I just discovered dev.to
Tags: webdev, design, womenintech, codenewbie
Published: 2020-08-18 20:12:50

I've set up a profile today, I'm not sure if I will get any traction or time to dedicated to here yet as I have some other goals for twitter, github and stackoverflow but I'm going to make this first post to test it out, because why not? 

Let me tell you where I am currently in my career and where I came from. I feel like the quiet kid in the back in the sense of I've been observing as an onlooker for the last 10 years without realizing I had anything to contribute. I keep my head down, do my work, make websites, explore new things I can build and follow through. I don't only build with code. I also really enjoy building and creating with my hands.

I run into a new problem and I research, create a solution and build it to enhance my daily life. The people that I work with and know me also benefit from my problem solving skills as they regularly ask me about work and non-work related issues thinking I may have an idea or a solution. I love helping them, so why not help strangers in a similar manner? This is what has led me to exploring how to contribute. Where to contribute and how to be seen online in the great open source community.

Contributing seems like such a far away concept. The quiet kid inside me says it's not that important because it's outside of that kid's comfort zone. It's intimidating, I haven't cured cancer, I haven't created any earth shattering javascript libraries. I have been developing on the web for 10 years (excluding my child made geocities and myspace mods) and I have zero activity built up on github. Today this changes.

Being a queer introvert I honestly believe private schooling prevented me from truly embracing my creative, alternative and unique facets. I was/am really good at blending in and not making waves. When you blend in you can avoid judgement, you can be a no name and escape under the radar. Rejection diverted.

Going into a creative degree from such a small-minded, sit down shut up atmosphere was not easy. The graphic design program at my college was already really competitive and hard and it took a very long time for me to get past my designs being rejected, I was too emotionally invested. I couldn't communicate my design concepts well enough because of the anxiety I faced during presentations. I love design. I love creating visuals to communicate. I love being surrounded by smart and carefully crafted design. I am shit at presenting, talking about and displaying my designs. It makes sense in my head, it comes out in nonsensical words and fragments.

While I was building my design portfolio website, I learned code. Game changer. I started sourcing great themes for people and new businesses that also needed websites. I learned bits of code to do the modifications I needed to do. Content management systems helped me manage the content and replace graphics that branded the themes to be unique to the project. I modified more and more and started building code from scratch, then themes from scratch and beyond. I found a flow and a sense of confidence and I rode the wave. 

I found an element that would separate me from other graphic designers. I could code! The best part is I didn't have to explain it to people or present my code because it was there. It wasn't something they could reject and because they didn't know code they weren't interested in speaking jargon. Code spoke for itself. I built this thing that you can see and interact with. Simple. I knew the language that designers and coders were talking and I realized how valuable bridging that gap was while working in a team and in an agency environment.

The online resources for learning code are abundant and it has continued to evolve and peak my interest. I have a never ending list of new languages, workflows and tools I want to learn. Just like in college towards the end I started breaking from my protective shell and really getting the full value from the experience and my classmates. I am now reaching that point where I know I have a lot to offer and there are a lot of really awesome people out there for me to connect with. I'm setting new goals.

The blankness of github activity does not take away the 10 years of experience I have already gathered. It is not a reflection of the work I have completed. Instead I choose to look at my blank slate of github and stackoverflow as an exciting challenge.