Lessons From 3 Months As A Dev Intern

During my coding boot camp, I once asked alumni what the best thing they took away from the program was. I was expecting they'd mention something from the tech stack they used. Instead, they all said the same thing: "Learning how to learn quickly."

Currently, I'm learning C#, ASP.NET, Entity Framework, and LINQ. I feel the same way I did when I was at square 1 in my boot camp. There are times I feel tempted to push myself harder because I feel uncertain about my skills.

To gain perspective, here are some things to keep in mind if you're just starting out in the field:

1. As long as you're learning, you're not doing poorly--ESPECIALLY if you've only been doing this for less than 2 years.
2. If you're learning a new language and framework on the job, a good manager and team likely understands. Mine definitely do--and for that I'm so grateful.
3. You can't skip steps. You've got to love learning. If you need to learn something--find a way. You can learn with accountability by studying with peers or by taking courses at a community college. You can learn independently through online courses such as Codecademy, YouTube, or FreeCodeCamp. You can also ask coworkers about tutorials they've used. There's a lot to learn, from the higher level to the lower level of programming.
4. It's important to find and appreciate others who believe in you. Whether it's a career mentor or a tech mentor, having someone to talk through some of your concerns as a professional developer will help in building confidence. Mentors and colleagues help reduce unnecessary stress in times you might be struggling to believe in yourself.
5. "Asking a lot of questions at work doesn't mean you're a burden. In fact, it helps you get up to speed so you can soon relieve your team of some of their work." This was advice from my mentor when I told her I was worried about wasting the time of more senior engineers with my questions. Additionally, learning from the company's code is equally, if not more, important than learning on the side. You can go down tutorials forever and still not learn if you don't apply it. There's so much to learning on the job than just programming itself, especially when it comes to company policies and team conventions.

I am grateful I have the best case scenario--my managers, team, and company is great; my mentors are amazing; and I have colleagues from underrepresented groups I can talk to for support. But even so, there are days I really wish I had more of a stronger background in CS. At this point, I am open to all possibilities. In any case, it's important to continue believing in yourself and growing.