Why I Decided To Pursue Software Development
Why do people decide to become Software Developers? Is it because of the challenge? Is it because of job opportunities? Could it be because they’re unhappy with their job or what they’re currently studying in school? Theres a ton a reasons why people become Software Developers. Why I decided to pursue Software Development was because of everything that i’ve listed above. I was sitting in school thinking about becoming a business person and get a bachelors degree in Marketing. Me and my friends would joke about how when I finished school I would be wearing a suit and be on the phone talking about “business” all the time. They would send me this picture all the time.
When I finished my first year I had doubts on what I wanted to become. The classes no longer intrigued me, I was now in class just to pass instead of trying to pursue a career in the field. It’s not the best feeling in the world thinking about switching majors or realizing you used up a year of time and money on something you no longer have passion for. On Mothers Day we had the family together and my cousins’ husband, Ross, was talking about how his brother studied Software Development and loved it. Now it’s very rare for any of us to hear that someone loves there job! I was sitting there like what? He loves his job?!
With that catching me off guard, I had a confused look on my face, but also very intrigued. So I asked him what him why? He told me because of the amount of job opportunities offered to him along with the daily challenges and always learning something new. At the time I had no idea what Software Development was and that there were a bunch of languages out there, when he told me more and more I started to become more intrigued. Ross and I would continue talking about it throughout the day, up until now we still speak daily about the subject. That night I thought about switching my major, maybe even taking a semester or two off to see if I like it. I started googling free lessons and schools who specialize in the field. I practiced on one website throughout the summer on top of my full time job with dog walking, I would sit in a coffee shop figuring things out through HTML or JavaScript. Oh man, it was hard starting out. But whenever I completed a task it felt so rewarding, I started to enjoy myself with the consistent challenge. Countless times I would do something called “Rubber Duck Debugging” to get through a lot of problems.
So I was doing learning tasks here and there on some websites. I then felt ready to go back to school, I went on google to see if there any schools that specifically taught Software Development in New York. I found Flatiron School, it took a few days to decide wether I should apply or not. I felt ready, and there was pre-work when I applied, their pre-work was challenging but I had the same feelings again, whenever I completed a challenge or task I would be so happy. I then knew, that this field would be perfect for me. I had many doubts on which I came to find out a lot of people in the community have which is called Imposter Syndrome. But my friends really helped me through it and had supported me a ton along with the community whenever I went to any Meetup or chatted in Discord. Shouts out to you guys if you're reading this! When someone asks me why I decided to pursue Software Development, I tell them it’s because of the challenge, the opportunities, and the community.
