Prepping for My Azure & DevOps Podcast Debut

Prepping for My First Podcast Appearance

On June 11, I got an email from Jeffrey Palermo’s executive assistant, Miranda. The invite was simple: be a guest on the Azure & DevOps Podcast.

I have been active in the Clear Measure Architect Forums for about a year now. These monthly meetings are small, packed with top-level experts, and always full of relevant industry discussion. Large language models have been a hot topic almost every time, but the real value for me has been hearing what others are experiencing in their companies and getting practical guidance from brilliant guests. I have attended regularly, and I think my presence there may have put me on Jeffrey’s radar.

When Miranda reached out, I did not even think twice. There was no way I could say no to this.

Getting Ready

I had never been on a podcast before, so I wanted to prepare properly. As a regular listener of the Azure & DevOps Podcast, I already knew Jeffrey’s style. It is ad-hoc, conversational, and guided by curiosity.

I also knew what Jeffrey could gather from our forum interactions and my LinkedIn profile. He could tell I’ve been a professional software developer for over nine and a half years, that I work at Southwest Research Institute, and that I’ve served as a manuscript reviewer for Manning Publications as well as for Jeffrey’s own The Five Pillars: Leadership for Effective Custom Software (Jeffrey Palermo’s book page).

I have spent years reading and learning, and in the last 2.5 years, I have been using ChatGPT Plus as a kind of personal mentor. For this prep, I went a step further. I used Advanced Voice Mode to have it simulate Jeffrey’s interview style, and I practiced my responses to different topics. I hit the one-hour daily limit more than once.

I also bought a Samson Q2U microphone. I did not want audio quality to distract from the conversation.

The “What If” Stage

In the weeks before recording, I had plenty of thoughts running through my head:

What if I choke
What if my thoughts race ahead and I lose my point
What if I just sound robotic

And then there was the big one: Why me

Jeffrey has hosted VPs, CTOs, distinguished engineers, and pioneers in the industry. The only answer I had was to show up prepared and give my best.

Recording Day

July 7 arrived. We had an hour booked. Ten minutes to talk before recording, the recording itself, then a quick wrap-up.

Audio checks done, Jeffrey gave me a great introduction, and we were rolling. At first, I was stiff. My answers felt robotic. As we got going, I loosened up and the conversation started to feel natural.

When we wrapped, I felt both relieved and tired.

The Episode

🎙 Joe Cuevas: Your First Decade as a Software Engineer — Episode 360 📅 Released: July 28, 2025 🔗 Listen here

We covered:

How I fell in love with programming after a single VB.NET class
What led me to the enterprise side of .NET
My favorite foundational .NET and ASP.NET Core books
Learning algorithms, concurrency, and testing without a CS degree
Why persistence matters more than perfection for junior developers
And a lot more

Looking Back

Before recording, I made sure I was in the clear to speak on my own experiences and career journey. Thankfully, Jeffrey kept the conversation high level, and we focused entirely on my path in tech.

When it was over, I felt proud. It reminded me that I could hold my own in a conversation with an industry veteran whose work I respect. That experience gave me a real confidence boost and reinforced why I’m committed to continuing my growth as a software engineer and contributing to the .NET community.

This blog is part of that. I have been promoting it more, networking more, and pushing myself to grow both at work and beyond. I do not know exactly where this will lead, but I know I am having fun and I am not slowing down.

Stay tuned.