Dear Upcoming/Junior Developers,
I hope this letter meets you well wherever you are in the world. I’ve been giving myself and myself this advice since I started this journey, and recently I decided it’s time I get this advice out to the world. That’s why I was not surprised when I found my pen on top of my sheet crafting this message.
I’m a software developer from the self-taught Island, an Island where only the passionate ones survive, an arena of consistency, a place of endless possibilities and treasure, a place that your physical eyes can’t see but your mind can connect to, it’s a place filled with thousands of software developers/engineers around the world who are passionate in making the world a better place, it is a place that doesn’t discriminate, it is a place that doesn’t care about the color of your skill, your professional background or your educational background, it is a place that has made great tech giants that the world will never forget about, it is a place where everyone is a king, it is a place where everyone is unique; I am an ambassador of the self-taught Island and this is my message to you.
This is a letter of hope and encouragement, it is a letter of brotherhood and it’s meant to make you understand that you are not alone. The tech industry is evolving rapidly with high velocity and the only thing you need to survive is to be a member of the self-taught Island. Be a member? Yes, that’s right.
Like I mentioned earlier, the self-taught Island does not discriminate; in fact, everyone is a member of this Island but not everyone gets to drink from the water of the Island. The benefactors of this Island are those who never back down no matter the challenges they are faced with when trying to learn a new skill, they are those that are rewarded by the Island.
Having grown up on the Island, I understand firsthand how it feels to struggle as an upcoming and I would consider myself the prodigal son who ran away with little treasure but eventually came back for his inheritance. I spent the early years of my career moving in circles, comparing myself with others that were far better than I was, this affected my focus, it affected my passion to improve on my craft, I was in a state of imposter syndrome, I felt I was all alone, I felt I was never going to live in my dreams, but the good thing that happened was that I was quick to realize that I’m a unique entity which means there is never going to be a replica of me and what I carry and immediately I went back to my root and started all over and after much effort, I was finally awarded the self-taught membership badge and every other benefit that comes with it.
It might interest you to know that the self-taught Island members are not super-humans, they are just individuals like you who have mastered the art of never giving up and that’s the one and most important ingredient you need to survive.
A bridge is never built in a day but the architect has the complete picture of the finished project in his heart and that is what is used to build the bridge and it is called a blueprint. My question to you is Do you have a blueprint of where you want to be or who you want to become? If your answer is NO then it’s never too late to have one. If tech is the career path you have chosen which I’m very sure it is because you will not be reading this letter in the first place if you are not in a way interested in tech.
Your blueprint is what will guide you but the self-taught Island is the engineer to help you build that blueprint. The tech industry is not for the weak in heart, you need to be more passionate to succeed.
As I conclude on the first part of this letter to you, it might interest you to know that I have spent the whole time in this letter painting a picture for you called self-taught Island, but the honest truth is there is no place called the self-taught Island. The self-taught Island is what I refer to as the Growth and Do It Yourself mentality that is working for those that believe in it.
Be yourself, Do It Yourself, Own it, Keep learning, and one day the world will record your greatness.
Thank you for taking your time to read the first part of this letter, but while you are waiting for the second part, I would admonish you to change your mentality towards learning and growing and the sky will be your starting point.
Yours sincerely, Self-taught Island Ambassador
To be continued ...