📝 TL;DR
My journey into programming was anything but traditional. I went from studying industrial engineering and working discouraging jobs to discovering my passion for web development. I learned on my own, attended a Bootcamp, and finally broke into the tech industry—facing challenges, imposter syndrome, and major career changes. Here I share my story, lessons, and advice for anyone starting out in this world.
How did it all start?
Like many professionals I’ve met in the companies where I’ve worked, I didn’t study programming or computer science. My background is in Industrial Engineering, thinking it would lead to a good quality of life. However, a few years after graduating, I found myself stuck in a poorly paid job with endless demands and broken promises of a salary increase. I was exhausted and frustrated.
In that context, I met an engineer at the plant who had developed the software used to control part of the production. Gradually, I got closer to him, we became friends, and he encouraged me to learn PHP (which honestly was never my favorite 🫣). From there, I started learning HTML, CSS, and JavaScript on my own. The world of programming is vast and can feel overwhelming at first, but it’s also fascinating.
Lesson: Sometimes, the first step is simply to approach those who are already where you want to be and let yourself be guided.
The Bootcamp Challenge
Shortly after, I found a Bootcamp. Yes, I know what many people think: “another bootcamper who thinks they’re a developer after an 8-month course” 🤣. Like any Bootcamp, it had its pros and cons. After five months of study, I landed my first job as a developer.
But before that, I went through some tough times. I had a 9-to-5:30 job, only 30 minutes for lunch, and company-provided transportation (which wasn’t great). I left home at 8 am and returned after 6 pm. Bootcamp classes started at 7 pm: three hours of new concepts every day. They promised a good job at the end, but what they don’t tell you is that to learn that fast, you need to put in a lot of extra hours.
In my case, classes ended at 10 pm, but I would review and do assignments until 2 or 3 am. There were days when I slept just a couple of hours. Still, I loved it—I had discovered how amazing it is to understand how websites work.
Lesson: The extra effort outside of class makes all the difference. Learning programming takes a lot of discipline and passion.
The First Tech Job
When I got my first job as a developer, the salary wasn’t as high as the Bootcamp had promised, but at least I was in the industry. I had to use my personal laptop, a basic HP Pavilion with an Intel Gold processor, 4 GB of RAM, and a traditional hard drive. It wasn’t the best, but I gradually upgraded it.
In the first days, I met the team and the project. They gave me a couple of weeks to adapt, learn the technologies, and understand the workflow. Before the first month was over, I was already contributing modules and new features. I remember being asked to learn GraphQL and start contributing almost immediately—a real challenge, but also a great opportunity to grow.
Working at a startup is intense: there’s a lot to learn in a short time, but that makes it exciting. Plus, life outside of work doesn’t stop, especially when you have people who depend on you.
Lesson: You don’t need the most expensive equipment to start. What matters is your attitude and willingness to learn.
The Leap to Big Companies
Three months into my programming career, I got calls for interviews at a much larger and more established company. The process was intense, but I finally got the “yes” and received an offer I could hardly believe. I’d never had such a high salary and felt terrified.
That’s when imposter syndrome, which I call “Dude” (my mischievous husky), really kicked in. I joined a team full of talented engineers, many with years of experience, and others who had worked their way up from support to development. “Dude” and I were working with Dart and Flutter—technologies I had never used. I had a couple of weeks to get up to speed, and then it was showtime!
A few months later, I got a raise without even asking. Everything was going well, and I started making important contributions, earning my place on the team.
Lesson: Imposter syndrome never completely goes away, but every challenge you overcome is a personal victory.
Change, Challenges, and New Opportunities
One day, the “Big Boss” announced that Hewlett-Packard (HP) had bought the company. Over the next year, we transitioned to their way of working. Our payment system changed, but they were generous and there were no pay cuts. However, many projects were moved to teams in India, and our team was split up.
Once again, “Dude” woke up. I was assigned to an international team with people from India, Germany, Japan, Canada, and the US. We were migrating manual tests to automated systems. Meetings were a challenge, especially since I didn’t speak English fluently and the new manager’s accent was tough to understand. There were moments when I thought about quitting.
I was assigned to a project led by a Japanese engineer, very experienced and technically skilled. I decided to learn as much as possible from him. Sometimes I worked late to contribute as much as I could, and he noticed. Soon he gave me more freedom and even encouraged me to put my name on the modules I developed. That was a huge motivation.
One day, our project was selected for a company-wide demo, in front of about 400 people. There were projects involving facial recognition and other innovative things. I had to present our tool. I was nervous, so I recorded a demo video because something always goes wrong during live presentations. On the day, seeing the number of people connected almost froze me. But I took a deep breath, presented the project, and everything went well. I received congratulations from my teammates and managers. I can’t believe everything programming has brought to my life, and I can’t wait to see what’s next.
Lesson: Big changes are scary, but they also open doors to unique experiences and learning.
I hope you enjoyed the post. If you’re a dev, I hope life brings you as many wonderful experiences as it has for me—or even better. Thanks for reading this far!