How Do I Find My Lane?

​I’m Curious About Tech, But I Don’t Fit the “Traditional Tech Girl” Mold. How Do I Find My Lane?

Question:
"I’m interested in technology, but I don’t see myself as a coder or someone who fits the typical image of a tech professional. I have interests in other areas too. How can I find a path that makes sense for me?"

Dr. Renée’s Response:
That is such an important question, and it gets to the heart of why I designed my dissertation study the way I did. When many people hear the phrase tech career, society often defaults to the image of a Silicon Valley coder or software engineer. But the truth is, almost every field today is a technology-saturated industry. You do not need a computer science degree to recognize that technology is all around you—or that you can lead within those spaces.

If you look at my own journey, it has been deeply interdisciplinary. I earned a bachelor’s degree in biology, worked in accounts payable and receivable, became a high school biology teacher, and later transitioned into roles as an instructional technologist, grant administrator, and associate director. I did not take a traditional tech route. What I recognized early, however, was that education itself is a technology-rich field. Because I stayed curious, learned the tools, and helped others use them, I naturally carved out my own lane.

That is the reminder I want to offer you: there is more than one pathway into tech-informed work.

1. Embrace your intersections and refuse to shrink yourself.
Many people have been taught to believe they must choose one identity, one talent, or one lane. That is simply not true.

In one of my AI literacy workshops, we explored interests in biology, technology, and art. By exploring those intersections, we uncovered possibilities such as biomedical illustration and user experience research in health and biotech spaces.

Your interests may be writing and technology.
They may be healthcare and design.
They may be organizing, education, beauty, business, or storytelling combined with digital tools.

You do not have to shrink yourself to fit one category. Your intersections may be the very source of your future opportunities.

2. Focus on the problem you want to solve, not just the title you want to hold.Technology is ultimately a tool. The deeper question is:
How do you want your work to serve people?
Do you care about educational access?
Healthcare equity?
Environmental justice?
Mental wellness?
Community storytelling?
Economic mobility?

When you stop seeing tech as only coding and start seeing it as a set of tools for solving meaningful problems, your lane becomes clearer. Titles may change over time, but purpose creates direction.

3. Use AI as a thinking partner to explore possibilities you may not yet see.
If your path still feels unclear, use generative AI tools thoughtfully as brainstorming partners. Share your interests, strengths, lived experiences, and values. Ask for career ideas that blend your passions with growing digital opportunities.
You can use AI to:

• Explore interdisciplinary careers
• Reduce cognitive load while planning next steps
• Build portfolio ideas
• Create a customized learning roadmap
• Translate your existing skills into new industries

AI should not replace your judgment—but it can help widen your imagination.

For those who have ever felt “too layered” to fit one box:
Your many interests are not confusion.
They may be evidence of range.
Your nonlinear path is not failure.
It may be preparation.
Your curiosity is not random.
It may be pointing you toward a future others have not yet named.

Liberation Lens Reminder:
You do not need permission from a traditional gatekeeper to build meaningful work in a digital world.

Reflect Mode:
​What themes keep showing up across your interests, talents, and lived experiences? That pattern may be the beginning of your lane.