About Me
Hi, I’m Jon Cline. I’m a Salesforce trail guide for your next ascent. How can I help?
- I love people and improving their digital quality of life.
- I love learning as it enables new ways and opportunities to help people.
- I love solving challenging puzzles, whether it’s technical, relational, or something new.
Big Picture
I’ve started my own companies and contributed to hundreds of successful Salesforce projects. I have technical and executive expertise going back to 1998.
But more than my own success, I’ve helped lots of people achieve their goals. I’m not talking about just learning a tech skill or growing a business. It’s about finding a meaningful purpose. It could be:
- Helping a hard working office manager have more time with their family.
- Helping an exhausted executive be able to take a vacation.
- Helping an engineer who wants to learn less common but life-changing skills.
It’s taking that next step in your career. Whether it’s a Salesforce developer ready to do more than code, a Salesforce partner who needs a better culture, or a Taskrabbit looking for a new career.
It’s not always about smart tech solutions. Those are important, but most projects fail for non-technical reasons. It could be bad planning (oops), an unhelpful contract (legalese matters), or a lack of professional skills (the IT nerd stereotype is no excuse).
I know tech, I know business, and I know people. I’ve been in your shoes—I started out in tech working the night shift and learned the hard way that I needed more than technical skills.
My Story
I went into foster care as a baby and spent the first eight or nine years of my life not knowing my biological mother. Thankfully, I had an incredible foster family and experienced an idyllic, rural childhood.
But that all changed around the age of nine when my biological mother reappeared and regained custody. My life turned upside down.
It’s a long story, but the short version is I had to look out for myself.
I didn’t have the kind of role models I needed, so I sought out mentors. They changed my life. I learned basic skills, values, and the simple facts of life (like deodorant).
I discovered computers in college (386/25, baby!), and my consulting career started when I answered a classified ad. Everything changed when I compared my $4.75/hour job at a bookstore to the $40/hour I earned showing someone how to use Netscape and Quickbooks.
Along the way I realized my brain worked differently than everyone else (yes, that’s also called “weird”). Other people might wonder why, but I had to know why. I took the time to ask difficult questions and then find the answers. I had an unquenchable appetite to be better, to always be improving in every area. That led me into executive roles and launching and running businesses. I’ve been doing that work for over 20 years.
I’ve learned a lot along the way—it wasn’t always easy. I’ve had to start over a few times, and some lessons I had to learn the hard way. How hard? Losing my house hard.
But I can share those lessons with you.
What Kind of Difference Do You Want to Make?
Some people like to wake up and work the 9 to 5. That’s a fine life, but it doesn’t give you a lot of control. I learned early on that I needed control in my life, and that meant being my own boss.
Not everyone needs to be an entrepreneur. But having that mindset about your career changes things. It’s not just your job, you’re the founder. You’d be surprised how something as simple as how you think can have a big impact on your outlook and daily happiness.
When I thought about my career in terms of accomplishing something meaningful instead of just paying bills, it changed how I approached work. It meant building bridges instead of burning them, and seeing more referrals and repeat clients. It meant I had more time to invest in the things that matter to me, whether it’s my family, my friends, or other foster kids who need the mentoring I had to search so hard to find.
Those kinds of lessons can change your life.
The Next Level
So are you ready to take your career to the next level? And I don’t mean the next step in your Salesforce certification. Anyone can teach you that knowledge. I want to impart the deeper lessons that can help you be a smarter resource, a priceless asset to your team, and a better person who makes an impact.