My Cultural Blog Post
I'm an introvert. There I said it. Don't get me wrong, I like people, but I have to spend time on my own to recharge my battery frequently or I'll go insane. The DBC experience scares me because of this. It's also the reason I choose DBC to begin with. To grow as a person and a developer, I must interact with other developers. I feel like DBC's focus on being a professional person first and then a programmer sold me. I've always learned best by doing and I can see myself coming out at the end of this, not just a better programmer, but a better person.
My initial impression about DBC was that of skepticism. I've been self learning programming in a wide verity of frameworks for several years now and I've always felt like I couldn't punch through the barrier that would take me on to being a professional full time programmer. It seems like I cause more bugs than I solve problems some times. How could DBC take me and make me employable in just 9 weeks.
Shereef's story about how he started Dev Bootcamp really resonated with me. I'm an IT guy and I have been for years. Much like Shereef's friend, I too felt stuck in a career where I couldn't do much more or be creative. I first heard Shereef's story when I stumbled upon the Dan Rather report where Shereef told the story. My wife said, "That sounds just like you". She pushed me to accept that I needed to do this and she has been so supportive. Some times it takes someone believing in you to convince you of your potential.
I plan on taking full control of my education at DBC. I plan on being social to the max. I plan on working long hours. I plan on helping others wherever my current knowledge will allow me to do so. I plan on making this a once in a lifetime experience that will be with me forever. I can't afford anything less. I can't go back to being just an IT guy. I can't NOT be creative. I have to build. I have to contribute.
My expectations for DBC have not changed over the last several months. I do believe my expectations of myself have though. I'm tired of being a fixed mindset introverted person. Stuck believing that I can't be some better version of myself. I fully expect that I will be a better person at the end of this.
I'm nervous, scared, excited, and overwhelmed. I feel like I'm somewhere in the middle of the "Two Fears" that Shereef talked about. There are things I feel confident in and there are others that I don't. I'm excited to be immersed in coding. I'm scared I will fail. I'm scared I will succeed. I'm nervous others won't like me. I'm scared I'm to old to fit in with the younger crowd.
I could go on for days but I don't have time. There is so much to do. Shereef's video only made me more sure of my decision. DBC or bust! Go big or go home!