Onwards and For(e)ward

The end of my job search has finally come. It’s been:

  • 15 years since I first began web development
  • Around 2 years since I sat down and said “I am committing to changing my career to software development”
  • 1 year since I left my last career behind
  • 8 months since I went to Hackbright


If I could know what I know now when I first started, here’s what I would have told myself:


Advice To My Previous Self (or others to follow)

  • Know yourself really, really ridiculously well. Why do you want to be an engineer and what motivates you as an engineer? Don’t do it for the money because so many other careers can get you there just the same. Engineering is a painful way to get paid more if you don’t love it.

  • Know what you’re looking for in your new career, and what you’re working towards and why. What are your values? Go back to your roots. Don’t apply to jobs that will get you halfway to what you actually want because career switching is tough and you don’t want to have to switch again. Be true to yourself.

  • People (including your friends) are going to doubt you a lot, but never doubt yourself.

  • Know your worth and stand by it. Don’t let anyone try to tell you otherwise.

  • Don’t approach others from the standpoint of a “junior” engineer. They’ll immediately categorize you as “junior,” and unfortunately junior has negative connotations and can mean SO many things. In fact, don’t even focus on the fact that you changed careers or went to a bootcamp. So many people will judge you on that fact alone. Instead, focus on what you’ve been working on in your side projects and how you’ve been developing yourself as an engineer or what you can bring to their team. The goal is to get your foot in the door to get a chance at a conversation and/or to prove your engineering skills before others filter you out over stereotypes.

  • Tell your story across every single piece of media consistently and completely. Your resume and profiles on LinkedIn, AngelList, GitHub, F6S, your personal website, et cetera should be consistent.

  • Talk to people, work with recruiters, meet others at events. Networking should be about getting to know others and learning about other people or what they’re working on rather than just to get a job.

  • Help others where you can, even if you don’t feel like you have much to offer. Everyone can use help and even if they can’t help you back there is always a reason to help others.

  • Know how you can be helped. No one can help you if you don’t know how to ask for help (and be specific about it too).

  • You know you hate algorithm-like toy questions, but it’s unfortunately necessary in interviewing so work at them until you feel more confident. Do it with a friend because it’s more fun that way.

  • Give yourself a break. (More than just a Kit-Kat bar.) Life can get in the way and emotions and constant rejections can break you down. Sometimes it’s okay to feel a little down in the dumps and let yourself recover after burnouts. Ideally don’t burn yourself out, but learn to pick yourself up quickly by giving yourself space and time to be a real person. Go outside. Vent. Indulge a little. Hang out with friends.

  • Learn to articulate yourself well, and learn how to explain things to a variety of audiences. A lot of engineers out there really struggle with this, so if you conquer this you’re already coming out on top.

  • There are many people out there who are willing to help. It will take initiation on your part via LinkedIn, meetups, etc, but it’s worth finding these people – and thanking them! Be open.

  • Keep doing what you love. Don’t forget to work on side projects for your own sanity and to keep up real engineering skills (unlike algorithm toy problems).


Some Stats

  • 8 months job searching
  • 210+ applications (with AngelList, around 300 total)
  • 16 applications through referrals
  • 52 cover letters (Then I stopped caring, but the cover letters DID make a difference for some jobs.)
  • 30 responses (~10% response rate)
  • 5 offers in total (2 of 5 through referrals)
  • Best offer was more than 2x higher than lowest offer (Yeah… the lowest was pretty low.)


Some Thoughts

It’s been an incredibly long start to my journey (because it’s only just begun); one that’s longer than I had anticipated. Last year has been both the best and the worst in my life. There were moments when I wasn’t sure if I’d make it financially or wasn’t sure if I had what it took, and then there were moments when I knew I had it in me and I was just waiting for someone to give me a chance to prove my worth. I feel lucky in many ways to have landed the opportunities I did, while at other times I felt quite unlucky. For anyone going through this process, I feel you. It’s a rough road, but I’ve met enough people making the transition just as I have, and everyone eventually gets there.

This is just the beginning, but I’m really excited to start and grow into my new career. I have mixed feelings of anxiety, joy, and excitement, and I’m looking forward to what’s to come.

I also meant what I said before when I said I look forward to being a mentor. I am excited more than ever to provide help and guidance to others in the coming years. Even though I am entering a new profession and starting a new job, let me know how I can help.


I start Monday at Heroku!