Wow, what a question to be asked so soon into this whole process. It’s still a little hard for me to judge at this point in time because I’m so new to all of this, but I can see myself getting into web development primarily as a front-end developer. So far that’s the main part of all this that interests me the most, but I’ve gone into courses before thinking one thing and came out the end wanting something completely different. Ideally, I want to be able to develop my skills to a certain level where I can confidently travel all over the world and not have to worry about finding work so much. Web development is such a booming industry at the moment and continues to grow every day, so as far as a safety net goes I feel like it’s a pretty good set of skills to have. At the moment though, my main goal is to just get the knowledge and skills to a level where I can confidently walk into a job interview to even begin this new future because as of now, that alone is a pretty big milestone to reach.
I would like to gain more skills such as gaining confidence in a leader’s role. I’ve always been super happy being a team member, following instructions and helping somebody else’s vision come to life, and I still prefer that. But it would be nice to get a feeling of what it’s like to take charge in a situation and feel confident at the same time. I always doubt myself because I’m always so sure that other people will have better methods, ideas, or solutions when working on a project, so I tend to turn down most leadership opportunities. Luckily, it’s never been a problem and never really bothered me, but if I want to work my way up one day and follow the best career path I can, then I definitely need those skills.
My strengths are my communication, my ability to work well with others, and drive to always wanting to learn.
I’ve always had jobs that involved working as a team, so I’d like to say I’ve gotten pretty good at it, and part
of that is because of my communication. If there’s ever an issue, a concern, or even something positive to say,
I believe it’s important to make sure that stuff is known. When it comes to telling a team member they’re doing
well or something they have done is awesome it can really help their morale and continue the drive for them and
the team. And because I’m always wanting to learn, I’m always willing to talk to people for advice, or for help,
or to just share a discussion with so I can help progress both my knowledge and skills.
A limitation I have would be that I tend to not really back myself some times. I tend to compare myself to
others and convince myself that I’m not doing as well as I should be, or that what I’m doing isn’t good enough.
It can sometimes cause me to lose motivation to get through work. Another would be my lack of knowledge. This is
all new to me so it sometimes feels like I’m out of my depth a bit, and that can slow down my work as well.
Sometimes it takes a few goes for me to actually grasp something properly, but once I get it, I know I’m away
flying.
During this programme I’m quite confident that I’ll be able to manage the workload to satisfactory level. And I know this because I hate letting people down, and I hate being the reason something doesn’t work properly. Considering a lot of this work and this course involves working with others, I can see myself having a massive motivation boost when it comes to working on projects to make sure that everybody is happy with the end result. Also, I don’t want to let myself down. I want to make sure I get the most out of this experience and to do so, I need to work hard. However, I know to also not push myself, and to give myself breaks to exercise and clear my head, so I’m not working while my mind is running in empty. I will also communicate with anybody I need to ensure that they know where my head is at, and I with theirs as well. The more aware we are, the better we can work together.
If I find that I am really struggling, I know I have a few options that I can turn to. The facilitators I know
are always there to help when I need it. I will make sure I don’t abuse that to the point where I’m annoying
them, but the fact that I know they are there is always helpful. Other cohort members will be going through
exactly what I am, and talking about our current state of mind can really help, so I will talk to others when I
need to, assuming they are willing to help (I know they’ll be busy too).
Also I have friends and relatives who are always there for me. Some in the industry who can help me take a fresh
look at things from an outsider’s perspective, and just somebody to talk to and take my mind off things for a
bit if I need to relax and take a break.
As for the teamm, I expect them to be happy to help whenever they can. Obviously, I know they have their own lives and I shouldn’t expect anything late at night or on the weekend, but I hope that as soon as they are available to help that they take the opportunity with open arms. For me it’s important to not only get the help when I need it, but to have a good relationship with them as well so I feel like I can talk to them about anything. And I don’t want to feel like I’m bothering them and interrupting their lives, so when we do talk, I hope that we are both in positive mindsets (except when I’m stressing out like crazy).
I don’t have any commitments that should interfere with this course. There might be the occasional birthday or something that will go to, but nothing ongoing that will cause an issue. I will however make going to the gym a priority. This is both for me wanting to stay in shape and to keep healthy, as well as using the chance to give my mind a break and start fresh after pumping some blood. I think it’s the perfect way to split the day, especially when I’m stuck on a problem and need to take an hour or so to clear my mind.