Many of you have followed along this week as some of us attended the first ever Trailblazer Day. It was a true honor to be invited to attend and I wanted to take a moment and share my thoughts and takeaways.

First off – this was an event to celebrate Salesforce signing a pledge to help skill up 1 Million people for the job market. Technology is a booming industry and Trailhead provides free training for people who are interested in gaining skills in this market. But it’s not limited to technology – there are interviewing skills, managerial skills, and a whole range of trainings that even those not in technology can take advantage of!

And I am proud to have been there to see this pledge signed and a commitment made by such an impactful company.

The event highlighted several of our community’s Trailblazers – people who have carved a way for themselves and are carving ways for others to succeed. People who I am incredibly proud to say are part of my Ohana. And THAT was certainly something to be proud of.

There was a lot of talk about why such a progressive, liberal company would stand side by side with someone from this administration to sign this pledge and I’ll be the first to say I was a bit taken aback, but it wasn’t about the person or the administration. It was about the pledge. Keep that in mind.
As I watched it all unfold, I came away with a few takeaways:

• Our Salesforce and Trailblazer Community are like no other. Anyone would benefit from being a part of it.
• While the ‘Leaders’ (both of the company and the administration) are the ones who get the press and make the papers, it is the boots on the ground that make shit happen.

I admit to being blinded sometimes by what the people in positions of power do, say and the effect they have on me, but I walked away this week with the realization that WE are the ones who can make a change. We can celebrate Trailblazer Day and this Pledge and these awesome Trailblazers and we can push for more.

We can push for more job creation and call for an end to the ban on transgender people in the military. We can push for equal wages regardless of gender or orientation or skin color for equal work. We can push for equality in ALL areas of American life. We can push for an end to how people are treated based on the amount of melanin in their skin. We can push for healthcare for all – and especially mental health care. We can push for every woman to make their own choices for their bodies and futures.

We can speak up and advocate and make a mighty noise with our boots on the ground.

There are a lot of us. If we all stomp our feet, the people in power who get the press and make the papers will be forced to listen.

So here’s to 1 Million people trained on Trailhead. And here’s to millions more raising their voices so we can all be heard. Will you raise yours with me?