If you're a bird, I'm a bird: Learning to fly as a fledgling dev

Melanie — Tue, 04 Feb 2020 17:19:06 +0000

I'm becoming a web developer. Like a newly hatched bird, I've been pouring HTML, CSS, Javascript, and all the trappings of frontend development down my throat. Sooner then I would like, I'll step off the ledge and see if I can fly.

The process has been intense. Who knew turning into a bird came with so much doubt? Am I really a bird? Do I have what it takes to bird? Will anyone give this bird a job? Give me a minute, I need to google how to flap my wings.

As a fledgling developer, I am often overwhelmed by everything I don't know. There are more languages to speak computer than I know the names of. There are frameworks, best practices, four-year degrees, bootcamps, free resources, popular languages, unpopular languages, and at the end of the day there are flocks of birds who have made it up into the sky.

I watch them with envy. It's hard to imagine that every one of those developers who warm their wings near the sun started where I am now — looking over the edge of a wobbly nest and wondering if I know enough to keep me in the air.

There's only one way to find out. The transition from learning to doing is daunting. But there is no better way to know that I can fly than to feel the wind beneath my wings. Every time I take a leap the panicky flapping of frantic wings gets a little closer to the smooth glides that can carry me up to the sun.

Whether it's beginning the job hunt, starting a tutorial for a new language, or stepping into the networking unknown at a local tech event, I'm getting closer to the developer I want to be. The process is an endless one — there's always more to learn — but luckily my confidence grows with every short flight I take.

Looking up at the sky from my rickety nest, it's hard to imagine the heights I can reach without thinking of the drops, as well. But my true fear is not in the flying, it's at the thought of being stuck on the ground.

Give me a minute to gather my courage. Would you like to jump with me? How else will we learn to fly? Let's count down together shall we? 3...2...1.

Forem: Melanie

If you're a bird, I'm a bird: Learning to fly as a fledgling dev