It’s hard to believe, but seven years have already flown by. What started as a leap into the world of remote work has grown into a career filled with learning, growth, and some incredible milestones.

When I joined Automattic, I started out in customer support for WordPress.com. Over time, I’ve been fortunate to take on new challenges: moving into onboarding, stepping into an interim team lead role, and now working as a DIFM Solutions Architect. These days, I help customers bring their ideas to life through our Express Website Design service. Every role has stretched me in different ways, and together they’ve given me a unique perspective on what it means to build and support the web.

Automattic has always invested in its people, and I’ve been lucky to take advantage of some of the benefits that make this company stand out:

  • Flexible schedule and remote-first culture
  • Unlimited PTO policy
  • Monthly co-working allowance
  • Company/team meetups and travel opportunities each year
  • Six months of parental leave
  • A three-month sabbatical at the 5-year mark (and again every five years after)

Those moments of rest and connection have been just as important to my journey as the work itself.

Reaching the 7-year milestone comes with its own little perk: a pair of branded Sony headphones. Employees can choose from a range of logos (WordPress.com, Woo, Jetpack, Tumblr, VIP, and more), but I went with the Automattic logo. To me, it made sense—it’s the company I’ve been with, the community I’ve grown in, and the people I’m proud to work alongside.

There’s a saying I can’t quite quote perfectly, but it goes something like: you become the sum of the people you surround yourself with. If that’s true, then I consider myself very lucky. Every day I get to learn from talented designers, builders, marketers, engineers, and thinkers. Being in this environment inspires me to keep improving and to stretch what I thought I was capable of.

Seven years in, I’m still learning something new every single day—whether that’s about design, site building, support, AI, marketing, or business. That’s why I’m not going anywhere anytime soon.

That said, I’ve already got my eye on the next big milestone: my next sabbatical, three years down the road.

Here’s to what’s ahead.

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