Forem: natalie stroud

in the midst of grief, nevertheless, natalie coded

natalie stroud — Tue, 10 Mar 2020 02:16:29 +0000

My #SheCoded post from 2019

It has been almost one year since my first post on dev.to, my #SheCoded post. I find there are so many interesting stories told by women - whether it's how they got into tech, or if they're still on the journey, or even what life is like in tech.

A year ago, for my #SheCoded post, I wrote about my love for code and how I was in the middle of my 'Aha!' moment. One year ago was a turning point for becoming serious about what I wanted to do when it came to a career. The thinking and decision making - it was so easy and had been under my nose from a young age. I just kept telling myself to try other things.

One year ago, I was looking to break into tech. I worked for a company, one that revolved around tech, but the job itself was more administrative meets project-based. I knew it wasn't what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

I've come so far in one year. In one year I researched my options, debated on a coding bootcamp, turned it down. In one year, I applied to 153 jobs - anything from Software Developer, Software Engineer, Junior Web Developer, UX, UI, Project Coordinator, Product Designer, Web Designer, HTML Analyst and more. In a year I chipped away at pieces of Udemy courses; dug my heels into Codecademy and freeCodeCamp. I organized event after event for my local Ladies That UX chapter. In one year, I had my first taste of Open Source and completed my first Hacktoberfest. In one year I scrapped my portfolio from school and made one from scratch. I put myself out there, on LinkedIn and Twitter where I somehow landed 2,040 followers (and why that many people follow me, is beyond anything I can fathom). In one year I landed a couple of outside projects too, such as We Give Care. In one year, I've met a handful of new people and made new friends. In one year, I broke into tech.

They say a lot can change in a year, and they're absolutely right. I have so much to be proud of, so much to pat myself on the back for.

In my first #SheCoded post, I wrote with high hopes in my heart - for myself, and my mom. In March of 2019, I felt as though my mom was turning a corner after suffering from a stroke. Today, in my second #SheCoded post, I write with a broken heart from losing my mom to her second stroke.

Losing my mom and breaking into a career I've wanted has been a strange experience. There's a game of Tug of War inside of me - one where I'm both the happiest and saddest I've been in a long time.

Last month, I accepted a role as a Web Accessibility Specialist for a company brimming with passion for #a11y and the many facets it comes with. The company is small yet filled with some of the sweetest and most passionate people I've ever met. Accepting the role, preparing for a CPACC certification, auto and manual testing websites is nothing short of a dream come true to me. The research I took part in in college is paying off - along with my accomplishments, persistence and resilience. I have a job - a life even - revolving around code.

But the heartbreak comes in when I'm reminded that I can't celebrate these achievements with my mom. When at the end of the day, I can't gush over the things I do at work to my mom. There's heartbreak in studying for a certification full of content I'm an expert in - only because I watched all of the torment my mom went through. At the end of the day, I know my work is meaningful and that I'm putting good out into the world. It just hurts sometimes to know that's a world without my mom.

So, with that said...

in the midst of grief, nevertheless, natalie coded.

Why Accessibility is Important to Me

natalie stroud — Thu, 05 Sep 2019 17:26:03 +0000

Disclaimer: I cannot speak on behalf of those with disabilities. This is 100% a viewpoint from someone that loves and cares for someone that’s disabled. I write this as a means of my experiences as a caregiver/emergency contact that has had to learn and adapt to things and someone that wants to continue to learn and be educated about accessibility.

Let’s go back to 2016, my second to last year in college. I took a course called “Introduction to Interactive Media” and had one of the sweetest professors you will ever meet. Before my time in this class, former students will tell you that Adobe Animate (or Adobe Flash/Flash Professional) was taught. Come time for my semester, we began to use the beta version of Google Web Designer. Needless to say - it was pretty glitchy. We’d have these little labs where we’d create animations from stock photos or images of toys on the IKEA website. Hours were spent piecing these things together and when the time came for presenting to the class, your character was bound to lose an arm or a leg. But like I said, we had the sweetest professor ever and she vouched for us in the beginning, letting us know she was aware this might happen.

For our final project of the year, we had to use Google Web Designer but we were allowed to create anything we wanted. A game, an ad, an animated story. I came up with the idea of a website which contained a mobile app. I was inspired by the idea of Kroger’s “ClickList” which was pretty new at the time. I generally liked the idea of something in the eCommerce realm mixed with something like Uber or UberEats. However, the shining star of this project was my mom.

About 6 months to a year before this project, my mom had suffered from numerous seizures which had put her in the hospital for a few days. I won’t go into every waking detail but eventually she was discharged, losing a week of her life memory wise and feeling like she’d been hit by more than one train. As her emergency contact, I was in charge of driving her to the hospital and being there to listen to the doctors, on top of working my 40 hour/week job and going to school full time. Luckily, my mom wasn’t down for the count. The doctors told me the seizures did equate to having a “brain injury” but that she would recover. She was put on a new medicine which has been helping her since. On top of the new medicine, she was put on a 90-day driving restriction for recovery and for the safety of herself and others around her.

I brainstormed my project and on and on all I could think of was my mom. If the restriction had been permanent, how would she get groceries? Being in a secure building, how would she receive them? What’s the safest way to do it? What about other people in her building who were in the same boat? How are they supposed to get groceries? Could their home health representatives obtain them? I was new to all of this and even today I still am. To add to the laundry list of questions and ideas I had regarding the experience, I also contemplated how low-income could be implemented into this. Most of these tenants, my mom included, were locked into a set way of life when it comes to bills and groceries. Sometimes the little corner store up the street is all they have. My next thought: add EBT/WIC/SNAP payment methods. I’d watched my mom use it before in self checkout at the grocery store, why couldn’t you implement it in an app? Or at least propose the idea?

Fast forward to that summer. I finished my Interactive Media course. I took a special topics course on Usability. I’d been looking for internships and unfortunately was rejected from one due to already working a 40 hour/week job. I felt like internships were a must even though I couldn’t find it anywhere in writing. It was this unspoken rule in college that somehow that would get you in the door for everything. That was the golden ticket.

Remember the professor I told you about? The sweetest professor ever? One night while I was chipping away at homework in my hiding spot on campus, I received an email from her addressed to myself and a handful of other students on internships or summer research. I responded back accounting for my experience so far with internships, talking about how I can’t just drop my job, but I’d be willing to work one on top of my job or even do research. We corresponded back and forth about summer research projects and she had stated in all of this how I had been picked because she enjoyed having me in class and really enjoyed my final project from the Interactive Media course. And get this… the summer research? Was on accessibility.

I had no idea what I was getting into. The idea of summer research intrigued me. Plus, research in informatics? What all did that entail? Not to mention I was reeling at the idea that this professor enjoyed my work and saw my value as a student and my value as a future employee wherever I ended up. It never occurred to me that my entrance into accessibility started with this project and more importantly - my mom.

That summer, I was tasked with introducing myself to W3C (World Wide Web Consortium), WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines), Bootstrap, the legal side of accessibility, my school’s website for our library and a test to become a certified (ooh!) research assistant. This project was a sub-project to research that was being conducted by my professor but opened up a whole new world. I became certified. I read the “cliff notes” version of the WCAG but also went into every single detail, every single guideline while auditing the library website (check this out if you want to get an idea). I collected data on how the website fared against WCAG, learned about the contrast checker, ran some automated accessibility tests (WAVE Web AIM, IDI Web Accessibility Checker). I then came up with my own audits, using various accessibility settings on different devices (i.e. iOS VoiceOver, Screen Speech, the screen reader on my Toshiba). I submitted all of my findings to my professor for the project, taught myself some Bootstrap basics and pieced together a small website to showcase everything.

Fast forward to today: it’s been one whole year since my mom suffered from a right temporal stroke. Let me start off on a positive note and say, my mom is doing great. She won’t agree with me, and she doesn’t see it, but trust me when I say she’s doing amazing. I’ll spare the details but at the time, my mom had been hospitalized for 17 days, and then re-hospitalized a day later for dehydration, came home, lost her vision completely, and regained it. There’s about one to two months worth that she doesn’t remember - that she wishes she remembered. This is where everything came full circle. The audits I did on the website? The tools found in our devices that one can use for accessibility? I felt as though I had weirdly trained myself for this without knowing it. I helped my mom and showed her the different settings, what each one did. Practiced using the ones she was comfortable with and set them according to her preferences.

The right temporal stroke has also affected her mobility. Remember me talking about the 90 day driving restrictions? Now it’s permanent. No more driving. Which means no more grocery shopping for herself, no more taking herself to the doctor or getting out. Her sight has come back but she has what’s called “homonymous hemianopsia” which is where one half of your vision field is impacted in each eye (in this case, her left). The hemianopsia is the biggest contributor to the driving restrictions.

As much as I wish I could change things, push a button and fix things for my mom, I can’t. I feel incredibly grateful and so very blessed for her health being the way it is now. The past year has been hard but I find myself taking the time to think about how things were a year ago, and how much worse it could have gone. How much worse I thought it could have gone.

On my journey to becoming hired as a designer or developer (heck, even something for web accessibility!), I’ve realized my project from 2016 is worth revisiting. It’s worth going from prototype to an actual thing. Planning it out. Putting in features I know my mom could use. In the past year her biggest thing is she misses grocery shopping and I’ve realized this is perfect for trying to get the experience back to her. (I should note: yes, I can take her to go shopping but there comes a list of obstacles you encounter by walker/cane plus trying to plan it in my work schedule. The objective is also to help her re-gain independence)

With that said, while I can’t seem to find that button to push, the situation has made me realize what my passion project is. What I enjoy doing. I love accessibility - not just web accessibility but accessibility as a whole. It’s helped me to see the world through my mom’s eyes. The situation has made me realize how I could wrap this into my love for web design and development. How I can contribute and help her and how she continues to inspire me today, just as she always has.

Tubthumping - Chumbawamba

natalie stroud — Wed, 01 May 2019 20:06:26 +0000

Some of you might be thinking, "hey Natalie, it's been awhile!" The rest of you might be thinking "what's with the title?"

Before I clarify, let me just mention you almost got 'Get Up 10 - Cardi B'. I had to gauge my audience, okay?

I'm posting on behalf of some imposter syndrome I'm having today and as of late. For some strange reason the lyrics to Tubthumping popped up in my head: I get knocked down, but I get up again / You are never gonna keep me down. Then it just felt like a personal mantra to how I've been feeling in this whole self taught realm lately.

Let's see, my last post was towards the end of March and it was a HELP ME kind of post. My last real post was a few days before that talking about my mental health and I had this idea for a small series for myself and that train completely derailed.

Since then, I can say I've jumped into JavaScript. I'm not at all an expert, probably whatever counts as less than novice really. I will say it feels good to reach part 3 of what I think is the Front-End Trifecta.

I've also listened to podcasts, I'm day 33 into #100DaysOfCode, I'm 37% done with Colt Steele's bootcamp, I declined an onsite bootcamp, I've had 2 interviews for software dev positions (idk really, I think I blacked out and went on a job application spree) and then crickets, I just installed npm/git/NodeJS today and played around with Vue for the first time (thank you Tyler VanBlargan! @PichuPlayer), I've signed up for probably 3 or 4 slacks, I read, plug away at freeCodeCamp until I have no idea what's going on anymore, and so on.

What I want to talk about is my experience so far on the job side. Now let me preface this by saying 1) I'm aware I'm probably nowhere close to having the skills needed for a junior role, 2) jobs are jobs and if I'm being contacted for something, I should take that with an open and happy heart, and 3) if you're reading this and you think I'm being incredibly whiny, I'm with you. So please excuse me.

Like I said, I've applied for 2 Software Dev roles but sadly, crickets which I take it means I was not selected. I've always had this weird thing where even if I don't have all of the requirements for a job, I'll apply for them anyways. Like in high school. I found an engineering scholarship (I was going to be pre-pharmacy at the time) that nobody had applied for but I went for it anyways. Not sure why really. I figured I needed to apply for something and anything would help. Lo and behold I was the recipient of said scholarship. So I think a lot of that event has been applied to today when it comes to jobs. Plus I always have that "if not now, when?" type of mantra stuck in the back of my head.

So I go for it. I've gone for it to the point lately that it's felt like a hobby. In the first round, after not hearing back from interview #1 and leaving feeling like I knew I wasn't getting the job, after some minor crying I managed to talk myself up and remind myself that they reached out to me (yes, they did! no job application here!) So it felt like I needed to remember this was something I was capable of.

Then comes the second round and I felt even more confident than the last one. Still no answer which I took as a no.

But I'm grateful! I'm so grateful to have even been pulled into these kinds of things even if I could get a glimpse.

Suddenly I've hit a rock where it seems like the junior roles I've found, I've applied for and I tend to hold off on the roles without 'Junior' seated at the beginning. It's like sitting on Facebook, waiting for someone you want to talk to to appear online. I'm doing that with these opportunities.

In another instance, I applied to something and an email preview popped up with a response making me eager. The response was fast so I couldn't help but lean on the positive side of things only to find that I would not be considered. Again, a response is nice! It's something, right?

About an hour or two later, I get an email asking me if I'd be interested in a Customer Service Representative role. This is where you can cue my whining.

I'm sure I should recognize that if I put myself out there, I should be aware that I'm going to receive these kinds of offers that don't always trickle down through the industry I want to be in. Lately I have been bombarded with messages about doing 'Helpdesk Support' (been there, done that) and 'Customer Service' (since day 1).

Call it timing, but I can't help but feel like the series of events felt like a mini slap in the face. Obviously nobody had these intentions, and obviously this is just the way my mind works. Like I said too, I'm aware I'm probably nowhere close to having the skills I need either. That right there should be my wake up call - I'm proficient in customer service but not quite development. But of course, my mind went to the whole 'you're not good enough for a dev job, stick with what you know'

I guess in the long run, I hope someone reads this (whether you're self-taught, a junior, not a junior, a career switcher or not, a CodeNewbie or versed in all things dev) and feels like they can relate. And if so, while I should take my own advice, just know I'm rooting for you. Nothing brightens my day more than those posts about landing that 'dream job' or even just a 'junior role'. I guess because I love seeing people's work pay off and I know I'm waist deep in a community filled with support where lifting others up isn't a skill it just seems to come natural.

Like I said, I'm sure this is pretty complaintive. I apologize if that's how this is seen but I couldn't help but get it off my chest. As I said before, if you're in this and struggling, if you can relate even a little, here's your reminder that someone is rooting for you!

Navbar dropdown doesn't work

natalie stroud — Wed, 27 Mar 2019 20:09:19 +0000

I'm back! (hours later, lol)

This time I have a dropdown in my navbar that doesn't work. I've been on a bootstrap spree today and was trying to create a dropdown in my navbar that shows the various days. I went back and dissected the code to see if maybe I took something out that should've stayed in but nothing jumps out (to my knowledge).

Thanks in advance to those who give feedback! :)

CodePen isn't displaying correct colors

natalie stroud — Wed, 27 Mar 2019 14:57:18 +0000

Hi everyone!

I just finished 'The Image Gallery' project from Colt Steele's Online WebDev bootcamp. Everything turned out the way I wanted while I was coding along and opening up the page in my browser, the colors display correctly. However, when I put the project on CodePen, the colors revert back to black/inverse navbar and gray text.

Any help is appreciated!

Week of March 17 2019

natalie stroud — Sat, 23 Mar 2019 05:38:13 +0000

I just want to let you all know I just found my dashboard on here and 201 of you are following me? Wow! Why? (haha)

I can't believe that. 201 people follow me on here. That means you're going to get notifications anytime I write something right? Maybe?

I hope I don't disappoint.

Well - I wanted to write about my week. Maybe not in huge detail but in terms of coding. So I wrote a post on Monday about Code Newbie Wins, talking about my first post on dev.to and the wonderful feedback I received (which I continue to receive!). My #SheCoded post. I wrote about waking up that Saturday with a crazy handful of inspiration.

I wrote everything I could think of down on my list:

Complete Colt Steele’s Web Dev Online Bootcamp
Projects

Portfolio
Blog
Tech app/form
Re-create pinterest sites
Re-create mom’s stroke site

Re-launch portfolio
~~#100DaysOfCode~~
Apply for Dev jobs
~~Post on dev.to~~
~~Organize, re-establish my Github & Codepen~~
Meetups

So let's break it down.

Monday

Basically all of that pent up inspiration I had? I dove right in. I posted about all of my inspiration here on dev.to and then started organizing my Github page and Codepen. I published my Technician Form on Codepen and began my Portfolio which is still a work in progress. I struggled so much with trying to attempt an image overlay hover which seemed to be something so simple I should know how to do. I also struggled with my nav bar and div spacing because they kept overlapping. Definitely one of the biggest days for frustration on my end.

Tuesday

I still plugged away at my portfolio in between downtime at work. I finally placed 2 projects on Github and reorganized my profile so you can only see my personal projects instead of the plethora of 'school projects' (albeit they're still great). I also started #100DaysOfCode!
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After work I hosted my first Ladies That UX event called "What Makes A UX Portfolio?" It was a huge success! We had a senior recruiter attend, there was lots of networking, and some great Q & A regarding portfolios.
I completed Day 2 of #100DaysOfCode by struggling with some things on the 'dev' page of my portfolio.
Lastly - I wrote a post about going to a coding bootcamp or not. I have an interview with a 'student success coach' but I'm still nervous. About the money. If I can do this. Is it a waste or not?

Wednesday

Kids, take your medicine. To be transparent, I take Lexapro and it is definitely not something you can just skip. I don't know what happened. What made me so overwhelmed. Was it things going on at work? Coding? Both? I know I was feeling frustrated because I felt like I had done so much typing and copying and pasting and attempting to hack away at my portfolio that I just kept telling myself my code wasn't clean. It was messy. I wasn't being original. That an image overlay should be simple and I was messing it up. I contemplated posting another "#help!!!!" post on here but avoided it. I was embarrassed about it and had this thought that someone was bound to be like "why doesn't she get this" so I was determined to figure it out myself.

Article No Longer Available

I tried reading this post by Cat Carbonell which helped a bit, but I was still feeling out of it.
I went home in the middle of the day, after a session at the gym. I bought a bag of Reese's cups and a bag of Baked Lays and chowed down, finishing up with work. I skipped #100DaysOfCode.
Later that night I went to the college service at my church and let me say, it was exactly what I needed. We talked about being 'Confidently Convinced'. To have the mindset of 'winning the game before you even play it'. I'll spare you the whole sermon but it was so refreshing. The pastor discussed living as 'more than conquerors' (Romans 8:37-38) and to start saying "Why not me?" instead of "Why me?"
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Thursday

Onto Day 3 of #100DaysOfCode! I felt a sense of renewal from the night before. Excited to try to get back into the swing of things. It was hard, I felt the lowest I have in awhile but picked right back up. And what do you know? I found the answer to my image overlay problem. I googled 'image overlay code' and played around with code after code after code. I took time to dissect one of the examples I found and fit it around mine. It worked! I also added additional CSS to my Technician Form on Codepen. I updated Github as well!
I still had a setback with work. Long story short, I made a huge mistake. But I notified who I needed to and it was one of those "can't fix it now" but someone was made aware.

Friday

What. A. Week. I reverted back to working on my online bootcamp on Udemy where I'm working on Bootstrap at the moment. The videos work off of v3 and currently, Bootstrap has v4. So it's been fun trying to adjust to that.
I emailed a senior recruiter today as well. Hoping to connect. Maybe reach the path I want to go. A week ago, a recruiter reached out to me about an Entry Level Software Dev job but I can't seem to get more information about this spot. Wednesday I turned down a Level 1 Help Desk job too. I felt pretty bad about it. But also tried to tell myself not to settle. To take a position I want to do. That I deserve to be happy as well.
I didn't do much for side projects but Day 4 of #100DaysOfCode was dedicated to getting back onto the bootcamp horse. Oh, and some March Madness (my team lost).

How was your week? Any wins, challenges? How is your journey going?

Here's to hoping everyone had a wonderful week and enjoys the weekend ahead.

Listening to:

To Bootcamp or Not To Bootcamp

natalie stroud — Tue, 19 Mar 2019 14:32:32 +0000

3/25/2019 3:36PM UPDATE: Welp, spoke with the bootcamp. They were incredibly impressed after asking me what my timeline would look like for working on things. I went into huge detail about using freeCodeCamp, SoloLearn, Udemy, etc. Talking about how I look at jobs but never apply for them because I'm nervous and not as confident. Only thing now is I need to talk to someone about financing which still makes me nervous.

Whenever it was I decided to get serious about coding, I discovered bootcamps. Initially I had done some searching for 'web designer' and 'web developer' (yes, I know, two different things) jobs on LinkedIn and Indeed. I came across one of those 'too good to be true (but I fell for it anyway)' job postings. There was one for a Front End Dev position with no list of languages I needed to know stating the job would start off with paid training. Later I come to find out this includes some kind of contract and shipping off a few states over and it would be a bootcamp-like setting. The plus side? It was free, you were paid. The place would pay for you to move but that just wasn't (still isn't) an option.

So I dove in more into the bootcamp idea and came across one that's two hours away from me. They have a flexible program for those who work full time (or you just need something that works with your schedule) so you wouldn't have to quit your job or drop everything to go in and code, code, code. So I took the bait and started with the process of looking into this bootcamp. My concerns though are the financing (especially with a new-ish car and some student loan debt from college) and the mandatory weekends where I would need to make some kind of arrangement to stay in the bootcamp's city for the weekend (hotel, maybe family?, drive 2 hours to and from both Saturday and Sunday).

As I went through the process though, I took the readiness test. I emailed the admissions rep to confirm I'd completed the test and she said a student success coach would be in contact. A day or so later I talked to my dad about the idea and he stressed to 'be careful'. Days continued to go by and I had heard nothing regarding the bootcamp, making the assumption that maybe I messed up on the readiness test. I chalked it up in my head that maybe no response meant 'no' and to move on.
So I stumbled across Udemy and found Colt Steele's Web Dev Bootcamp which is ultimately A LOT cheaper (and it was on sale when I paid - $11.99!). Before going the bootcamp route, I did my research. Was it a good idea? What could I expect going this route? Should I get my master's instead? Should I do self-taught? I looked the bootcamp up on Course Report, looked at reviews. Compared it to a bootcamp actually in my city (which has no flexible option and is $1000 more).

I guess what I'm saying is, anyone out there with bootcamp experience? If so, did you come across the same 'what ifs'/questions/anxieties? Would you recommend it? Not recommend? Why?

Or...

Are you self-taught? Obtained your masters or undergrad in this area? Why did you choose this route? Did you consider a bootcamp? What are your thoughts on this?

Thank you everyone and happy Tuesday! :)

Nav bar and div spacing

natalie stroud — Mon, 18 Mar 2019 20:16:03 +0000

Hello friends!

I'm in the middle of rebuilding my portfolio. At least to practice with the coding skills thus far and to have something more genuine (the one I have now is made in Adobe Muse :\ )

Would someone mind looking at my code? I'm having trouble where my navbar and div meet for the blog post. I had to insert 4 br tags to get it to space properly but I feel like (or know) there's a better way to do it.

Thanks friends :)

(also, sorry if my code isn't the cleanest)

Code Newbie Wins

natalie stroud — Mon, 18 Mar 2019 15:50:12 +0000

Maybe I'm writing this more for myself, or the coding newbies, or the "used to be" coding newbies, or somebody out there.

Also I apologize in advance if anything within my writing is flighty.

I'm so thankful I stumbled across dev.to. It has not been a week and funny enough I don't remember that "instance" where I first came across this site.

For the first time in what seems like forever, I can say I know what I want to do. Let's be real, that question seems to start the minute we all hit pre-school. What do you want to be when you grow up? I can remember my answers. Dancer, nurse, Girl Scout Leader. Growing up I was a dancer for 13 years, blood makes me queasy so nursing is out, and if I had more time maybe I would be a Girl Scout Leader but I'm not sure it would pay my bills.
School continues and that question intensifies when you're in high school. I remember having departments in high school for the 'career areas' students wanted to be in. I was in VPAM (Visual/Performing Arts & Media - or was it Music?). I had a weird time in school, starting around the 5th and 6th grade and leading up to college. This time in my life influenced me to decide on being a Chem major taking the Pre-Pharmacy track. Two attempts at CHE 121 and a major GPA drop later, I dropped out of college for a year. I was $1000 short with no idea what I wanted to do at that point. But given a small streak of luck, I was able to pay off what I owed and head back to college with a clean slate. I took an exploratory class and went on to major in 'Media Informatics'.

This major was a conglomerate. A collection of classes with 2 tracks in mind - web design and game design. I liked playing video games and I'd had this off/on thing with HTML since I was younger. It was the perfect fit.
To this day I don't regret my choice. I got my hands dirty in almost everything Adobe. But even after graduating and walking across the stage, had I been asked what it is I wanted to do - I couldn't answer. I remember my mom asked me days before graduation, even my dad. All I could say was, "I don't know".

After my #SheCoded post last week and the amazing feedback I've received, I know what I want to do! I want to be a front-end developer. Everything HTML, CSS, and JavaScript (albeit I am terrified), I want to be a part of it. I've never been more sure, nor confident about something like this and it feels great. I made my first post on dev.to. I scooted along some more in Colt's Web Dev Bootcamp. Things are beginning to click in my head where I catch a glimpse of a website and begin thinking about how to code it in my head.

Stop Doing Coding Tutorials

Devon Campbell ・ Mar 9 '19

#beginners #learning #tutorial

Come Saturday, I read this article by Devon Campbell. I left with this crazy amount of inspiration and opened my phone making a mini list of all of these ideas and goals (all dev-related!) I had in my head. All things I wanted to pursue, to keep doing. Complete this online bootcamp, start up all these project ideas I have, re-launch my portfolio, try #100DaysOfCode, apply for dev jobs, write more on dev.to and about my wins.

I guess what I'm trying to say is thank you to dev.to. I know this is post #2, maybe super lengthy, but thank you to everyone who has given me so much feedback. My last post focused so much on Imposter Syndrome and I wanted to write about my wins. Which leads me to #2 - for being such a Code Newbie, I am feeling win after win after win. I know what I want to do and I'm in pursuit of it, I'm accepted but such a wonderful group of people too, I received the opportunity to interview for an Entry Level Software Developer position (say what????), and I put my first project out into the world!

If there is anyone out there new to this like myself, keep pushing through. If you're stuck on coding, no matter what stage you're on, keep going. Take breaks, come back to it. Think about why you started this to begin with. I wish I had started this sooner as it's given me this handful of confidence I've never had and only wish to hold on to. I finally feel like I'm home.

No matter what stage you're in, what are your wins?
How do you continue to stay motivated when you're stuck or down?
What do you tell yourself if you ever end up in a rut?

she's not a developer yet but nevertheless, natalie coded

natalie stroud — Thu, 14 Mar 2019 15:22:42 +0000

Welcome to my first post!

Yes, I know IWD was days ago. I have some major imposter syndrome right now writing this and I may have had the self-deprecating thought that I didn't deserve praise that day.

I'm not a developer. At least, not yet. I first met my friend 'Code' I'd say in 2004 or 2005 on this cute little site called Neopets. All I knew was HTML. CSS and I hadn't become friends yet and I'm still meeting JavaScript. I keep hearing things about React and Node and Vue and the list goes on.

But when I wasn't playing Sims, I was on Neopets. I'd mistaken PaintShop Pro for Photoshop (it still did the trick if you knew how to alter the tutorial. Or if the tutorial writer altered it for you). I was obsessed with the Jonas Brothers (THEY'RE BAAAAAAACK!) I joined these things called "Guilds" and created my own. My dad was a Systems Administrator and had taken computer science courses. He had this nice red binder with all these printouts about HTML he had received from one course.

So I sat in the corner of my room - my nice little JoBros guild layout with boxes and dropping in text. Before all of this I just played around with Notepad. Copying and pasting HTML. Becoming amazed when something popped up in Internet Explorer as if I had written the code myself.

Fast forward to today - I can't tell you the last time I was on Neopets, I still love the Jonas Brothers, and I'm writing post numero uno on dev.to. I feel unworthy of this. I graduated with a Bachelor's in 'Media Informatics' which was geared towards all kinds of design. Game design, web design, UX design, graphic design, you name it. But at my school we also had a design major too.
I'm a project administrator as well. I love my job but in my spare time I find myself coding. And coding. And coding. Albeit 9 times out of 10 it started out with HTML as if I'd been missing something all these years.

I struggled in college with what I wanted to do. I hadn't touched HTML in years or even kept up to date with it. My degree focused plenty on Adobe Creative Suite which I loved and I still love today. But again, I felt like an imposter. I don't feel like a designer but I love design. I don't feel like an artist but I love art. I don't feel like a developer but I love code.

My job has been a wonderful stepping stone right out of college. But I know I've always wanted a career in tech. In design. In coding. SOMETHING. As of late I've been searching for that next step to launch me into my career. A way to tie all of these loose strings I have together. I've updated LinkedIn, applied for jobs, updated my resume, my portfolio and it hasn't been the trick. Recently I applied to be in a coding bootcamp but I'd been so weary. The extra cost, the 2 hour drive to the city. Would I be able to do this with work and taking care of my mom plus any outside activities? What if I failed? Never got the job? Wasted all of that money? I never heard back from admissions after my readiness test and just assumed I didn't make it to the next chapter. Days later I stumbled upon a sale that Udemy was having and now I'm taking Colt Steele's Complete Web Dev Bootcamp.

So here I am. Imposter Syndrome and all. My name is Natalie. I'm a Project Administrator. I co-organize events for 'Ladies That UX'. I'm self-taught, since I was 10 years old. I love the Jonas Brothers (and music in general!). I love this community of women in tech I've recently stumbled upon. I'm a Google (Early) Women Techmaker. I love HTML. I'm loving CSS. I hope to love JavaScript and the plethora of languages I pick up along the way. But most of all I'm an aspiring developer.

she's not a developer yet but nevertheless, natalie coded.

small note: thank you to anyone reading this that made it this far. I've been going back and forth about even writing this since I'm such a newbie. a big thanks to the Google Women Techmaker community that I recently joined. I meet someone new everyday and the questions, the stories, they all inspire me to keep pushing. thank you all of the #shecoded stories too! written and unwritten.