Life In Uptime
Hosted by content creators Alexis Bertholf and Kevin Nanns, Life In Uptime is a podcast that explores the real journeys of the people who build and run the backbone of the internet.
Packet Pushers
Show overview
Life In Uptime launched in 2025 and has put out 17 episodes in the time since. That works out to roughly 15 hours of audio in total. Releases follow a fortnightly cadence.
Episodes typically run thirty-five to sixty minutes — most land between 49 min and 1h 2m — and the run-time is fairly consistent across the catalogue. None of the episodes are flagged explicit by the publisher. It is catalogued as a EN-language Technology show.
The show is actively publishing — the most recent episode landed 2 weeks ago, with 11 episodes already out so far this year. Published by Packet Pushers.
From the publisher
Hosted by content creators Alexis Bertholf and Kevin Nanns, Life In Uptime is a podcast that explores the real journeys of the people who build and run the backbone of the internet—network engineers, IT leaders, and technologists across the industry. But this isn't just another technology podcast. It’s about the people behind it. Each episode dives into the personal and professional paths that got them where they are today—because the road to a career in technology isn’t one-size-fits-all. Whether someone started in retail, dropped out of college, or studied computer science, every journey has value. And understanding that journey is just as important as understanding the tech they work on. This show is for anyone wondering how to break into tech, where it can take you, and what’s possible when you expand your mindset. Because no matter where you're starting from, there’s a way in—and we’re here to show you how.
Latest Episodes
LIU016: Michael Keith Lewis: The Network Behind the Show
LIU015: Eyvonne Sharp: From Farm Roots to the Cloud
LIU014: Linda Haviv: From Philosophy Major to AI Engineer
LIU013: The Engineer Who Built a Business to Fund a Mission
Ep 12LIU012: Behind the Curtain at Life In Uptime
Kevin and Alexis are back with a behind-the-scenes look at the podcast with guest Melina Bertholf, who joined the team a while back to help manage content. (And yes, sharp-eyed readers will notice a family name shared by Alexis and Melina). After interviewing many guests about their tech journeys, our hosts share their own personal... Read more »
Ep 11LIU011: Inside the Digital Nomad Life: The Good, The Hard, and the Wi-Fi
Alexis Bertholf and Kevin Nanns sit down for a conversation with Andrei Istrate, Senior Mobile Developer at Toptal. Andrei has taken the “mobile” part of his job literally: he’s built a life around travel and experiences rather than settling in one location. Andrei talks about the travel opportunities that remote work has presented, how he... Read more »
Ep 10LIU010: Personal, Technical, and Slightly Unhinged: Listener Q&A
Kevin and Alexis take a break from their regular interviews to answer your questions! Join them for an unfiltered, wide-ranging discussion including the value of certifications, online learning pros and cons, how networking engineering jobs are changing, how to maintain a healthy work-life balance, and more. AdSpot Sponsor: Statseeker Statseeker gives engineers near real-time performance... Read more »
Ep 9LIU009: Navigating Cybersecurity Careers
Alexis and Kevin sit down with Mike Miller to discuss what brought him from the back of a garbage truck to his current position as a Virtual Chief Information Security Officer (VCISO). He breaks down how a VCISO differs from a CISO, and discusses the two types of clients looking for VCISO services: those looking... Read more »
Ep 8LIU008: Breaking Barriers: Thriving as a Woman in Tech
Kevin and Alexis sit down with Melissa Brooks, a Senior Cloud Engineer at Aritzia, to discuss how she went from being a “terrible waitress” to going back to school for a diploma in network security. They explore how she used a strategic, “reverse engineered” approach to goal setting to land on a career in tech.... Read more »
Ep 7LIU007: From Track to Tech: Navigating Career Change with Resilience
Ifeanyi Otuonye was a decorated track and field athlete at Kansas State and even competed professionally. Then he made the leap to a Technical Account Manager role at Amazon Web Services. Alexis and Kevin sit down with Ifeanyi to discuss the difficulties of that career change. Ifeanyi explains why he chose cloud engineering, what he... Read more »
Ep 6LIU006: Stay Technical While Expanding Your Influence
Is it possible for IT professionals to remain technical when moving into roles that expand influence, scale, and reach? Matt Starling, Senior Director of Product Marketing at Ekahau and co-founder of the WiFi Ninjas podcast, joins Alexis and Kevin to share how your career can evolve beyond on-call operations without losing the technical core. His... Read more »
Ep 5LIU005: The Importance of Community In a Networking Career
AJ Murray joins Kevin and Alexis to share his unique journey into tech, pivoting away from aviation maintenance into networking. Together they explore the importance of person-to-person networking and building a community in order to be successful. They also talk about the reality of burnout, which ultimately led AJ to step away from his podcast.... Read more »
Ep 4LIU004: From Fast Food to Leading Operations at an ISP
Think you need a degree or a ton of certificates to succeed in tech? Think again. Matthew Oborne joins our hosts Alexis Bertholf and Kevin Nanns to discuss how he went from working fast food to leading operations at an ISP. Your starting point doesn’t define your ceiling; resilience, adaptability, and a willingness to learn... Read more »
Ep 3LIU003: A Chat With ‘The Cloud Therapist’
Your background and experiences outside of tech can become a significant factor in your tech career. Guest Chris Williams is a good example; he talks about how his undergraduate and graduate studies in psychology influenced his work as a Developer Relations Manger at Hashicorp. Hosts Alexis Bertholf and Kevin Nanns chat with him about how... Read more »
Ep 2LIU002: Do You Need a College Degree to Succeed in IT?
A college degree can be a useful stepping stone into a tech career, and it certainly doesn’t hurt to have it on your resume. But do you really need that college degree to succeed in IT? Maybe, maybe not. Today’s guest is Wes Noonan, whose non-traditional path into and through a career in IT has... Read more »
Ep 1LIU001: Growing Pains
Starting any new endeavor is hard. That’s particularly true for a career in tech. And that’s the reason Alexis Bertholf and Kevin Nanns are launching the Life In Uptime podcast. In each episode they’ll sit down with engineers, leaders, and builders in tech to uncover the stories behind their careers to help you see how... Read more »
LIU000: Announcing Life In Uptime, a New Podcast to Get You Started on Your IT Journey
Life In Uptime is a brand-new podcast that explores the real journeys of the people who build and run enterprise IT. Each episode dives into the personal and professional paths that got each guest to where they are today—because the road to a career in technology isn’t one-size-fits-all. This show is for anyone wondering how... Read more »