It always seems impossible until it’s done — Nelson Mandela
In this post, I'll discuss a 5-step pathway to help you get started on your journey into the tech industry. Although the path is not always easy, a simple roadmap should the transition become clearer and less painful.
Let's begin!
A little background
I decided to switch to software engineering from graphics designs and I thought it was a crazy idea at the time. But what was even crazier was working in a job I hated.
I was tired of interpreting design briefs, the feedback process was tiresome and personally, I couldn't see an opportunity for career growth. Now I'm not saying design isn't a good field, it's actually a great field, but it wasn't the right fit for me.
Once I made my decision, I did some research on what it would take to become a developer.
Here are the 5 steps I took to make my switch and I believe they can help you too.
Step 1: Define your Goal
You must define the goal of any journey you decide to take.
Switching careers is no different. The goal you set for your journey will serve as your why, your purpose for starting that journey in the first place.
The road to becoming a developer is like walking a wooden bridge between 2 cliffs; without a clear vision of where you are headed, you will get distracted by the disappointments and frustrations along the way (because they will come)
Your goal for your tech journey will keep you focused on the outcome of your efforts and give you the encouragement you need to keep moving.
Without your why, you could slip and fall off the bridge that leads to your dream tech job. Only your why will get you to the other side of the cliff
Step 2: Learn the Fundamentals of Programming
Most developer positions involve writing code in a specific programming language. Like English or Spanish, a programming language is the language we use to communicate with computers.
We use these languages to write code, specific instructions which tells the computer what to do. Your job as a developer will be all about building solutions with code. To achieve this, you must be able to write in a specific language, understand the rules of writing in that language (syntax) and the principles of programming in general.
Your First Programming Language
When picking your first programming language, it is important to note that some languages are specific to a particular field while others are more general in nature.
For example, HTML,CSS and JavaScript are languages of the web and form the building blocks of a career in web development, while a language like Python can be applied to many fields such as game development, data science, machine learning, game development and even web development.
This is why you must identify the why (goal) of your journey, it paves the path for your journey in tech.
Step 3: Build Projects
Once you have defined your goals and learned the basics of programming in a specific language, the next step is to begin building projects.
Your projects are made up of anything and everything you build in your learning process.
It could be a tutorial you watched to learn a concept, an idea you came up with in the shower, a hackathon you participated in or a challenge you tried your hands at. If you developed code in the process of learning or doing research, these form the basis of your project repository.
Preventing Code Plagiarism
Please note that you should never plagiarize code. Do not copy code from a video tutorial or blog post and post it as yours. This will hurt your learning process and even reputation in the future. Instead you must learn to refactor code.
How?
By extending the functionality of an existing code. If you decide to build a project by watching a video tutorial or reading a blog post, you can refactor the code in 3 ways to make it yours; Take the core concept you learned and use it to build something new. Add an extra layer of functionality/add an extra feature to the code. Use a different approach to solve the problem
These three steps can help you learn complex concepts better, give your project a fresh boost and prevent code plagiarism in your projects. You can learn more about this strategy here .
Step 4: Join a Community
Remember when I said the journey to tech is like walking on a wooden bridge between 2 cliffs? Now set that bridge on fire while trying to run to the other side.
Between learning new concepts, fixing bugs and solving problem questions, the self-study road to becoming a developer can get tiring, long and lonely. The best way to overcome the obstacles that may crop up along the way is to join a community of developers.
A tech community is a place where you can ask questions, help others in need of guidance and constantly network with other developers.
In such communities you will get to connect with those on the same level of learning as you are and also learn from others who have gone ahead to achieve even greater things.
You can learn a lot on your own but joining a community will help you 10x your learning rate by exposing you to new concepts in more convenient way. You will also get to learn insider secrets of the tech industry that only experienced developers and engineers can give.
These information and more will give you an advantage in your learning process and keep you focused on your goal.
PS: If you want a summary of this post, here's a quick PDF cheat sheet for this post to help you get started!
Step 5: Build your Resume
Now you have decided on a field, learned to code in your preferred language and built some impressive projects along the way, this means you're one step closer to your dream job - Next stop: Resume.
Your resume is your first impression to recruiters at tech companies.
The good news is that whether you have an undergraduate degree in computer science or a financial analyst switching to a career in web development, everyone has to submit a resume.
It is your responsibility to put your best foot forward during the job application process (your best foot is your resume by the way).
For aspiring techies without a CS background, a well written resume will be your greatest weapon when applying to jobs. To make yourself standout, you must combine the strengths of your journey in tech and relevant skills you have acquired from your previous work experiences.
A collection of these two things will give you a competitive edge with any recruiter in the tech industry.
In Conclusion
No matter how many blogs you read or how many videos you watch, you alone are the master of your fate, you pay the piper and determine the tune of your life.
If you are unsatisfied with where you are right now, nothing will change until you make the first move.
So make the first move!
Get the 5-step checklist to switch your career to tech right now!
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