I started my career as an engineer in the IT industry in 1998 with a specialty in networking technologies including dial-up services, DSL, broadband, and fiber optics. In 2002, I moved to Japan to study Japanese full-time at Yamasa Institute where I passed level 2 of the JLPT after only 6 months of study. From there, I continued to study Japanese independently and passed level 1 of the JLPT the next year. During this study, I developed a strong interest in translation and more advanced study of Japanese. After passing level 1 of the JLPT, I took a position as an in-house translator for a publishing company. I then returned to my role as an IT engineer at the newly opened Centrair international airport in Aichi, Japan with the ambition of pursuing both passions simultaneously. I continued to live in Japan performing his role as an IT engineer while developing my translation skill until returning to the US in 2010. After performing at American Airlines as the IT program manager of the joint business effort between American Airlines and Japan Airlines, I decided to transition to translations full-time, specializing in IT, technical content, and technical marketing material.