Table of contents
Firstly, you should congratulate yourself for coming this far. Hopefully, this article would help keep you in the light as regards your Tech career.
This blog post would be divided into three sections
Why Tech?
Which Tech?
The BIG Question
Why Tech?
This is the first question that every aspiring techie should be able to resonate with. Try to reflect on what made you choose this career path. Could it be the passion, the financial freedom that comes with it, the thrill of building real-world utilities and products that would solve people's problems? It could also be that it was a recommendation from a friend or family. Whichever it is, you should acknowledge it as sometime during your journey, it might come in handy as a source of motivation.
“If I quit now, how’d I live my dream?” I can’t stop now.
Which Tech?
Technology as a career path is very broad. In this article, we would be focusing on Software Engineering (SWE). Software Engineering is divided into various sub-divisions. These include Front-end development, Backend development, Full-stack development, Systems Design, Dev Operations, Graphics Designer, Cyber Security, Cloud Engineering, and Data Analyst…the list is endless.
As a new Techie, you should try researching the various opportunities in Tech (SWE) and then choose whichever you feel is best for you depending on your area of interest.
The Big Question!
This is the most important part of this article. The greatest question among tech newbies. Guess what; there is no cheat code on how to break into tech! ...up until I wrote this article. Lucky You!
HOW DO I BREAK INTO TECH ???????
Breaking into Tech has just three requirements: SKILL, NETWORKING AND PERSEVERANCE.
SKILL: This career path is quite competitive in terms of getting job roles. This is why you have to possess a level of proficiency in the programming languages associated with your preferred tech stack. For example, a techie looking for a job role as a front-end developer should be proficient in HTML, CSS, Javascript, Bootstrap / Tailwind, React / Angular / Vue, Typescript and Version Control (Git / GitHub).
You don’t have to be an expert in these languages!
A basic understanding of these languages alongside being able to use them to create applications and solve technical problems would be just enough. You can learn these languages through their official documentation on their websites, YouTube and e-learning platforms such as Udemy and Coursera.
NETWORKING: This is a crucial aspect of being a successful techie. Take note that networking is not just about finding a job, it is also about learning, growing and building relationships with people in your field. Here are a few ways you can build your network as a techie:
Attend tech events and conferences. You would get to meet other professionals in your field.
Connect with people (techies, software developers, recruiters) on Linkedin and other social media platforms. I’d also recommend Twitter as it has a very good community of software developers.
Reach out to people in your field who you admire and ask if they would be willing to talk to you about their experiences.
Volunteer to help out with tech projects. This would not only allow you to meet and work with other professionals but also adds to your experience.
PERSEVERANCE: This is an important trait that a techie must possess as this field is constantly evolving and new challenges often arise.
Here are a few ways you can maintain perseverance.
Most importantly, always keep a positive attitude. Stay motivated and optimistic, even when faced with difficult challenges (bugs in your code, confusion when learning to code, job rejections, etc).
Do not give up, you got this!
Learn from your mistakes. When you encounter problems while coding, take note of what went wrong and try to understand what went wrong to avoid making the same mistake in the future.
Seek help when needed. You’re just starting your career as a techie, you can’t know it all. Even the best developers reach out to google / Stack Overflow for help. Reach out to a mentor, an online tech platform whenever you encounter a problem whilst coding.
Celebrate small wins. Just wrote your first
“Hello World”code? That’s big! You should be proud of yourself. Learn to recognize your progress and reward yourself for hard work. This will help you maintain motivation and momentum.Keep learning. Technology is an ever-evolving field. Stay current with new technologies and trends in your field. This would help you stay flexible and adaptable to new challenges.
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a step. Your journey as a software developer/engineer has begun at this very moment.
SEE YOU AT THE TOP, TECHIE!