My 6-year-old daughter Kaleigh and I have daddy daughter dates every Saturday where we go to karate together. It’s kind of a long drive, 1.5 hours each way, but we enjoy the time together. During a recent drive, my daughter was quietly looking out the window and said, “Daddy, I want to be an engineer and work at Cisco like you do!”
Cue the teary eyes!
I, of course, told her, “Kaleigh, you can do anything you set your mind to!”
For the last few years, I have been doing tons of STEM projects with Kaleigh. These range from monthly science projects that come in the mail, building projects out of wood and growing crystals. The moment I realized that she had a passion for science and learning, I made it a point to encourage her to try new things and make messes! (Making slime is one of her favorite things to do.)
Kaleigh’s eyes light up every time a new science project box shows up in the mailbox, as she runs up and asks, “Daddy, do you want to do science stuff with me?” That look in her eye, the ear-to-ear grin and of course the adorable doctor coat that she wears during her “research” is a fire in her that I was to fuel.
Working from home as a Technical Evangelist for Cisco’s Worldwide IBN Sales Team comes with a variety of benefits – one of the most beneficial though is Kaleigh’s development. She will come into my office and draw diagrams on my Webex board and say, “Look Daddy! It’s a network like you draw!” Of course, you can’t beat all the hearts and I Love You’s that make their way into her drawings as well.
No activities are off-limits. We go camping, wrestle and play outside all the time. We play golf, catch, basketball and climb trees. I do my best to teach her that anything is possible and that if you want something bad enough, you will find a way to achieve it. That’s what really got me thinking. It really does start at home. The more we can remove any barriers for our children, the more confidence they will have and the likelihood that they will be able to achieve their goals and be successful increases.
This ‘revelation’ was perfect timing, as a video I was working on with my team focused on a story that could be told to young women and girls to spark their interest in becoming an engineer. Too often, it seems unattainable for them. These types of job roles aren’t encouraged enough for young women and girls. Within the video we busted myths about becoming an engineer like, “You have to be good at math” or “Specialize in a specific kind of engineering”.
Why not do multiple things? Why not follow your passion? Why let someone define your interests in such a way?
Our goal with the video was to inspire young women to pursue an engineering career without all the typical naysaying nonsense. The option to become an engineer should be presented early on when dreaming about ‘what you want to be when you grow up’ and when researching careers, graduating high school, and applying to colleges. I believe, this kind of reinforcement must start at home and as early as possible. Especially if we want to break the stereotype of what an engineer looks like or sounds like.
To make this video more appealing to a younger audience, we brought in an amazing graphic artist to sketch out the storyline with ghosts, dragons, and unicorns. We also wanted to showcase the many different exciting hobbies that engineers have, from playing the guitar to surfing to mountain bike racing. Passion and creativity are two characteristics of remarkable engineers along with an inquisitive nature and clever problem-solving skills.
This is something you find all across Cisco – passionate, talented, creative, brilliant minds that come together to build some of the world’s best technology.
I do my best to teach our children that they can do anything they set their mind to. Especially science and engineering. Kaleigh is crushing it in math and science and has such a passion for learning, building, and troubleshooting! In large part, perhaps, because she has never been told that these interests ‘weren’t for her’
Kaleigh wants to be an engineer and work at Cisco when she grows up. What will you be when you grow up?
Ready to join our amazing teams? Apply now!
Subscribe to the We Are Cisco Blog
Hi Jason
Your daughter Kaleigh is so adorable and u r an amazing dad…All the best wishes for all her dreams to come true.
Thank you Karishma!!! I truly love watching her grow and learn!
It’s like you’re speaking from my own heart. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you Sam!!! Hope all is well my friend!!!
Jason! A lovely read, thank you for sharing
Thanks Varun!!!
WOW thanks for sharing your beautiful relationship with your daughter, she is luck to have such a great Dad that allows her to dream big. Kaleigh, you rock !!!! you will make a wonderful Cisco engineer some day…..
Love the #LifeShare
???
Hi Jason, it was wonderful that you are able to inspire your daughter and removing barriers in her mind. I am sure your passion for your work at cisco in itself is part of the fuel that fires her passion. I am inspired to inspire my kids after reading this!
Jason, What an inspiring story! Hope Kaleigh’s dreams come true!
We do have several parent-child families at Cisco, which is so cool!
Do you have a link to the video you mentioned in the article?
Thank you!!! Yes! Here is the video!
https://youtu.be/fvwawVAjVN8
Jason this is absolutely wonderful! What an awesome example you are for your daughter and dads everywhere! Keep up the great work!
Thank you Pam!!!
I LOVE this!!!! awesome!
???❤️❤️❤️
Great, inspiring story!
What a great, feel good story.
Wonderful, such a dynamic duo! Having a strong support system while exploring passions means everything!
Thank you Uljana!!!
So adorable What an amazing and inspiring story. “Cue the teary eyes!”… Love proud Dad stories. Many blessing and can not wait for Kaleigh to join our amazing family @ cisco. #WomenInTech
Thank you Carol!!!
Jason- you actually brought tears to my eyes. My father passed away earlier this year. When I was a girl, he did the same type of things with me. He would always challenge me to think outside of gender stereotypes. When my 5th grade math teacher told me girls aren’t good at math, he marched me down to have a discussion with the teacher. In his things, I found a piece of paper where he had taught me how to flowchart a process when I was in elementary school. I framed it. I had a few years where I got to work alongside my father in engineering. I will cherish them always. Trust me, Kaleigh will thank you for what you’re doing :).
Reading this made my heart smile!!! Thank you for sharing your story! I really appreciate it!!!
It sounds like you had an amazing father!
❤️
As a fellow girl dad, I absolutely love this and couldn’t agree more, Jason!
Thanks Michael!!!
I love this so much, as a passionate advocate and champion for women and diversity, the first in my family to go to College and work in Technology, and a mother to two little girls who are aged 7 and 5 and also love STEAM, I am so happy to see her passion for science and your mentorship, it is truly wonderful! Well done to both of you 🙂
Thank you Michelle!!! They are at the perfect age too!!!
Love this! Thanks for sharing Kaleigh’s story with us. It is inspiring and makes me want to do even more to encourage my own daughters to be anything they want to be. No limits. Good luck Kaleigh!
Kaleigh already looks like a Cisco engineer, can we get SFDC to print her badge
All the best Kaleigh, I think you gonna go to the moon and connect us
It’s a good fight that you’re fighting. The environmental factors that try to derail girls in particular from STEM careers are everywhere. Our daughter is just starting fourth grade, and I find myself constantly pushing back on the messages that she’s getting. No, you’re actually *REALLY GOOD* at math. Yes, girls can do anything they want.
In my family, we like to read books to each other, our loud. It’s very pre-20th century, but it’s fun. Recently I started in on a biography of one of my personal IT heroes, Grace Hopper. Imagine how pleased I was when she asked me when I was going to read the next chapter. You go, girl!
That’s an awesome idea Brian!!! I am going to try that with the kids!
Thanks fir the kind words, I hope it gets to the point where it’s less fighting and more welcoming!
Take care!
Thanks so much for sharing your very special relationship with your daughter, Jason. I hope that Kayleigh’s curiosity and passion for learning and trying out new things continues and I thank you so very much for nurturing this and encouraging her to be anything she wants to be. I come from a generation that was taught how to iron a man’s shirt at school (I know!!) and if we were particularly ambitious, we could learn how to type, yet it was the sciences that were full of wonderment to me. It’s such a relief that some progress has been made and loving and supportive parenting, such as Kayleigh has from you, together with positive affirmations from our industry will continue to break down any remaining barriers dictated by stereotype.
I wish Kayleigh every success and happiness in whatever path she eventually chooses – the world is her oyster. 🙂