Life and Organizing Meetups
Firstly, this post should have been written a long time ago.
I want to apologize to everyone who wants to attend the AWS Pretoria (and partly AWS Johannesburg) Meetups but can’t, because none are being organized.
A lot has changed since I started the meetup. A pandemic, AI, and I’m now the father of a 3 year old.
Work has also been incredibly fulfilling. I get to see all the hard work pay off while solving interesting problems. I’ve been fully in “building mode” and I’m loving it.
None of this is an excuse, but I’m not finding the time to organize meetups anymore.
By not finding, I mean not making time. We started with in person meetups just before Covid, then went fully online on YouTube and then a few hybrid and in person ones again. We never got into a good cadence.
To a degree, AI stole some of my passion for meetups. If any topic can be researched and learned within minutes, why even attend a meetup? For me the idea of what a meetup should offer shifted to sharing experience and networking.
Spending time with my family also got more important. I’m already spending time on other side projects. Being able to build something in a few weeks with AI is incredible and addictive. I found myself rather working on side projects than organizing meetups.
Over the last few months it felt more like a job than the passion project it used to be. I still find going to meetups energizing, and I love the networking.
But organizing them has become a chore. I asked the community for help multiple times and some of you stepped up, thank you. No one is to blame here. To everyone that has spoken or attended, I am forever grateful!
The fact still remains that without my involvement the meetup would not happen.
I do not want to feel guilty for not organizing meetups. There are many people who would still like to attend one, and I’ve become the roadblock.
That is unfair to a community that is hungry for these meetups.
Today I’m removing that roadblock and letting the AWS Pta meetup go. It’s open to new organizers. DM me if you are interested, I’ll help you settle in.
I’m eager to see the meetup continue and to see how the community steps up to make that happen.
I’m incredibly proud to see the AWS CPT meetup absolutely killing it. They go above and beyond what is expected. Many thanks to Hennie for driving it and even organizing an AWS Community Day in Cpt. It makes me proud and grateful to see the community flourish.
I want to see the same for the AWS PTA meetup. It’s time for the next person to step up, take it over and re-ignite the flame.
DM me if you are interested, I’ll help you settle in.