Owning Your Career and Your Time with Don Jones

Recently retired PowerShell icon Don Jones joins The PowerShell Podcast for a wide-ranging conversation on career ownership, community leadership, and building a life that aligns with what you actually value. Don reflects on the difference between your job and your career, why investing in yourself pays off, and how asking better questions can change the way you influence decisions at work. The episode also dives into Don’s journey as a fiction author, his role in shaping the PowerShell community and Summit culture, and why real success comes from clarity, kindness, and helping others win.

 

Key Takeaways:
• Your employer owns your job, but you own your career—define your destination and build the skills to get there.
• Strong careers are built on outcomes, not tools—focus on saving time, reducing errors, and delivering measurable business value.
• Community scales when you empower others—create space for people to contribute, own wins, and multiply the impact beyond yourself.

 

Guest Bio:
Don Jones is a foundational figure in the PowerShell community, known for his decades of teaching, writing, and advocacy for automation and professional growth. A former Microsoft MVP, Don co-authored the widely influential Learn PowerShell in a Month of Lunches series and helped shape community culture through conferences, mentorship, and leadership. Now retired from full-time work, Don continues writing and publishing fiction, bringing the same clarity and craft to storytelling that made his technical teaching so impactful.

 

Resource Links:
• Don Jones Website and Books – https://donjones.com

Andrew's links: https://andrewpla.tech/links

• PowerShell + DevOps Global Summit – https://powershellsummit.org
• Tech Impact (nonprofit mentioned) – https://techimpact.org
• PowerShell.org – https://powershell.org
• PDQ Discord – https://discord.gg/PDQ
• PowerShell Wednesdays – https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=PowerShell+Wednesdays

The PowerShell Podcast on YouTube: https://youtu.be/xKh8rqCqMQg