Part 2 – My journey towards becoming a Scrum Master

I was broken. Yes, you heard me right. Broke. I had to pay for the CSM (Certified Scrum Master Certification). I was skeptical. I already had student loans. I was worried. I did not want to acquire more debt with no guarantees. I spent hours thinking about it. $600 was the certification fee. After much research, praying and thinking. I decided that I would do it.

I was not only going to let anything get in my way. I had faith in my abilities and I also knew that this meant that I would not give up until I get a job. I got my credit card and went to the website. I found a class for the next day. The next day was Thanksgiving Day. I already had plans with my siblings. I was eager to start this journey. It was a 2-day class. 12 hours per day. The timing was not right. I had a new baby and 12 hours with no help did not seem like something I could do. I was discouraged. And to miss thanksgiving. Maybe, this is not for me I thought. Why would I miss thanksgiving. As I put my card away, I heard a voice. What happened to you making sacrifices? This is a test to know if you are ready to embark on this life changing journey. My life flashed before my eyes, I felt like a failure and knew that I could not go back to my past roles. I got my card out and paid for the class that was starting 5am CST on Thanksgiving Day. Now, I just need to let my family know that I would not be coming to the thanksgiving dinner. OH, I was afraid. They are going to be so mad. Mad that I could not skip the class or pick another day. I was in shock. Everyone was understanding. They knew I wanted more and encouraged me. I took that as a sign that God is happy with my decision and this would be a blessing. I received an email that my payment had been received and I was good to go for the class. I did not sleep well at all. I was anxious for the class. I woke up at 4am, got my laptop, a cup of tea and some writing materials. I checked my email repeatedly to make sure that I had all the information required for the class. Ghen Ghen, at 4.57am, the online room opened and I was allowed in. There were multiple people in the class and an elderly man was welcoming students as they entered. At exactly 5.05AM CST, he started introductions. I knew I was going to go last when the first person introduced herself. She was a technical manager at her current company and spoke with so much confidence. I almost dropped off the call. Then other folks started their introductions. Some with job titles I have never heard of before and many years of experience. I could see the instructor nodding with pride as each person went. I was so nervous and embarrassed, that I muted my speakers so he could skip me. How do I say that I was a small after school coordinator that was now a stay home mum. Thankfully he did not care too much about missing my introduction due to the number of students in class.

Classes began. To say I was lost is an understatement. I had no clue what he was talking about. None, zero. I looked to the other students for someone who was just as lost as I was, but nope. Everyone seemed confident. Yepa. I will never get this. $600 down the drain. I prayed, I cried and with each passing hour, I was behind. I was too embarrassed to ask questions because I did not even know where to start from. At this point, I was ready to log off and forget this journey. But that $600 kept tugging at me. I cannot leave without no knowledge, no certificate. Nothing. I have to wait, even if it is to get the certificate.

We were split into groups and even in groups, I barely participated. It was depressing. My life again felt meaningless. I figured I just get this certificate so my family would not laugh at me. When they checked on me during the day, I laughed and said it was going so well and I was learning a lot. BIG FAT LIE. On the second day, as the instructor was rounding up the class, he encouraged everyone and said we “Put on your life coach hats on, A Scrum Master needs some life coach skills”. I paused. Life coach, Scrum Master, IT, how? That was the first time I spoke up and asked him how they were related. He said developing and building interpersonal skills to help your interaction with your team. That grabbed me by every nerve in my body. It aligns with everything I have done the past few years and what I felt I had a calling for. I decided I needed to do more digging about this Scrum Master than just what the certification class was teaching. I went on another journey. The journey to make this Scrum work for me and my ambitions.

Check out Part 3