When does a group start to feel like family? This week the team got together. Not to get away from the work, but to sit a little closer to it.
We collided in Austin. For most of us, it’s home and that was exactly the point. Familiar streets and soulful rhythms, places that don’t need much explaining. There’s good energy in being somewhere you know well, especially when the work you do depends on trust and consistency.
Energy works the same way.
From the outside, it looks like infrastructure and systems. From the inside, it’s people who know their territory, understand the stakes, and show up for each other. Utilities don’t rely on flash — they rely on preparation, familiarity, and teams that know how to move together when plans shift.
That spirit showed up throughout the week. Alongside the retreat, we partnered with Austin Energy and Austin High School for the Deaf (TSD) to bring a Froliq VR experience to students. The students were super awesome — curious, sharp, and fully engaged — and they probably (definitely) taught us more than we taught them.
Workforce development doesn’t start with résumés. It starts with exposure. When students can explore energy, technology, and systems in ways that feel accessible and hands-on, it builds confidence and curiosity early. That confidence comes from being close to the work — learning together and seeing how real teams operate beyond the formal moments. That’s how future utility operators, engineers, planners, and problem-solvers begin to see themselves in the work.
Between real work, Austin filled in the gaps — wings and kimchi butter at Wow Poke, a familiar table at Sweet Chive (Barrett knows the owner), and a late stop at Green Mesquite when no one was ready to call it a night.
Somewhere in there, we ended up at C-Boy’s — good music, low lights, and everyone kind of melted into the couch for a while.
Right before coaching a middle-school girls basketball game with Zpryme team in tow, we made one last stop at Terry Black’s BBQ. Brisket, ribs, and a little too much food for anyone who was about to run up and down a court — but worth it.
Then off to the TSD gym, cheering on the girls I coach, with the Zpryme team alongside us — a reminder that support shows up in more ways than one.
Coaching the next generation is an excellent reminder of what actually matters: patience, clarity, encouragement, and showing up the same way every time. You don’t overcomplicate things. You create space to learn, make mistakes, and build confidence.
That’s the same muscle utilities use every day — in training rooms, control centers, classrooms, and communities. Strong systems are built the same way strong teams are: early investment, steady guidance, and people who care enough to teach.
And it doesn’t happen without the people who show up every day — teachers, coaches, and the folks behind the scenes who feed everyone and keep things running. They’re shaping the next generation long before anyone writes a job description
This week was a reminder that good energy doesn’t come from noise. It comes from familiarity, trust, and giving the next generation a chance to step onto the court.
Grateful for the students, educators, coaches, chefs, artists, and the utilities making it all possible.
