Wait - what? A content management system changing lives? Surely that can’t be a thing? Well, turns out it is. Like every other free and open source software, Joomla makes it possible for millions of people worldwide to change their life for the better. So: free, yes, but priceless in what it brings to us. JCM asked 19 people just one simple question: how did Joomla change your life? Read their inspiring stories!

Serge: a goal in life

I came across Joomla at a pivotal moment in my life, to put it simply: the start of my current family and, at the same time, my decision to make a career change. 
It was a shock because the tool met my needs, and the links with the community were strong right from the start. Although my initial training wasn't in web development, I immediately understood the Joomla code and the way it was structured.

It was as if fate had placed Joomla in my path.

This companion has enabled me to generate a lucrative business, to spend part of my free time doing what I enjoy, and even gives me a goal in life.

(Serge Billon)

Tim: support and encouragement from the community

Joomla has transformed my life by turning my content creation hobby into a full-time career, which now supports my wife and me after retiring from 28 years of pastoring local churches. Like all life transitions, retiring without a pension brought its own set of challenges, pushing me to grow and master new skills. Throughout this journey, the support and encouragement I have received from friends, colleagues, and connections within the Joomla community has been invaluable. I am grateful to God for their inspiration of ideas, the solutions to challenges, and, most importantly, the connections that have helped me find my place within the constellation that is the Joomla community.

(Tim Davis)

Oren: unlocking new possibilities

At 23, during the Mambo days and the early years of Joomla, I realized I was truly passionate about web development. Since learning HTML from books and experiments in 1998, Joomla inspired me to teach myself PHP, MySQL, and JavaScript. The evolving Joomla community, which welcomed innovative ideas, showed me the strength of its foundation. The Joomla development team impressed me with their ability to listen and create solutions that remain exceptional. Each Joomla update unlocked new possibilities, fueling my continuous learning journey. This process led me to create an exceptional one-man business, offering top-tier services that continue to this day.

(Oren Wassersprung)

Giorgi: work the way I want to

So back in 2008 I was a Med Student, but I always liked Tech so decided to learn how to make websites. One of my online friends recommended me to try Joomla. And trusting him was the best decision I ever made. I found some video lessons and started learning Joomla. Soon I left medicine and switched my profession to Informatics. 

At the same time I was testing different 3rd party extensions and after lots of testing, I found one which became my “Swiss knife”, which improved my productivity. What I hate most is to work fulltime in an office and thanks to Joomla I can avoid it and can schedule my work as I want.

(Giorgi Bulia)

Derek: friends and growth

It's no exaggeration to say that without Joomla, my life would be unrecognizable.

I was 22 and getting my BA in Music Education. I was preparing to be a music teacher, and had a position secured in the middle school I graduated from.

Then I met up with a friend who told me he's been hired in a hosting company specializing in Joomla that was just given a huge project for demo.joomla.org and they need people for tech support.

The world opened up to me. I learned, traveled, met people from VASTLY different backgrounds. I made friends. I grew in ways I never could as a music teacher.

Joomla made me who I am today.

(Derek Snieg)

Pat: a stable income

After losing my programming job due to 9/11 and relocating to rural Tennessee, I was uncertain about my next steps. Initially, I focused on using Microsoft FrontPage, but then I received an opportunity from Denver to learn Joomla. My first reaction was, "What is Joomla?" This led to a journey of connecting with people globally and building a strong network within the USA. I’ve had the privilege of meeting numerous respected individuals and community leaders in Tennessee who appreciate my work. Joomla has profoundly impacted my career, providing a stable income that allows me to remain in my home and community. The value of this opportunity cannot be overstated.

(Pat Vanden Bossche)

René: friendship, knowledge and success

In 1990, I graduated and started working as a systems administrator and programmer at Philips. In 1999, I learned HTML and CSS and began creating websites. By chance, I found Mambo and gained knowledge through Mamboportal.com, building my first CMS websites. I launched Mamboportal.nl to help Dutch Mambo users share expertise. 

After the switch to Joomla, I had the opportunity to start my own professional internet business. I created Joomla websites for clients and provided hosting services.

Now, as a full stack developer, I still enjoy building websites and applications with Joomla every day. I love sharing knowledge online and at Joomla User Groups, Dutch JoomlaDays, and JandBeyond conferences. Joomla has enriched my life with friendships, knowledge, business success, and livelihood.

(René Kreijveld)

Robert: opening up the world

Where should I start? Oh, essentially it's the people I've got to know. The different cultures and approaches to challenges. I've also seen a lot of the world, places I might not have seen otherwise. The world has become smaller for me. If something bad happens somewhere, I always ask myself who I know from the area and hope that this person is safe and well. Organizing events like JandBeyond builds bridges and fosters a sense of community.  I've always had a lot of fun organizing these events and it makes me sad that we don't manage to put them together these days.

(Robert Deutz)

James: finally I feel accepted

I am a freelance web developer who got frustrated by the lack of engaging jobs that suit freedom in my local region. I could not help but join the digital platforms on the web but nothing changed. The problem was that I did not have experience working online and didn't have anyone to teach me how the online culture thrives.

After Joining Joomla I met Patrick Jackson, Maria Skampoura and Tom who held my hand without judging my naive state.

Now I can brag about a good portfolio, the experience and the vast number of helpful connections I've made. Everyone at Joomla is very friendly.

Joomla has taught me about Automated Testing,Documentation and Template design. Thanks.

(James Gichuru Wangechi - aka Jimmy Hich)

Gianluca: it started with World of Warcraft

Joomla changed my life many years ago because of... World of Warcraft! Like many former teenagers like me, I spent a few years of my life playing the famous MMORPG and I had a Guild that just so happened to need a website! 

Back then I was studying computer science at Bologna University and volunteered: after trying out all the CMSs I settled on Joomla (version 1.5 at the time) because I immediately felt comfortable creating templates and installing extensions fundamental to us: a media gallery and a forum (Kunena!). 

From there my love for Joomla and web development began: combining the passion and knowledge acquired at University I decided to start my own company which from the beginning has always worked almost exclusively with Joomla and over time we also came to make extensions customizations and a lot of dissemination (through a YouTube channel in Italian dedicated to tips & tricks). So... thank you Joomla!

(Gianluca Gabella, CEO of Pixed - www.pixed.it) 

Michael: happy clients and a satisfying job

In 2006 I participated in a business incubator project. My plan was to establish a regional online portal. By this, I fell over Joomla and was fascinated by the possibilities from second one. 
I built the platform using Joomla 1 and SobiPro. Then I started to acquire customers by presenting the easy edition of their own content and optimizing it for search engines. After a few presentations, I quickly recognized that they were more interested in the fact that they could edit their own contents than in my portal.
So I changed my pitch and sold websites and trainings. Since then, I do nothing else. Today I support around 100 happy clients and their around 200 websites.
The job is satisfying overall each day, and it has paid my bills for 18 years!

(Michael Melson)

Pietro: growing and expanding

We opened our web agency in 2020. At the beginning we made custom sites in Php/Html, but we needed a CMS. We went against the current and chose Joomla, because it has everything we need to create professional and secure sites. 
Joomla allows us to create new services for customers, and thus to grow and expand our offer, also in B2B. We have focused on quality extensions, which have reliable developers. Then there is the Italian community, with knowledgeable colleagues. Exchanging ideas with them has helped us to grow professionally.
Joomla is a community in true open source style. Sharing experiences always helps, and helps everyone. We have over 70 active sites and we are growing. Thank you Joomla.

(Pietro Strada)

Anja: my first, not my last, sometimes my everything

So many firsts! The first website I created with a CMS (instead of Frontpage). The first time I attended a Joomla User Group meeting (scary). The first time I discovered I had knowledge to share. The first time I gave a talk at my own JUG, another JUG, JoomlaDays. My first PBF. The first time I (co-)organized a Joomla event. The first time I attended an international event. My first international Joomla Volunteer job. All the first times I met someone in person, after numerous conversations online. To me Joomla has been a precious collection of first times so far, and I’m looking forward to experiencing all the first times I don’t know about yet.

(Anja de Crom)

Aaron: building my dream

Joomla brought me the ability to build my dream. To be involved with entertainment as an independent streaming service. Joomla had all the tools and customization options that allowed me to build exactly what I had envisioned and evolved with technology over the years from J1.5 to J4.

(Aaron Bielert)

Christiane: confidence, new energy and accessibility

I started with Joomla after a difficult time in my life, when my professional career in a big company had ended in a burnout. I found new tasks and met new people in our community who gave me so much confidence and new energy. Of course I am using Joomla for my websites – but my big win is our commitment to accessibility. With our contribution we open the world for many disabled users and this is what matters.

(Christiane Maier-Stadtherr)

Johan: nice people and a new hobby

After being diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, I was looking for a new hobby. While retraining in the ICT sector, I discovered the world of web design. In 2005 I learned about the CMS Joomla and further developed my skills. I started sharing my knowledge by providing Joomla courses.
In 2016, I started JUG043 Maastricht with Leon Kolenburg and became a member of the Joomla Certification team. This year, together with other Joomlers, I organized the Dutch JoomlaDagen 2024, where I also gave a presentation. I also write Dutch-language manuals for Joomla.

Joomla has not only given me a new hobby, but also many nice people. I like to contribute to the Joomla community.

(Johan van der Velde)

Tassos: freedom and professional growth

Joomla gave me freedom. It allowed me to start my own business and break away from the typical 9-5 grind. By developing Joomla products, I gained the freedom to work from anywhere with just a laptop and an Internet connection. Joomla brought financial independence, enabling me to make a living on my terms. Additionally, it made me a better developer. The joy of creating products used by thousands of users is unparalleled. I never imagined that I could build something that helps others succeed and create better websites. Joomla has truly transformed my life, both professionally and personally.

(Tassos Marinos)

Chris: the chance to thrive

Before I discovered Joomla, I was stuck with CMS solutions which never quite made sense. It has now allowed me to build a thriving web design agency with over 250 current clients, and over 350 websites released - all whilst retaining my sanity and the happiness of my clients!

(Chris Wilcox)

Laura: a community of friends

I first started creating websites as static HTML pages. I thought that would be the best way to earn a living since my clients could pay me to update their sites. Once I was introduced to Joomla almost 20 years ago I learned that I could teach my clients how to maintain their content, but they would still need me to guide them through the management of their website.  I built my first public library website in 2006, and I never looked back.  I have been involved with the Joomla volunteer teams, I have taught Joomla to hundreds of people and I have built many, many sites using Joomla.  Most importantly I have met people in a community I consider my friends.  We work together to achieve a common goal.  We may be ‘techies’ but we value each other and our friendships, I will be forever grateful.

(Laura Gordon)

What's your story?

These are just random stories, following a couple of calls in Mattermost and on Facebook. There must be thousands of equally inspiring stories out there. What's yours? Share it in the comments!