During my first month as a Ph.D. student, a senior student in our group was preparing a presentation for an upcoming Optica meeting. He had led the work from the beginning and knew every detail. Then he received an invitation for a faculty interview that overlapped with the conference. At the next group meeting, the question arose: Who would give the talk? There was a silence. Then—as I remember it—all eyes turned to me. At the time, I interpreted it as a matter of logistics. Someone had to go, and I happened to be available. It would be my first Optica conference, and I was thrilled to attend, but the experience was intimidating. I spent weeks reading papers and preparing answers to questions I hoped nobody would ask.