The weekend homework project is looking increasingly like its going to creep well into next week. Fortunately I'm not alone on this one!
I think that one reason introverts tend to get interested in coding because when you are at home and working on a project it is very easy to just block everything out and focus on the tasks at hand. But one thing I've noticed is that to succeed in the working world as a coder you need to be part of a team. There are coding jobs out there that are mostly isolated from other people and might be good for people who don't want to socialize. But judging from every company I've visited during this bootcamp, everyone works together and helps out.
Today we got to visit the Las Vegas office of NS8. They handle fraud protection services to merchants running on Shopify, WooCommerce and other platforms. A few things I'd really like to point out about today's experience. One, their office is hidden in a small complex only a few blocks away from our school. On the outside the building is a bit run down and the only thing that is well-known about it is the really good cajun restaurant in front. From the outside the entire building looks like it could be an old carpet warehouse. But in the back half of the building is the NS8 office and it is decked out to be hip, collaborative and very engaging. Once you step inside their office you are blown away. That's one cool thing about Las Vegas is that there are some hidden gem office spaces. And there isn't really a stigma about not being in a particular spot, or needing to be on one side of town. The tech community started out in downtown but has branched out and is now spread across the city.
We got to meet the staff and they seemed prepared for us in a way that showed they were just as eager to meet us as we were to meet them. They all came out from their offices and greeted us with handshakes and kind words. They even prepared a presentation and q&a session about what we can expect after the bootcamp, with several members of staff taking the time to pass us good advice. They put a lot of time into preparing for today's meeting and it really showed. I don't know if anyone from NS8 will ever come across this blog but if so, we really appreciate making us feel so welcomed in the tech community.
So my advice is that working in a team and being part of a team is how you are really going to learn programming. Bouncing ideas off each other and seeing how other people do things is key. If you are a student in your bootcamp, my advice is to please take advantage of that opportunity. This goes beyond just asking questions. Check with your instructors to see if collaborating on homework assignments is ok and if so, go for it. You and your teammates will make each other better in so many ways. You'll learn how to explain these new concepts, a skill that is going to come in handy for your job interviews. You'll learn interpersonal communication skills. You'll learn task delegation. As long as you are taking the time to learn the material and not just pushing all the heavy lifting off onto one team member, there really is no downside to collaborative learning. Remember, this is not standard education. The most important thing is not turning in completed assignments...its the learning process you went through in order to (maybe) complete those assignments.
Unfortunately this is going to be a busy weekend outside of class, but this project demands a lot of attention. We are realizing that this project brings together almost everything that we have learned up to this point. Weeks worth of assignments, all synthesized into one big project. On top of that, some new concepts that we didn't even cover in class but are expected to go out and find on our own. Sounds daunting at first until you realize that most tech companies operate under the same principle ("You know React? We use Vue here, so you have a week to get up to speed."). We are bring prepared to jump right into the tech scene as soon as we graduate so we need to experience these things. Including the teamwork. And our final group project will be even bigger than this one. So I guess this is a warm up. But it feels a lot hotter than warm. That's a pretty common thing in Las Vegas.
