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Not every person entering the IT field wants to become a network administrator or a cybersecurity guru. In fact, one such student at Mountainland Applied Technology College (MATC) in Utah (there are four campuses in Utah County, in the central part of the state) has a different plan for the certifications she is earning.

Lindsey Silva, a student at MATC since July of 2013, grew to love taking things apart after watching her father work with his hands for about 35 years. He was in many ways, her inspiration to work hard and apply oneself in something enjoyable.

Lindsey believes it is important to find a career that not only provides a sufficient income, but allows an individual to do things they are passionate about. That is why she plans to become an auto mechanic, a career choice that will allow her to do work she loves while providing for herself and her family.

Wherever there is an opportunity, Lindsey finds and seizes it. Though she plans to eventually enter an auto mechanics program, Lindsey realized that MATC's IT program offered a golden opportunity to augment her auto career. With cars and computers becoming ever more closely intertwined, good mechanics need to understand both software and hardware to make repairs.

At present, Lindsey has the TestOut PC Pro certification, and she hopes to shortly follow that up with the A+, Network+, Security+ and Linux+ certifications as well. Seizing opportunities also means facing fears and situations that freak you out. And if there's one thing that freaks Lindsey out, it's taking tests. Her instructor, Jed Patrick, has given her various practice exams in order to help Lindsey become a better test taker.

Lindsey is excitedly expecting a baby girl, due on March 3. A couple months later in May, she will be marrying her fiancé, whom she met at MATC. While Lindsey is immersed in IT, her fiancé has been a part of the culinary arts program. After graduation and the wonderful life-changing events happening in the future, Lindsey plans to enter into an auto mechanics program where she hopes to focus her work on cars, rather than motorcycles.

In her spare time, Lindsey loves to read horror and thriller novels. Surfing the internet is a great pastime and nothing could beat cooking in the kitchen with her fiancé or watching The Walking Dead.

Lindsey says that everyone should find a goal and chase it. “Find your niche and stick with it,” she says. “Give it your all, even if it doesn’t work out at first, find out what works and what doesn’t.”

In the end, each person knows best what they enjoy. If a situation isn’t working out, Lindsey said, then something needs to change — and maybe it’s you. Asking for help is not a sign of weakness. It's the ability to seek for opportunities to succeed and seize each and every day. Lindsey Silva is increasing her abilities for a better future by jumping on those opportunities whenever she finds them.