WCKTM 2017 Stars: An Interview with Kat Christofer

Kat Christofer is a Californian WordPress lover, currently working for Automattic. She writes and edits documentation for WooCommerce products. She first started her career as a journalist. Her WordPress journey began 10 years ago at dot.com, then she moved to self-hosted and started building e-commerce stores for private clients. At WordCamp Kathmandu 2017, she talked about how WordPress made her dreams come true focusing on current and future WordPress/WooCommerce users, entrepreneurs, and developers. We got to talk with her right the same day.

What inspired you to make the switch from journalism to WordPress?

I think journalism has been changing a lot. When I switched to WordPress from journalism, 10 years ago, it was changing from mostly prints to digital. Digital is something I’ve always believed in, even in university, more than 15 years ago. And it was really easy to race in WordPress because it was really easy to get online and help people. WordPress is so flexible and not to forget it’s completely free. This really inspired me to switch from journalism to WordPress.

What do you like most about WordCamps?

I love to meet people who use our products and talk to them. I like to see what they like and what they don’t like. It’s fun for me to meet people in person and learn their stories. And WordCamps are the perfect place to connect with different people.

What do you hope attendees will take away from your talk?

I came here to encourage women. I don’t think you have a lot of women in the WordPress community. And I would like to see more people join in. Actually, this is one of the reasons why I do public speaking even though I am really scared to speak in public. I hope that when other women see me on stage, they will want to come and speak too. Because I believe many women have their own stories to share as well.

Why do you think it is important to give back to the community?

Because WordPress has given me so much. When I started out, I didn’t have a lot of money and WordPress was something that I could use for free and I could learn for free. WordPress changed my life and this is the reason why I am here to talk about how WordPress made my dreams come true today. So, if I can to do something to share knowledge or to change someone else’s life for the better, I want to do that.

What do you like the most about being a writer in WordPress?

I think writing is a way to reach a lot of people. I mean not just in English, but if translated correctly, it’s a way to reach billions of other people with different languages. Sometimes, when you speak, people can’t follow it but I believe everybody learns differently and I am very happy to be a writer and help everyone learn about certain things.

What’s your go-to source for anything WordPress?

It’s my company. It has been there for me since the very beginning and everything I’ve learned today about WordPress is because of my company—Automattic.

What advice would you give to a new WordPress user?

I would say just sign up for an account on WordPress.com and just start experimenting. You can watch some WordPress tutorials and also learn from other people. But, I think it’s really valuable to go on to the website and start exploring new things. It’s all very easy to learn and the WordPress community is very friendly and very eager to embrace new users.

What are your thoughts on the WordPress community of Nepal?

I came to know about the WordPress community of Nepal through my colleague, Mahangu. He introduced me to Utsav, Biplab, and Sakin. I heard this community was very welcoming and very passionate about WordPress. That’s why I really wanted to come here and see that passion come alive. And I think it’s incredible how people here are so humble and passionate about WordPress.

What can we find you doing when you’re not WordPressing?

I’d probably be traveling. I am a nomad. It means I don’t have any home. I travel out of one suitcase and I change countries every month. So, you’d find me in a new country, learning new things and hanging out with my friends.

You can get in touch with Kat Christofer and learn new things through her Twitter or Facebook.

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