My Journey as a software developer
Growing up as a young adult I had never really had a precise occupation I wanted to settle for in the future during my schooling but I fell in love with science subjects especially physics because I could observe most of the concepts I learned, through experimenting and that was always fun and exciting. This love for science subjects even drifted from a set to a specific science subject called computer sciences because I was stunned by how actors in American movies displayed their technical knowledge with computers and it always got me dreaming to become like them one day. Before and after high school I had never really touched or used a computer but I enrolled in computer sciences and the next year I had the opportunity to have and use my first computer and that is how my journey as a programmer started.
After I enrolled in computer sciences and came to know programming I was so excited writing console applications but I kept on been anxious on how to move from console applications to the graphical user interface but due to lack of finances it was not possible back then but the dream will still keep on living with me and though I was not consistent with the programming I will always have some sessions wherein I will do some coding. After landing a job where I was teaching computer sciences it was the perfect opportunity to start my journey as a software developer. I had the idea to Automate Our school report card system from manual to computerized and then I found Microverse which made the journey a more interesting journey. My journey with software development was marked by so many challenges and so many remarkable memories.
I started my software development and very first project with HTML/CSS. At first, this part of the software development was overwhelming and there was so much to read and I almost quitted the software development field immediately because I was paired to work with a more experienced partner than I and so it always made me feel empty. Also, we had to use much more complicated concepts before having to study them sometimes and since I was just getting into software development, and writing markups for the first time it even made the start of the journey more difficult. Other reasons for the start of my journey to be frustrating was that I was much more in love with the backend and was trying to have only the necessary skills for the front end so that I could move quickly to get a feel of the backend. After finishing with the front end where sometimes it was very frustrating because of several disagreements and hence stalemates with coding partners I started with the ruby module which was not a bed of roses because I met many challenges such as rewriting some inbuilt ruby methods using the yield principle.
These challenges were very good learning opportunities because they added so much technical knowledge to my knowledge as a developer. Just when I thought I was through with challenges I fell on the ruby on rails module which is a framework for the backend and that was the primary reason why I joined software development. At first, it was okay for the first few projects but as we climbed the ladder it became colder and I almost lost the grip of it but thanks to the fact that I joined a Microverse community where one could find help when stuck I was rescued from a bad situation that was almost getting worse. During this Ruby on rails I still came across HTML/CSSand the struggle with it this time was more challenging due to the reasons aforementioned and I always felt I had to start it all over. As the journey continued with javascript through React and Redux the learning continued and the challenges became more difficult and the love for software development became intense and the love for HTML/CSS started to equalize with the other languages and struggles with it started to drop.
My software development journey is a turning point for my life because I had realized I was lacking in many things that I needed to be an accomplished person in life. This journey helped me improve in many things such as my patience as I had to work sometimes with people who had no technical knowledge. I had to explain a technical concept I understood so many times for them to understand and permit us to make progress in our project. In software development, I learned how to trust people I have never met before and in some cases, this leads to a long-lasting friendship.
When you hate a concept and want to study it, it will be difficult for you to master it very well, I had to love HTML/CSS , and enjoy every project I was building with it before I could do an appreciable project with it. Also as a developer, I learned to not be always surprised and feel discouraged when I don’t master a new concept that is challenging immediately because it is a field that is innovating every day and there are always new concepts and challenges that will always be there. All is just a matter of time.