The Beginning: A Nerdy Kid in the '80s
Well, the story begins in the 1980s (yes, I’m officially old). Things weren’t so different back then. I was a very nerdy kid who enjoyed listening to Guns N' Roses, playing Dungeons & Dragons in the village hall on Thursday evenings, and proudly owning a Commodore 64—to the envy of all my friends.
At school, I struggled. I lacked confidence in English and maths and had trouble applying myself in class. When I was about 10, I was placed in a ‘special’ group for extra support with English. At the time, it felt shameful, like I wasn’t as ‘good’ as my peers. And, well, kids being kids, I got picked on for not being in the same English and maths classes as everyone else.
But there was something I didn’t realise at the time—I was a ninja at logical, procedural-based tasks. When I played Dungeons & Dragons, I was great at solving problems thrown at me and my fellow adventurers by the Dungeon Master. I could think of innovative solutions and see the big picture (okay, maybe I sacrificed a few fellow adventurers for the greater good).
These skills unknowingly transferred into what became a very successful career. It all started when I wrote my first-ever computer programme using BASIC on my pride and joy—the Commodore 64.
Pros and Cons of Dyslexia
Let’s pause for a second. Here are the key pros and cons I’ve experienced as a dyslexic:
Cons
- I couldn’t spell to save my life (still can’t, by the way—this article has been checked, not written, by ChatGPT).
- My reading speed was slow, and comprehension wasn’t great.
- My confidence was at rock bottom.
Pros
- I was a nerd ninja—great at solving problems.
- I could come up with creative and innovative ways to work around my weaknesses.
- I became incredibly resilient and determined to prove the haters wrong.
- I developed grit—which, in hindsight, might be the secret sauce.
The Turning Point: College and Grit
After school, I went to college to study a BTEC and A-Level in Computer Science, learning cutting-edge languages like COBOL, Pascal, Machine Code, Binary Arithmetic, and even Machine Learning/AI (yep, it’s been around for ages).
The BTEC focused on practical work rather than written assignments, and here, I thrived. Playing to my strengths massively helped my confidence.
After college, I landed an apprenticeship at BAE Systems in 2001. I remember the year clearly because of 9/11. Unfortunately, I failed the second maths and English exam and was out after a year. That was a massive low point. But I dusted myself off, used my secret sauce (grit), and applied for the last few spots at Bournemouth University to study Business Information Systems and Management.
That failure at BAE Systems made me think I wasn’t good at technology and coding, so I hedged my bets with a bit of management on the side.
At university, I grew in confidence—helped by an amazing group of friends and embracing uni life. The demons of dyslexia still haunted me, though. The amount of written coursework was tough, but I put my head down and worked hard. This is where I developed another skill that I attribute to dyslexia—work ethic.
When it came to the technical parts of the course—like databases and coding—I smashed it. The lifelong neurodivergent superpowers of innovation and problem-solving shone through again.
London, Stock Exchanges, and Near Disasters
After uni, it was 2006. That rebellious, rock-and-roll, nerdy programmer vibe took me to London, where my mate and I got a flat in Tufnell Park. I landed a job at Accenture, working for the London Stock Exchange.
This... didn’t go great.
On my first day, they explained how messing up the trading systems could affect the UK’s GDP. No pressure, right? A year later, luck would have it—I messed up.
I received an email from a third party asking me to run a script on a database. Did I read the script? No. Did I read the email? Yes, but I was pretty sure it wasn’t explicit about which environment to run it on.
So, I ran it. On production.
In a matter of seconds, I had changed every London Stock Exchange user’s password to ‘password’.
This was 19 years ago, and it still haunts me. But you know what? That mistake became a driving force behind my professionalism. I used it as a wake-up call. I doubled down on making myself the best possible professional. Despite being dyslexic, I read technical books, articles, and documentation. I learnt and learnt.
Finding My Place in Agency Life
In 2007, I discovered agency life, and it suited me perfectly—fast-paced learning, innovation, and applying my problem-solving skills to real-world challenges.
I worked hard and quickly rose through the ranks from junior developer to leading teams. I also discovered the Umbraco CMS and became an early adopter.
I was ambitious and always wanted to move into a technical director role. But to do that, I had to master communication—explaining complex technical subjects to non-technical audiences.
Public speaking terrified me, but I gave it a go. My first-ever talk was at an Umbraco meetup in a pub in Old Street. My demo failed, but the Umbraco community was amazing. That experience gave me the public speaking bug, and since then, I’ve spoken at conferences all over the world.
Here’s a neurodivergent speaking tip:
I memorise everything and don’t rely on reading slides. I prepare my presentation well in advance, then practise while walking my dog, Merlin. I repeat this until I can do it in my sleep. It’s a lot of work, but it’s made public speaking possible for me.
Where I Am Today
By 2016, I had left the tight jeans and rock-and-roll lifestyle behind. I was married and (though I didn’t know it yet) on the path to becoming a dad.
Fast forward to 2018, and I achieved my goal of becoming a Technical Director and now CTO at Tangent. Since then, my career has been incredible. I’ve used my problem-solving, innovation, and communication skills to help grow the agency into a global business.
I now speak at conferences worldwide, manage an amazing team (love you all!), and was even crowned Umbraco MVP and Prolific North’s Tech Leader of the Year 2024.
If I could give my 10-year-old self, or any neurodivergent person, advice: Learn from your mistakes, brush yourself off, and use them as an opportunity to become a better version of yourself.
Peace,
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