Belinda De La Libertad
A-Z Techs
Costa Mesa, CA USA
"It’s ok to ask for help. Once I was comfortable asking for help, it became my superpower."
Career Roadmap
Belinda's work combines: Technology, Business, and Problem Solving
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Here's the path I took:
High School
Bachelor's Degree
Mathematics, General
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Graduate Degree
Organizational Communication, General
The University of Texas at Austin
Here's the path I recommend for someone who wants to be a CEO:
Bachelor's Degree: Computer Science
Bachelor's Degree: Business/Commerce, General
Learn more about different paths to this career
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life has been direct
1.
I took all four years of math and science in high school which prepared me for the rigor of college.
2.
In college, I learned the value of group work since I couldn't fly solo like I did in high school.
3.
I actively sought out paid internships that were connected to my studies. That’s how I learned the value of my work.
4.
Began working as a computer programmer for a global computer manufacturer and got exposure to the corporate experience.
5.
I was told that my coding was good, but my communication skills needed improvement, so I went back to school to get my master’s degree in communication.
6.
People in my community would ask me for tech help, which slowly became a business.
7.
I've been growing my company, A-Z Techs, for the past 12 years.
8.
Today, my business has about 300-400 clients, most of which are small, female-led organizations.
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Society in general:
Women don't belong in tech.
How I responded:
There was a time when women were not encouraged to enter this field because people thought they were not equipped to succeed like men were, but I never believed that. I was often the only woman my class. I was the only woman in the department when I started my first job. My peer group was all male. Today, that barrier has been cracked and it’s a very welcome change. I’m looking forward to the day when there’s parity and I think women becoming more involved is changing the way people research.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
I had a lot of creative ideas when I was young, but I cared too much about what other people thought. Programmers often think they should figure everything out by themselves, but things only got easier for me when I learned to ask for help.