Upper Hand

2Rainier Beach to Redmond: Internship Required

14 Going on CEO

My name was etched into a wood plaque, mounted on the door to my office. My badge, displaying a photo of my round baby face, strategically plaited box braids, and my full name, was fastened to the loop of my belt with authority. I'd inherited an 8×10 office space of beige walls and brown carpet that housed a black desktop computer, an ergonomically correct chair and keyboard, and a filing cabinet. At just 14 years old, I was receiving my first real paycheck from one of the most successful technology companies in the world.

It was the summer of 2002 and I had stepped into my very first internship on the Microsoft campus, feeling like a bigshot.

Never mind that it was a shared office with a college intern who probably handled much harder assignments and had more to prove. I felt like a grown‐up, with real responsibilities, working with real adults, and making real money. I was no longer just the resident tech support for my family or one of several students who had gone through an extensive training period at TAF. This was the real deal. I had my name on the door of an office in a company that had defined the world of technology for the everyday person and was building what would come next.

While friends had landed camp counselor jobs or part‐time retail work, I was given the privilege of learning software, marketing, and how to navigate the awkward series of conversations with adults on “what I want to be when I ...