When Success Becomes Purpose with George Finney

Success starts as one thing - a number, a milestone, maybe even the ability to afford a massage every month and somewhere along the way, it becomes something deeper.

In this episode, we sit down with George Finney, CISO at the University of Texas System, bestselling author, and Co-Chair of the Cloud Security Alliance, to talk about purpose, leadership, and how our definition of success changes over time.

George shares how success evolved from financial stability to making a difference in a way only he could. From lessons inspired by Man’s Search for Meaning to a former student who chose IT because of his cybersecurity course, this conversation is a reminder that impact doesn’t always have to be massive to be meaningful.

Sometimes purpose is one person. One conversation. One moment that changes a path.

Ready for more human-centered stories from the leaders shaping our digital world? Subscribe to Humans of Tech on your favorite platform and check out our merch store here: https://humansoftech.axomo.com

Transcript

No Prep Tech Conversations

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Ever wonder what tech leaders would say if they had no prep and no reviews? Welcome to Humans of Tech. I'm Caroline. And I'm Kelly. We're keeping humans at the center of technology through quick, authentic conversations with people shaping the industry.

SPEAKER_01 0:16

No prep, no editing, and one live random question. Our guest never sees coming.

SPEAKER_00 0:21

All

Meet George Finney

SPEAKER_00 0:22

right. So today's guest uh for Humans of Tech is George Finney. Um, he is co-chair of CSO. He is the CISO of University of Texas um school systems, and he is the um CEO of Well Aware Society and best-selling author. So um a man with many, many trades and many passions. We are so excited to have George on today.

SPEAKER_02 0:47

Thank you so much for having me. It's great to

Why He Shows Up To Teach

SPEAKER_02 0:49

be here.

SPEAKER_00 0:49

Why did you say yes to coming on to Humans of Tech?

SPEAKER_02 0:53

Well, you know, I'm I'm a professional author in addition to my my day job. So uh, you know, a lot of the podcasts that I go on uh is is really to to to help you know kind of educate the community. Um that's that's why I write books, is is is really to to to bring my passion for writing to uh to cyber and to be able to give back to the community. And you know, I always love talking to folks to to help get the word out about uh so many of the important you know things that we're doing in cyber. Um I just I you know again, I think it's it's it's my way of giving back.

SPEAKER_00 1:26

I love it. Awesome. All right, well, we have a random a bowl of random questions.

SPEAKER_02 1:31

Um actually have a random bowl of questions. That's another one.

SPEAKER_01 1:33

Oh yeah, yeah, a real random bowl. And I don't know how much you're gonna teach us about cyber today, though. We're gonna learn from your experiences, I think.

SPEAKER_02 1:41

Okay, okay, here we go.

How Success Shifts Over Time

SPEAKER_00 1:45

How has your definition of success changed over time?

SPEAKER_02 1:50

That is a really interesting question. Um you know, I I I would say when I started out my career, uh, you know, I I've been working uh for for about 30 years, uh actually over since I uh you know got my first job as a kid, uh, you know, working at uh uh Six Flags here in Texas. Um gosh, uh, you know, I I I think there there's always been you know the the the financial component to to to having a job, right? You need to pay the bills, you need to move out of your parents' house, you want to be uh, you know, well well enough off to retire. Um and you know, I I I remember having a conversation with one of my employees, like, how do you know uh when when you have made it in life? Um his response was like, I I I'll know that when I've made it, uh, when I can afford to get a massage, like once a month or something. Um that's not a that's not a stretch, right? Um so financially, like that's always been you know the motivation, but I would say it did change uh to your point. Um and I I I don't know exactly at the point that it changed. Um, but really I I think later on in my career as I became a leader, um, honestly, the the goal for success for me now is um, I mean, it's a little more elusive. Uh there's not a number associated with it, but um I I I want to make a difference. Um, I I think there are things that I can do as a human being, um, because of my background, because of all of my life experiences, uh, where I can make a difference in that unique, like George way that only George can do. Um and, you know, I I think that's that that's now uh what what drives me is to uh you know, now that I've found, I guess, a purpose, um, I, you know, it's it's it's really you know living that out and making a difference.

SPEAKER_01 3:41

And you kind of alluded to that right before we clicked the record button on coming onto podcasts like this, being able to share your experiences. I this really resonates because I feel as of when I was early in my career, I didn't care about for me, it wasn't money early on, it was about experience. So I would work for free just to get experience so I can get the next job. And then it was about the money. Can't lie about that. It was strictly about the money. And now it's come to another point where it's not about the money anymore, it's about being able to make a difference because that's what like when you go to sleep at night and you feel like you're actually making impact to the world. It's like, whoo, that pay that there's no dollar amount that you could put to that.

Purpose As The Real Driver

SPEAKER_02 4:20

You know, I I I I think one of my favorite books, right? I I do a lot of writing and you know, I but I I also read uh quite a bit. Um my favorite book in the entire universe um is Victor Frankel's book, uh, Man's Search for Meaning. Um if if you haven't heard of it before, um, he was a psychologist. He he was Jewish. He he was was put in the concentration camps during World War II. Um and of course they burned all of his notes for the book that he was going to write. Um so he wrote this book, like kind of fragmented from the notes he had taken, but he started from scratch uh and and thought about how uh the difference between people who who who died uh who gave up because of hopelessness, what kept him going was he he needed to write that book. Um he needed that and I mean I get chills still thinking about it because purpose drives so much of what we do uh in our lives, and finding that is is is a huge challenge, just just to begin with. Uh, but then living that out, I I think you know it it it it really does you know make all the difference in the world.

SPEAKER_00 5:26

Yeah, I know, I love that. So what I'm hearing is like success is may not be, you know, for some people it's a massage, for others it could be money. And then for you, it's just success is finding your purpose and your and your each one of your roles that you're living in and day in and day

Making A Difference Through Teaching

SPEAKER_00 5:42

out.

SPEAKER_02 5:42

I I I so one of the amazing things that I got to do uh since I work in higher education, um, I you know, I do cyber by day, but I I I I got to teach uh our uh intro to cyber course at SMU in Dallas. Um and you know, I I thought it was just gonna I I I like teaching. I have always liked that in theory. Uh, but honestly, the the best day of my career uh was 2015, uh, when one of my kids came into my office for office hours and they they didn't really even have any questions. They they just said they came in and they said, you know what, uh Professor Finney, um, I'm gonna go into a career in cybersecurity because of your course. That that was that was it for me. Like nothing. I mean, you know, IT and a lot of jobs are kind of thankless, you know, uh uh for whatever reason. But that I I mean, I felt like I'd made a difference in that moment more so than anything that I've ever done.

Small Impact Still Counts

SPEAKER_01 6:40

And you bring up a big point because when I talk to people about purpose, it seems like such a big, arduous thing. And how do I make impact on something that's so big? But what you're saying is it's not about it's it's one person, it's one life, right? And that that alone is meaningful. And I think that we forget that you can actually drive purpose every single day uh and make impact every single day in the small things that we do.

SPEAKER_02 7:08

100%.

unknown 7:10

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 7:11

I needed this conversation more than you know right now, George. No idea. This is like I'm holding back very now. Um, like that I needed this conversation more than you know. So you made impact today.

SPEAKER_02 7:24

Yes, you did. Oh my gosh. Well, thank you for that. I that that that is amazing. And you know, again, I I I I I that that helps me get through my day. So I appreciate that.

SPEAKER_01 7:35

Yeah, I love it. Well, I think we're gonna stop this recording. This was a perfect nugget of a conversation. And hopefully when we post this on LinkedIn, we'll make impact on a few more lives. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 7:46

Awesome. Well, thank you all so much for having me.

SPEAKER_01 7:48

Thanks, Stuart.

Closing And How To Follow

SPEAKER_00 7:50

Thanks for hanging out with us on Humans of Tech. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube, or LinkedIn and join the conversation.

SPEAKER_01 7:57

Oh, and don't forget, you can now shop our store. Check the link on the show notes.