I want that cyberpunk future where I have massive home server, fully self hosted. I don't trust the cloud, I want to become the cloud. Career wise I am very interested in server architecture, big data pipeline, all that fun stuff. I want to get my hand dirty with physical tech as well as building software. Front end development isn't as important to me, but in the mission to be full stack (and I mean the FULL stack), I still want to develop those skills as well.
I am a solitary problem solver by nature, though I do have collaborative projects with people and am very social, I struggle with relinquishing control. My biggest limitation will definitely be not being right all the time, and not being the one who holds the one and only answer. I wouldn't call myself insufferably controlling, but I'm like halfway there.
As mentioned above, letting other people be in control and letting them figure things out without me butting in will be hard.
Collaborative skills are the number one human skills goal for me. Two (or more) minds, fewer (presumably) machines. Let's go!
Hold me accountable, and tell me if I can do better. Also I hate to be that millenial cliche, but sometimes it's nice to hear when I have done well too.
To be kind, patient with others, and above all, to remember that the code at the end matters, that it works, and not who wrote it.
Ten years spent selling products that people don't really need for more money than they are actually worth has given me the desire to build things, to create and maintain projects that fulfill actual purpose and are worth the resources invested in them. Infrastructure, tools, libraries, the critical bits that everyone needs to be more productive and to help their businesses grow. I don't want to sell the product at the end of a long chain, I want to build the chain.
In practice, this means I am interested in learning about and building technologies that deal with cloud computing and storage systems, distributed systems for large data handling, data processing and integration frameworks, machine learning and AI, etc. I believe these technologies will be seen in the future as a pivotal moment in the history of computing, and that we are very lucky to be living in the moment when we can take full advantage of their emergence. I refuse to be on the outside of a potential new technology revolution.
Being at Dev Academy will help me refine these admittedly overly ambitious goals, and learn the skills I need to get my foot in the door of the tech industry. While I have a vague end point in mind, the steps in between are a mystery to me currently, and I look forward to finding out what they could be.
A lifetime of last minute crunches, and biting off far more than I should be able to chew, has given me the ability to learn fast, on the fly and on the job, and with minimal information. This has given me an uneven approach to learning and work, that I am attempting to rectify.
I have been diagnosed with ADHD, Multiple Sclerosis, depression and general anxiety disorder, so my working memory is impaired at best. Fortunately though I often need to rely on out-of-brain memory assistance (Google et al), my capability for abstract problem solving remains intact.
Communication in structured group environments is the skill I am looking to develop the most, as the places I have worked previously didn't have formal structure, or even well defined goals at times (the many problems of working in small business).
Time management is another ability I would like to refine. I am improving in this regard, but the more expectations around expected timeframes is made clear through practice and example, the better I can hone that.
I have set a schedule to make sure I am working from 9am to 5pm every day, and I have found keeping it as a "work day" is helpful, as it uses the schedule I was used to at my old job. My strategy for a healthy learning environment is the same as my general strategy for any social setting. This will consist of being respectful, calm, and committed to maintaining healthy boundaries and expectations with my peers and mentors. It is important to be flexible and adaptable, and assume that people come from a place of good intention.
I know my "tells" when it comes to stress and overwork due to work with psychiatrists and therapists, and have effective coping strategy for these. They include: Eating, as I probably forgot to have lunch. Mindfulness exercises, writing down what is upsetting me. Taking a walk. Sleeping on it. Asking for help from my partner.
I hope to have the same attitude returned to me in kind, assume I come from a place of good intention, treat me with respect, and define expectations clearly. I will happily message the appropriate channels with any concerns or questions, I am used to being my own advocate.
I have no scheduling conflicts over the next 15 weeks (or beyond that even).
| Wall | Activities |
|---|---|
| Taha Tinana (Physical Wellbeing). | I go for a half hour walk every day, as well as stretches every hour or so. |
| Taha Whānau (Family Wellbeing). | I have dinner with my partner almost every night, and a meal with her family, and my family, roughly once a week. |
| Taha Hinengaro (Emotional and Mental Wellbeing) | I am practicing mindfulness meditation and breathing exercises every day around lunch time. |
| Taha Wairua (Spiritual Wellbeing). | I read every day, and that helps me get into other peoples heads to increase empathy (the closest thing I have to spirituality). |
| Whenua (Interconnections to the land and environment). | Walking around the redzone in Christchurch is the closest I can get to nature easily, but I do it. |