing the community work or marketing should not be led only by money (invested and wanted), and best practices learned from the handbooks or lectures. Doing any communication only from behind the desk is wrong.

It should be genuinely creative, unique, and fun. That’s how I see it, and that’s how I do it. Open source is the world where these values are more usually shared than in the proprietary world. When I add my constant desires for privacy, security and to make the world a better place, even a little, every day, I have it squared.

I like to work in a team and on a project I can live for.
Open source opens minds, and I love to connect tech stuff with laymen. I want my work to have meaning. I understand some of you can find my approach a little naive, but I am OK with it. I know that I am not the only one with this kind of setup. And yes, I work to earn money, too. :) My work delivers nice numbers to the companies, and I would feel bad if it wouldn’t. But I will never forget the real grounds. The user, the customer, the business partner, the team, the project... Most of them are human, and all of them are living things :)

How do you have it? Let’s talk about it!

Top photo is from:

Thanks!