#365DaysofCode

A year ago, I decided to ramp up my coding skills.

A quick intro to my coding knowledge beforehand - I’d worked odd jobs and contracts since I started college in 2010 that involved designing and building websites. I knew HTML and CSS pretty well (thanks to MySpace, really) and some minimal C++ and JavaScript. I was always tasked with updating my company’s Wordpress sites and could do minimal changes, but didn’t know enough to build much from scratch. I have a degree in design and another in information science, so I've been software-adjacent for a long time and learned some things like SQL to work in collection management databases.

In 2022, I worked with my partner to build a digital archive website, which was really my re-entry into coding. I’d worked in museums and archives for nearly a decade and always tried to improve the digital tools and online presence of every institution I worked with. The digital archive idea came about because I felt a lack in presentation tools that were actually intuitive for less-technical people and gave freedom for design and building relationships between information. My partner started to teach me more advanced JS concepts over time, and I started learning on my own as well.

In the spring of 2023, I started a bootcamp for UI/UX and in summer I started a bootcamp for software development. I knew that if I wanted to ramp up my skills quickly, I’d have to be consistent and build on the information I was learning and find ways to use it practically in my project. If you’re curious about the archive project, or my bootcamp experiences, feel free to browse my other blog posts!

365 Days of Code

As part of this ramp up, I decided to participate in a challenge on Twitter for #100DaysofCode when I began my first coding bootcamp. I tried to communicate as much as I could with that bootcamp group and wanted to find a larger community to chat with about learning to code. Once I finished that challenge, I began it again, and eventually it turned into #365DaysofCode. I have learned SO much and connected with some pretty amazing people that I really admire. I recognize that I am an overachiever and tend to make a new goal the SECOND I complete a goal, so I don't often make space to celebrate how far I've come. I wanted to use this space to celebrate all of the amazing things I got to work on and how this past year has really changed my life. It really is rewarding to look at that first day of the challenge and see how far I've come!

Throughout this challenge, I

started and completed a bootcamp with SheCodes

started and completed a workshop with Academind

started and completed a workshop with Kent C Dodds for React

started and completed a series of workshops with Kent C Dodds for Remix

I can't even quantify how many projects I built in this time, I'd guess like 40? Some big, some small. Starting with a simple weather app and ending up with some larger apps for intaking patients, or keeping track of my reading list.

started working for an app agency and completed three client projects using React, Remix, etc. and utilizing those bootcamp skills!

interviewed at maybe 3-4 places before landing a role with a higher education software company - which just blows my mind, I look back like.. what?

finished my digital archive project with my partner, www.bmcyearbook.org which I am so immensely proud of

started a PhD program in the fall, which is also nuts to me... I did some coding while there as well, for digital history projects. I decided academia wasn't the path for me anymore, but I'm still really glad to have had the experience.

spoke at two conferences about software development

connected with some of the coolest people in tech and got to ask questions, get feedback, and was introduced to some great resources, learning platforms, networking events, and well.. even more cool people. I ramped up to a couple thousand followers after just a few months, it's nuts.

started interviewing at Amazon and passed two rounds before deciding FAANG was not my goal. How crazy would it have been though, to end this with a FAANG acceptance :D

As you can probably see, I allowed myself to try new things, found what suited me and what didn't, and learned a lot of cool things along the way. Progress is slow, but I feel like consistency really adds up! I am very grateful to this online community and I'm really proud of myself and every single person I see building in public and pushing themselves to learn new things. This field really inspires me because I see some really driven and creative people that are lifelong learners like me! I'm so happy to see that I've inspired a few others to try out the challenge too, I'm eager to see everyone's progress!