I just passed my AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate exam. Why did I take it? My AWS Certified Developer – Associate expired last Fall. Why do I have them when my writing is generally against fancy pieces of paper? Work asked for it so I got it.

In 2023 I was just over half a decade into my career, and I had no idea what Scrum Masters actually did. So I studied for and passed scrum.org’s exam for Professional Scrum Master I and later Professional Scrum Developer I. Still not sure what they’re actually supposed to do. Did I at one point try to pivot career to learn more? Yes. Did the paper open any doors for me? Nope.

Here’s the one certification I actually have used and seen value from in my life. I received my Notary Public Commission from the State of Texas a short while after moving to East Austin. Came in handy when a neighbor needed something notarized at a random hour.