I Left IT, but IT Never Left Me

A few weeks ago, I found myself on a three-way call with my sister and my dad. His doctor's office had tried to reach him with test results and couldn't get through, so they called me. I didn't catch the voicemail until after 5pm, which meant my father spent part of his day quietly worrying — because when has a doctor's office ever called just to say everything's fine?

The whole situation frustrated me, and not just because of the missed message. The office was calling in the first place because they've gone paperless. No more mailed results. Everything lives in an online portal now. That's convenient if you grew up with this stuff. It's a real barrier if you didn't.

So my sister and I walked my dad through setting up his account. And here's something that even tech-savvy people might not know: on this particular portal, there was no visible option to create an account. You had to attempt a login first — fail it — and only then would the system offer you a registration link. That's genuinely bad design, and it's the kind of thing that makes older users feel like they're doing something wrong when they're not. Add in switching between apps for one-time passwords, and what should be simple becomes exhausting.

After about 15-20 minutes, we got him in.

Then my dad, unprompted, mentioned that he'd figured out how to silence unknown callers on his phone so scammers couldn't bother him. My sister's jaw dropped: "You can do that?!" I spent the next few minutes walking her through how to do it on her phone too.

That moment felt familiar. I spent over 20 years in information technology, starting in tech support, and even as my career evolved, I never stopped being the person who helped colleagues spot scams, troubleshoot problems, and feel more confident with technology. My goal was always the same: give people the knowledge to help themselves.

That's the spirit behind what I'm launching today. Tech Support with Tammi — 30-minute sessions for anyone who's stuck, confused, or just wants to feel less frustrated with their devices. Sessions are $50 and you can book directly through my Calendly link. If you have a parent, neighbor, or friend who could use some patient, knowledgeable help — please pass this along.

I don’t think I've blogged about this — I know I posted about it on Instagram — but remember the beautiful kaftans, Work & Play Shirts, and long cotton scarves I was producing with the manufacturer with no minimums? It was all going well — I’d even had a chore coat planned to launch — until the manufacturer closed. Revenue from the sales of those apparel items were really helpful in keeping the lights on during the slow winter and summer months in this business. Losing that revenue has caused me to pivot back to my roots in IT. After helping my Dad with his tech issue, it became clear that I could be helping more people. I appreciate any and all referrals.