0:00:16.990,0:00:19.170
KATHERINE WU: OK. Cool. I'll guess I'll go[br]ahead and get

0:00:19.170,0:00:20.070
started, then.

0:00:20.920,0:00:24.140
Hi. And, thank you all so much for coming

0:00:24.150,0:00:27.830
to my talk here. I'm K Wu, and I

0:00:27.830,0:00:30.930
started at New Relic just about eight months[br]ago.

0:00:30.930,0:00:34.220
And it's my first developer job there. And[br]for

0:00:34.220,0:00:36.680
my talk today, I'm going to first give a

0:00:36.680,0:00:40.500
bit more context around where I'm coming from[br]and

0:00:40.500,0:00:42.580
my intentions for this talk.

0:00:42.580,0:00:45.170
I'll then dive into what I see as the

0:00:45.170,0:00:49.089
main challenges for being a junior developer,[br]and I'll

0:00:49.089,0:00:51.290
talk about my tactics for how to overcome[br]these

0:00:51.290,0:00:51.909
challenges.

0:00:51.909,0:00:54.370
There is a lot that I want to cover,

0:00:54.370,0:00:56.970
but if you're taking notes and happen to miss

0:00:56.970,0:01:00.250
something, I have written a post for the New

0:01:00.250,0:01:01.920
Relic blog that went up this morning that[br]you

0:01:01.920,0:01:04.750
can reference. And I also have a link to

0:01:04.750,0:01:07.900
my slides at the end.

0:01:07.900,0:01:13.700
So. How many people here are junior developers?[br]OK.

0:01:13.700,0:01:18.240
Awesome. Cool. And how many people did something[br]else

0:01:18.240,0:01:23.820
professionally before they worked as developers?[br]Nice. OK. So

0:01:23.820,0:01:27.000
we are like amongst our own people here, right.

0:01:27.000,0:01:28.450
Very cool.

0:01:28.450,0:01:31.750
For me, being a developer is probably, like,[br]the

0:01:31.750,0:01:35.340
fourth or fifth career I've had at this point.

0:01:35.340,0:01:37.240
It's hard to keep track. Some of the other

0:01:37.240,0:01:39.640
jobs I've had in the past are things like

0:01:39.640,0:01:42.670
product specialist, tech support. I used to[br]work in

0:01:42.670,0:01:44.960
a biology research lab and I also did some

0:01:44.960,0:01:46.670
copy editing on the side.

0:01:46.670,0:01:49.759
So the thing is, compared to people who have

0:01:49.759,0:01:53.780
been coding since they were kids, I am literally

0:01:53.780,0:01:57.890
decades behind. This makes me just feel like[br]I

0:01:57.890,0:02:02.549
have so much to catch up on. However, something

0:02:02.549,0:02:06.420
I've realized is that being a developer is[br]essentially

0:02:06.420,0:02:10.979
about constantly learning new things. And[br]guess what? I'm

0:02:10.979,0:02:14.069
pretty good at that. I'm really practiced[br]at it

0:02:14.069,0:02:16.620
with picking up a new career and starting[br]over

0:02:16.620,0:02:21.100
and over again. And so, despite what my parents

0:02:21.100,0:02:24.090
think, I like to think that my previous lack

0:02:24.090,0:02:27.630
of direction is now an asset.

0:02:27.630,0:02:31.580
The other thing I've realized over the last[br]few

0:02:31.580,0:02:34.110
months is that a lot of it can actually

0:02:34.110,0:02:37.640
have nothing to do with coding. If you spent

0:02:37.640,0:02:41.610
a lot of time doing something besides computer[br]science,

0:02:41.610,0:02:44.340
that means you have more experience for all[br]of

0:02:44.340,0:02:47.860
the non-coding portions, and that means you[br]can leverage

0:02:47.860,0:02:51.200
those skills from that experience to help[br]your team

0:02:51.200,0:02:54.030
while you get better at the technical aspects.

0:02:54.030,0:02:59.180
My thesis is that, just because you switch[br]careers

0:02:59.180,0:03:03.070
doesn't mean you're starting over entirely.[br]And, in fact,

0:03:03.070,0:03:06.040
you can still use those other skills that[br]you

0:03:06.040,0:03:10.160
have. You may already know the different tactics[br]I'll

0:03:10.160,0:03:12.410
be talking about today, so I hope I can

0:03:12.410,0:03:16.080
prompt you to consider new angles and get[br]excited

0:03:16.080,0:03:18.260
to apply them as a junior developer.

0:03:18.260,0:03:21.230
There will be sections that are actually more[br]targeted

0:03:21.230,0:03:24.520
towards mentors, but, if you have a mentor[br]but

0:03:24.520,0:03:27.200
he or she doesn't happen to be here today,

0:03:27.200,0:03:28.960
maybe you can bring some of these ideas back

0:03:28.960,0:03:31.160
to them and discuss it.

0:03:31.160,0:03:33.320
For senior, any senior developers that might[br]be in

0:03:33.320,0:03:35.760
the audience, I hope to help you remember[br]what

0:03:35.760,0:03:38.930
it feels like to be on that junior side

0:03:38.930,0:03:41.940
of the mentoring relationship, and think about[br]ways that

0:03:41.940,0:03:44.960
you can help your proteges feel valued in[br]a

0:03:44.960,0:03:49.430
very concrete kind of way.

0:03:49.430,0:03:51.560
I think there are two big reasons for why

0:03:51.560,0:03:57.310
it's hard to be a junior developer. First,[br]there's

0:03:57.310,0:03:59.590
a ridiculous amount to learn. How many people[br]feel

0:03:59.590,0:04:05.000
like that? Yeah. Like, pretty much everyone[br]here. Cool.

0:04:05.000,0:04:07.880
Second, I think it's also really hard to know

0:04:07.880,0:04:10.870
how you can help your team and not just

0:04:10.870,0:04:16.000
feel like this helpless little baby bird here.

0:04:16.000,0:04:18.589
I'll talk a little bit about these challenges[br]and

0:04:18.589,0:04:21.529
how to handle each of them in turn.

0:04:21.529,0:04:26.340
My three step, fool-proof plan to tackling[br]the fact

0:04:26.340,0:04:29.160
that there's a ridiculous amount to learn,[br]is really

0:04:29.160,0:04:31.789
all about not trying to do it all just

0:04:31.789,0:04:34.650
on your own.

0:04:34.650,0:04:36.300
Getting people to want to help you in the

0:04:36.300,0:04:38.289
first place can be a little bit of a

0:04:38.289,0:04:41.849
hurdle sometimes, depending on how supportive[br]an environment you

0:04:41.849,0:04:44.499
happen to be in. I've been really lucky at

0:04:44.499,0:04:46.900
New Relic. But I think there are always things

0:04:46.900,0:04:48.999
that you can do even if you feel a

0:04:48.999,0:04:50.199
bit more isolated.

0:04:50.199,0:04:53.550
People, fundamentally, just aren't all that[br]different wherever you

0:04:53.550,0:04:58.550
go. A lot of this boils down to so-called

0:04:58.550,0:05:02.300
building relationships. But I prefer to think[br]about it

0:05:02.300,0:05:05.449
as really just getting to know people and[br]making

0:05:05.449,0:05:10.770
friends. Because, of course, friendship is[br]magic.

0:05:10.770,0:05:14.840
I personally find this pretty hard, because[br]I'm actually

0:05:14.840,0:05:18.840
a pretty strong introvert. I fully expect[br]to spend

0:05:18.840,0:05:21.900
most of tonight, like, huddled in a ball,[br]like,

0:05:21.900,0:05:26.050
trying to recover from today. But, you know,[br]the

0:05:26.050,0:05:27.919
thing is, a lot of developers, by and large,

0:05:27.919,0:05:31.099
are also pretty introverted as well. And so[br]sometimes

0:05:31.099,0:05:32.770
it can be hard to try to get the

0:05:32.770,0:05:36.240
conversation going. You know, even if you,[br]you know,

0:05:36.240,0:05:38.199
both really want to connect.

0:05:38.199,0:05:41.469
Luckily, at my last job, I worked with PM

0:05:41.469,0:05:46.129
and engineering and came up with a few hacks.

0:05:46.129,0:05:48.849
What I do is I try and pay attention

0:05:48.849,0:05:51.719
to, to try to remember small details that[br]people

0:05:51.719,0:05:55.129
have told me. Especially about their lives[br]outside of

0:05:55.129,0:05:58.180
work. Sometimes it's actually even easier[br]for me to

0:05:58.180,0:06:02.689
remember these details than peoples' names.[br]But usually people

0:06:02.689,0:06:05.659
are pretty forgiving once I tell them, I do

0:06:05.659,0:06:09.240
actually remember talking to them for like[br]two hours

0:06:09.240,0:06:13.729
about their love for, like, antique banjo[br]collecting or

0:06:13.729,0:06:16.300
something like that.

0:06:16.300,0:06:18.539
This makes for much better conversations than[br]your typical

0:06:18.539,0:06:24.099
small talk. Another really dorky thing that[br]I do,

0:06:24.099,0:06:28.349
is that I actually sometimes mentally prepare[br]stories to

0:06:28.349,0:06:32.199
get a conversation going. Like, right after[br]a weekend,

0:06:32.199,0:06:35.009
I'll try to think of something interesting[br]or odd

0:06:35.009,0:06:37.569
that I did, so that I'll have a non-generic

0:06:37.569,0:06:40.849
answer ready for when someone asks, how was[br]your

0:06:40.849,0:06:42.110
weekend?

0:06:42.110,0:06:44.759
Otherwise I just kind of freeze up and just

0:06:44.759,0:06:47.370
say, oh, good, which is kind of a boring

0:06:47.370,0:06:50.590
answer and doesn't really get conversations[br]started. Does anybody

0:06:50.590,0:06:55.249
else have that knee-jerk reaction sometimes?[br]Yeah. Totally.

0:06:55.249,0:06:58.689
Well, with a story to tell, what I find

0:06:58.689,0:07:01.479
is that this can then prompt questions and[br]get

0:07:01.479,0:07:04.729
some back and forth started, which breaks[br]through any

0:07:04.729,0:07:06.430
awkwardness there might be.

0:07:06.430,0:07:11.669
Helping break through awkwardness is also[br]something that mentors

0:07:11.669,0:07:14.240
can do a lot to help with. Mentors are

0:07:14.240,0:07:18.050
really great for guiding newbies around team[br]culture and

0:07:18.050,0:07:22.610
history. They can help make introductions[br]and give advice

0:07:22.610,0:07:25.319
on how to approach other people. Like, what[br]the

0:07:25.319,0:07:27.919
two of you may have in common, or who's

0:07:27.919,0:07:31.050
a good person to ask about what.

0:07:31.050,0:07:34.479
Also, I think that if your company has a

0:07:34.479,0:07:38.150
support team, you should definitely make some[br]good friends

0:07:38.150,0:07:41.909
there. Support tends to be a little bit chronically

0:07:41.909,0:07:45.139
undervalued, but they probably know way more[br]about the

0:07:45.139,0:07:47.659
products than you do. And if you think about

0:07:47.659,0:07:51.849
it, they're very practised at explaining the[br]product to

0:07:51.849,0:07:53.839
newbies like your fellow customers.

0:07:53.839,0:07:56.620
When I worked in tech support, sometimes they[br]would

0:07:56.620,0:08:00.339
have engineers shadow us so that engineers[br]could learn

0:08:00.339,0:08:03.169
how the customers actually used our product,[br]and use

0:08:03.169,0:08:06.419
it to inform design decisions that they might[br]have.

0:08:06.419,0:08:09.669
And I definitely always really preferred the[br]engineers that

0:08:09.669,0:08:14.189
were really eager to learn from me.

0:08:14.189,0:08:16.360
Another key component to getting people to[br]want to

0:08:16.360,0:08:20.249
help you is to demonstrate the time that they're

0:08:20.249,0:08:23.710
taking. And so that you took a reasonable[br]amount

0:08:23.710,0:08:25.849
of time to get as far as you could

0:08:25.849,0:08:29.770
on your own. Each time someone helps you,[br]you'll

0:08:29.770,0:08:32.349
be able to learn new tactics and push yourself

0:08:32.349,0:08:35.039
just a little bit further before the next[br]time

0:08:35.039,0:08:37.820
you have to ask a question again.

0:08:37.820,0:08:39.679
When you do ask for help, you can also

0:08:39.679,0:08:43.080
ask questions like, if you're busy, who else[br]could

0:08:43.080,0:08:47.130
I talk to about this? When someone does help

0:08:47.130,0:08:51.220
you, you can always end with asking something[br]like,

0:08:51.220,0:08:52.930
is there somewhere I could have found this[br]answer

0:08:52.930,0:08:56.240
on my own? And if the answer is no

0:08:56.240,0:08:58.370
and there isn't any good reason it doesn't[br]exist

0:08:58.370,0:09:01.139
already, you should add it.

0:09:01.139,0:09:04.970
When you do have someone's time, try and think

0:09:04.970,0:09:08.040
of ways to sort of push out and extend

0:09:08.040,0:09:10.490
what you're learning from them at that point[br]in

0:09:10.490,0:09:13.360
time. That way, you'll be equipped when a[br]variation

0:09:13.360,0:09:16.910
of that same question comes up again.

0:09:16.910,0:09:20.370
Lastly, for getting people to want to help[br]you,

0:09:20.370,0:09:23.529
something just as simple as showing your appreciation[br]really

0:09:23.529,0:09:27.180
goes a long way. Great mentors and teachers[br]would,

0:09:27.180,0:09:30.690
of course, probably do it regardless, but[br]I just

0:09:30.690,0:09:34.259
think it never hurts to make people feel extra

0:09:34.259,0:09:38.779
good about doing something that helps you.[br]Making sure

0:09:38.779,0:09:40.839
to notice when people have gone out of their

0:09:40.839,0:09:44.750
way to help you encourages more of that to

0:09:44.750,0:09:46.190
happen.

0:09:46.190,0:09:48.620
If you're working somewhere that's big enough,[br]where not

0:09:48.620,0:09:51.750
everyone knows what everyone else is doing,[br]you can

0:09:51.750,0:09:54.459
also do things like, let peoples' managers[br]know when

0:09:54.459,0:09:58.720
they've been particularly helpful. Most managers[br]like hearing good

0:09:58.720,0:10:01.589
things about their reports, and most people[br]like their

0:10:01.589,0:10:03.610
managers to now the good things they've done[br]for

0:10:03.610,0:10:05.630
the team. So it's just a nice thing to

0:10:05.630,0:10:10.459
do all around. We've covered step one now[br]of

0:10:10.459,0:10:17.459
getting people to want to help you.

0:10:17.649,0:10:19.750
Step two is make it easy for them to

0:10:19.750,0:10:25.290
help. Help them help you. There are a few

0:10:25.290,0:10:29.560
different ways you can do this. I think actually

0:10:29.560,0:10:32.230
that one of the hardest parts to learning[br]is

0:10:32.230,0:10:36.440
just letting people see inside your head and[br]understand

0:10:36.440,0:10:38.889
where you're at right now. But this can be

0:10:38.889,0:10:42.089
really hard in a field like programming, where[br]sometimes

0:10:42.089,0:10:44.880
you might not even have the vocabulary to[br]express

0:10:44.880,0:10:47.899
what it is that you don't understand because[br]you

0:10:47.899,0:10:50.240
don't understand it.

0:10:50.240,0:10:52.019
Great teachers can draw it out from you, even

0:10:52.019,0:10:55.190
when you're asking pretty vague questions.[br]But most people

0:10:55.190,0:10:59.279
that you work with probably aren't highly[br]trained teachers.

0:10:59.279,0:11:00.709
So there are ways that you can make it

0:11:00.709,0:11:03.370
easier for others to help you by articulating[br]the

0:11:03.370,0:11:06.380
premises that you're working off of and the[br]logic

0:11:06.380,0:11:09.560
that you're using, so that together, you can[br]narrow

0:11:09.560,0:11:12.399
down what it is that you don't understand[br]or

0:11:12.399,0:11:14.420
are missing.

0:11:14.420,0:11:17.139
You can say things like, you had me up

0:11:17.139,0:11:22.529
until such and such a point, or I'm confused,

0:11:22.529,0:11:25.699
because I thought you said this and then this,

0:11:25.699,0:11:28.589
but it doesn't seem to lead to this point.

0:11:28.589,0:11:34.209
This is a good general format for describing[br]problems

0:11:34.209,0:11:36.769
that you might have. Say what you're trying[br]to

0:11:36.769,0:11:39.750
do and why, so that someone can jump in

0:11:39.750,0:11:42.199
if that's not even actually the right goal[br]to

0:11:42.199,0:11:44.630
be aiming for in the first place.

0:11:44.630,0:11:48.550
Also, describe your current problem and what[br]you've tried

0:11:48.550,0:11:52.050
already. Sometimes people might jump in quickly[br]with their

0:11:52.050,0:11:54.319
idea of what the answer to your question is

0:11:54.319,0:11:57.110
already, but I think it's still good to be

0:11:57.110,0:12:01.380
prepared regardless. And if you're a mentor,[br]just consider

0:12:01.380,0:12:03.250
that you should check to make sure that you

0:12:03.250,0:12:06.259
understand the question before you go ahead[br]and answer

0:12:06.259,0:12:08.190
it.

0:12:08.190,0:12:09.980
When I worked in tech support, the best clients

0:12:09.980,0:12:12.740
actually put all of this information up front[br]in

0:12:12.740,0:12:15.310
their ticket, which saved us a ton of time

0:12:15.310,0:12:17.759
on the back and forth from just trying to

0:12:17.759,0:12:22.329
even figure out what the question was.

0:12:22.329,0:12:25.500
Remember that just having the courage to say[br]I

0:12:25.500,0:12:30.100
don't know is a strength. Exposing your own[br]ignorance

0:12:30.100,0:12:34.319
feels really scary. So I'm always practicing[br]actually saying

0:12:34.319,0:12:38.420
things like, wait, I don't even know what[br]that

0:12:38.420,0:12:40.949
words means. I say this all the time.

0:12:40.949,0:12:44.509
But if it's something that's vital to understanding[br]what

0:12:44.509,0:12:47.660
people are talking about, the sooner I tell[br]people

0:12:47.660,0:12:50.470
I don't actually know what's going on, the[br]sooner

0:12:50.470,0:12:53.920
I can get to actually learning and working.

0:12:53.920,0:12:57.670
Of all the advice I got when I started

0:12:57.670,0:13:01.110
at New Relic, this one is my very favorite.

0:13:01.110,0:13:04.709
One of the best things that mentors can do

0:13:04.709,0:13:08.519
when junior developers are confused is even[br]just validating

0:13:08.519,0:13:11.769
that feeling. Being honest, and saying, this[br]is confusing

0:13:11.769,0:13:16.199
for me too. It always, without fail, makes[br]me

0:13:16.199,0:13:18.829
feel better when someone I expect to know[br]the

0:13:18.829,0:13:23.790
answer actually says they don't know it either.

0:13:23.790,0:13:26.199
And then it becomes this team effort to figure

0:13:26.199,0:13:28.069
out how to get out of this hole of

0:13:28.069,0:13:32.129
ignorance together. It's also cool because[br]when you work

0:13:32.129,0:13:34.899
with someone that also doesn't know the answer,[br]you'll

0:13:34.899,0:13:37.750
frequently learn new debugging techniques[br]that you can apply

0:13:37.750,0:13:39.899
yourself next time.

0:13:39.899,0:13:43.670
Now, I want you to think back to the

0:13:43.670,0:13:50.670
last few times you asked someone for help.[br]OK.

0:13:54.279,0:13:56.560
How many of you, after you got help from

0:13:56.560,0:14:00.329
someone, heard something from them that was[br]like, did

0:14:00.329,0:14:05.470
that help? A few people. Yeah. I get this

0:14:05.470,0:14:07.930
all the time. And I realized that this is

0:14:07.930,0:14:11.620
because most of us are really needy and want

0:14:11.620,0:14:15.560
validation. That's because, and so, my favorite[br]feedback that

0:14:15.560,0:14:18.870
I get from people is usually people telling[br]me

0:14:18.870,0:14:22.290
that they actually used any advice that I[br]gave

0:14:22.290,0:14:22.759
them.

0:14:22.759,0:14:24.949
So when you tell people specifically what[br]it is

0:14:24.949,0:14:27.279
they did that helped you, they'll know what[br]they

0:14:27.279,0:14:32.029
can do more of. For example, it really helped

0:14:32.029,0:14:34.829
me when you walked me through how to use

0:14:34.829,0:14:39.310
these tools with this example. Or, it really[br]helps

0:14:39.310,0:14:42.230
me to be the driver when we pair program,

0:14:42.230,0:14:45.360
because I absorb more than when I'm just shadowing.

0:14:45.360,0:14:49.910
One way of looking at mentoring relationships[br]that I

0:14:49.910,0:14:52.079
really like is from the book club that we

0:14:52.079,0:14:54.410
had at New Relic when I first started called

0:14:54.410,0:14:59.680
Managers as Mentors. The idea there is that[br]mentoring

0:14:59.680,0:15:03.029
should not be about this traditional mindset[br]of a

0:15:03.029,0:15:08.500
one-way transmission of information. And instead,[br]it's the mentor's

0:15:08.500,0:15:12.670
responsibility to create a safe environment[br]and remove any

0:15:12.670,0:15:16.269
barriers to learning, so that their mentees[br]can speak

0:15:16.269,0:15:19.240
up about any fears they might have, and not

0:15:19.240,0:15:22.329
be afraid of failing.

0:15:22.329,0:15:25.000
This way, they can learn a lot more and

0:15:25.000,0:15:26.430
a lot faster.

0:15:26.430,0:15:31.199
I know, for me, making the move from just

0:15:31.199,0:15:34.199
working on my own projects that no one was

0:15:34.199,0:15:38.740
depending on to working on something that[br]actual people

0:15:38.740,0:15:43.899
were paying us actual money for was pretty[br]terrifying.

0:15:43.899,0:15:48.560
Sure, we have this idea of failing fast, but

0:15:48.560,0:15:50.560
it's so hard to apply it when you don't

0:15:50.560,0:15:52.620
feel secure.

0:15:52.620,0:15:55.740
What helped me was all the support that I

0:15:55.740,0:15:58.899
got from mentors sharing their stories about[br]how they'd

0:15:58.899,0:16:01.910
messed things up, too, and the idea that it's

0:16:01.910,0:16:05.329
not a matter of if you break production, but

0:16:05.329,0:16:07.810
when.

0:16:07.810,0:16:10.980
And when you do make mistakes, your team should

0:16:10.980,0:16:14.019
have processes set up in place to make it

0:16:14.019,0:16:16.790
easy to recover quickly and ways to try to

0:16:16.790,0:16:20.730
prevent that same mistake from happening again.[br]If none

0:16:20.730,0:16:23.529
of these processes exist already, you should[br]try to

0:16:23.529,0:16:27.680
help establish them. Because if just one person[br]can

0:16:27.680,0:16:31.680
ruin everything, that's a pretty big problem[br]for the

0:16:31.680,0:16:33.439
entire team.

0:16:33.439,0:16:37.550
Something I'm a really big fan of, as well,

0:16:37.550,0:16:41.110
is just having a direct conversation up front[br]about

0:16:41.110,0:16:44.439
someone's learning style along with the other[br]person's teaching

0:16:44.439,0:16:47.470
style. This way you can try to sync them

0:16:47.470,0:16:51.060
up and talk through any mismatches ahead of[br]time

0:16:51.060,0:16:54.610
before there's any conflict. It's great when[br]mentors show

0:16:54.610,0:16:57.249
that they're open to feedback along the way[br]as

0:16:57.249,0:17:00.230
well, so that they can continue iterating[br]and adapting

0:17:00.230,0:17:03.839
their style to match whatever will help the[br]junior

0:17:03.839,0:17:05.250
learn best.

0:17:05.250,0:17:08.819
It's also really important to talk about how[br]you

0:17:08.819,0:17:12.770
prefer to be interrupted. My mentor at New[br]Relic,

0:17:12.770,0:17:15.329
David, told me that I could interrupt him[br]pretty

0:17:15.329,0:17:19.140
much any time. And because he was really clear

0:17:19.140,0:17:21.569
and direct with me when he couldn't help me

0:17:21.569,0:17:23.929
right then, and still always gave me some[br]other

0:17:23.929,0:17:27.689
resource to try, I had that much more confidence

0:17:27.689,0:17:31.220
in it being OK to interrupt rather than bottling

0:17:31.220,0:17:33.409
it all up and just saving it for our

0:17:33.409,0:17:37.470
designated weekly meetings.

0:17:37.470,0:17:40.679
When I started, David's desk was right next[br]to

0:17:40.679,0:17:42.789
mine, so that even when I was talking to

0:17:42.789,0:17:46.370
other people, he could sort of lightly listen[br]in

0:17:46.370,0:17:48.640
and jump in whenever it was clear to him

0:17:48.640,0:17:52.980
that I was missing something fundamental.[br]As my mentor,

0:17:52.980,0:17:56.169
he had a better overall understanding of where[br]my

0:17:56.169,0:17:59.279
knowledge level was at, so he could help others

0:17:59.279,0:18:02.559
help me, too.

0:18:02.559,0:18:06.200
If, as a mentor, part of your philosophy is

0:18:06.200,0:18:09.640
to let people struggle, this is also something[br]that's

0:18:09.640,0:18:12.440
good to make clear up front. It's really good

0:18:12.440,0:18:15.190
to talk about this, because that way, you[br]can

0:18:15.190,0:18:17.710
let the juniors know that you are intentionally[br]doing

0:18:17.710,0:18:19.929
this. And it is out of a faith in

0:18:19.929,0:18:23.100
them, rather than setting them up to fail[br]or

0:18:23.100,0:18:26.400
having misplaced expectations.

0:18:26.400,0:18:29.279
Just being reminded that you expect this to[br]be

0:18:29.279,0:18:32.630
hard goes really far towards dispelling any[br]sense of

0:18:32.630,0:18:36.279
impostor syndrome, where you might have this[br]sinking feeling

0:18:36.279,0:18:39.480
that it should be easier. But that's wrong.[br]It's

0:18:39.480,0:18:41.750
supposed to be hard.

0:18:41.750,0:18:45.299
Finally, I think it's ideal if you can push

0:18:45.299,0:18:49.409
up responsibility for deadlines. The junior[br]developer's job is

0:18:49.409,0:18:51.600
to keep everyone up to date so that no

0:18:51.600,0:18:53.970
one is surprised by how much work is left

0:18:53.970,0:18:57.250
to do. On one project, a couple months ago,

0:18:57.250,0:18:59.950
when I was freaking out because I felt like

0:18:59.950,0:19:02.390
it was taking me forever to learn even just

0:19:02.390,0:19:05.700
the basics of D3, one of our project managers

0:19:05.700,0:19:08.809
came to me and said that shuffling resources[br]is

0:19:08.809,0:19:11.370
his job, so that I could go back to

0:19:11.370,0:19:14.450
learning and struggling. And if at any point[br]the

0:19:14.450,0:19:17.880
project deadline was in danger, the burden[br]wasn't entirely

0:19:17.880,0:19:19.600
on my shoulders.

0:19:19.600,0:19:25.809
Now we have covered these first two steps.

0:19:25.809,0:19:27.529
We are just a little bit halfway through.[br]So

0:19:27.529,0:19:29.520
I just want to take a real quick break.

0:19:29.520,0:19:31.890
Humor me. If you could all just sort of

0:19:31.890,0:19:35.309
sit forward in your chairs a little bit. Thank

0:19:35.309,0:19:37.480
you. And go ahead and just put your arms

0:19:37.480,0:19:40.480
behind your back like this. And just try to

0:19:40.480,0:19:43.140
stretch and pull your shoulders down and back[br]a

0:19:43.140,0:19:45.610
little bit. Just try to counteract a little[br]bit

0:19:45.610,0:19:48.890
of the terrible posture a lot of us probably

0:19:48.890,0:19:52.419
have over a hunched over computer. OK. Cool.

0:19:52.419,0:19:55.400
Feels better. I do this a lot when we

0:19:55.400,0:19:57.529
do stand ups actually, because it's like a[br]good

0:19:57.529,0:20:00.350
time as any to stretch and be slightly more

0:20:00.350,0:20:01.200
ergonomic.

0:20:01.200,0:20:07.220
All right. Back to where we were.

0:20:07.220,0:20:09.480
The final step in tackling how much there[br]is

0:20:09.480,0:20:12.340
to learn is much like how you'd approach any

0:20:12.340,0:20:17.529
other gnarly technical problem. Narrow your[br]scope. Mentors are

0:20:17.529,0:20:21.130
highly helpful here, too, because they can[br]help prioritize

0:20:21.130,0:20:23.179
what to learn next.

0:20:23.179,0:20:25.770
For example, one of my things is that I

0:20:25.770,0:20:28.260
still actually need to build a Rails app from

0:20:28.260,0:20:33.669
the beginning. Know that it's important to[br]deliver recommendations

0:20:33.669,0:20:36.919
at the right time. If a mentor gets really

0:20:36.919,0:20:39.610
excited about yet another new thing to add[br]to

0:20:39.610,0:20:42.620
the junior developer's plate and just sort[br]of blurts

0:20:42.620,0:20:45.630
it out right then, this can sometimes be taken

0:20:45.630,0:20:48.899
a little bit like, wow, it must be really

0:20:48.899,0:20:51.090
important to be told right away that I need

0:20:51.090,0:20:54.809
to know this. Maybe I should know this already?

0:20:54.809,0:20:57.250
Which at least, for me, can sometimes lead[br]to

0:20:57.250,0:21:02.770
a little bit of a death spiral of self-doubt.

0:21:02.770,0:21:05.010
You also have to match up learning style with

0:21:05.010,0:21:09.570
the tutorial style. This is important, because[br]a lot

0:21:09.570,0:21:16.270
of programming tutorials, well, they're kind[br]of like this.

0:21:16.270,0:21:20.140
How to draw an owl. Step one, draw some

0:21:20.140,0:21:23.750
circles. Step two, draw the rest of the owl.

0:21:23.750,0:21:25.690
How many people have done tutorials that are[br]like

0:21:25.690,0:21:28.220
this? Yeah.

0:21:28.220,0:21:34.510
Well, even on more detailed tutorials, there[br]are differences,

0:21:34.510,0:21:38.409
like whether the work is goal-oriented or[br]not. For

0:21:38.409,0:21:41.289
me, it's actually harder to stay motivated[br]when I

0:21:41.289,0:21:43.850
don't have a specific thing that I'm trying[br]to

0:21:43.850,0:21:48.860
accomplish. I like structure and being too[br]free-form actually

0:21:48.860,0:21:52.350
means that I'll get bored. For example, I[br]took

0:21:52.350,0:21:54.970
calculus in high school. And it was fun and

0:21:54.970,0:21:55.360
interesting.

0:21:55.360,0:21:58.750
But it wasn't until I took physics in college

0:21:58.750,0:22:02.510
that I was like, oh, that's what calculus[br]was

0:22:02.510,0:22:06.860
invented for. But that's just me. And other[br]people

0:22:06.860,0:22:10.309
might be similar or very different.

0:22:10.309,0:22:14.179
Also, in terms of content, my personal view[br]is

0:22:14.179,0:22:17.470
that the highest value areas are things like[br]team

0:22:17.470,0:22:21.230
processes for code review and version control[br]like git.

0:22:21.230,0:22:25.470
And specific product, product knowledge over[br]more generalized programming

0:22:25.470,0:22:28.159
knowledge.

0:22:28.159,0:22:30.470
This might be a bit controversial, but I think

0:22:30.470,0:22:34.010
less useful are actually things like getting[br]too much

0:22:34.010,0:22:37.669
into optimizing your tools and environment.[br]Or even learning

0:22:37.669,0:22:42.049
tons of keyboard short cuts. At least to start.

0:22:42.049,0:22:45.419
Keyboard short cuts are fun and useful, but[br]let's

0:22:45.419,0:22:49.130
be honest. Right now, how fast I can type

0:22:49.130,0:22:51.890
is not the limiting factor in how fast I

0:22:51.890,0:22:53.700
can complete a feature.

0:22:53.700,0:22:57.450
So that wraps up my ideas for how to

0:22:57.450,0:22:59.840
tackle this first challenge of how there's[br]so much

0:22:59.840,0:23:03.570
to learn as a junior developer. Next, I'll[br]talk

0:23:03.570,0:23:05.990
about ways that even junior developers can[br]help their

0:23:05.990,0:23:08.340
team immediately.

0:23:08.340,0:23:15.340
Knowing how to help your team is hard because

0:23:16.350,0:23:18.669
maybe you feel like you're a drag on your

0:23:18.669,0:23:21.669
team's productivity with how much help you[br]need right

0:23:21.669,0:23:24.559
then. How many people have felt like this?

0:23:24.559,0:23:29.419
Well, in one of the first conversations that[br]David

0:23:29.419,0:23:31.809
and I had, I actually pretty much just straight

0:23:31.809,0:23:35.279
up asked him, how did you get stuck with

0:23:35.279,0:23:39.880
me? To his and New Relic's everlasting credit,[br]he

0:23:39.880,0:23:42.640
immediately reassured me that it wasn't that[br]he got

0:23:42.640,0:23:45.440
stuck with me, but that he wanted to learn

0:23:45.440,0:23:48.240
to be a good mentor himself. So it was

0:23:48.240,0:23:52.279
from there that I realized, ah, even my ignorance

0:23:52.279,0:23:54.750
can be helpful for the team when it gives

0:23:54.750,0:23:58.789
them opportunities to practice things like[br]mentoring.

0:23:58.789,0:24:02.720
Also, even if you are a junior developer,[br]your

0:24:02.720,0:24:07.919
technical contributions are still important.[br]Yes, you may be

0:24:07.919,0:24:11.890
working on features that someone else may[br]make faster,

0:24:11.890,0:24:14.429
but in a world where there is never enough

0:24:14.429,0:24:16.510
junior developers for all of the, you know,[br]or

0:24:16.510,0:24:19.059
just developers in general, for all the developer[br]jobs

0:24:19.059,0:24:22.350
that are out there, it's not actually necessarily[br]a

0:24:22.350,0:24:26.679
choice between a junior developer building[br]it slowly and

0:24:26.679,0:24:29.549
a senior developer building it really quickly.[br]It's a

0:24:29.549,0:24:32.940
choice between having something built and[br]not having it

0:24:32.940,0:24:36.279
at all.

0:24:36.279,0:24:38.909
Don't forget, either, that everyone started[br]out at your

0:24:38.909,0:24:41.510
point at some, at some point, and you won't

0:24:41.510,0:24:44.710
be at your current stage forever. As my southern

0:24:44.710,0:24:47.809
friend likes to drawl, no one comes out of

0:24:47.809,0:24:51.460
their mama's womb knowing how to code. Just[br]think

0:24:51.460,0:24:55.159
about that for a minute.

0:24:55.159,0:25:00.559
So onwards to some of the other non-technical[br]ways

0:25:00.559,0:25:03.820
you can help your team right away. First,[br]I

0:25:03.820,0:25:08.779
really strongly believe that questions are[br]basically the junior

0:25:08.779,0:25:12.179
developer's super power, and as we all know,[br]with

0:25:12.179,0:25:16.919
great power comes great responsibility. Fresh[br]eyes are helpful,

0:25:16.919,0:25:19.570
but you can specifically figure out how to[br]be

0:25:19.570,0:25:22.010
an extra helpful set of fresh eyes with the

0:25:22.010,0:25:24.360
use of skillful questions.

0:25:24.360,0:25:28.309
Good questions are invaluable for highlighting[br]assumptions and helping

0:25:28.309,0:25:31.409
the team avoid dead ends, which helps you[br]all

0:25:31.409,0:25:35.690
move faster. Questions like, are we working[br]on the

0:25:35.690,0:25:39.200
right thing? Or, is there a reason we're doing

0:25:39.200,0:25:42.130
it this way? This is something that came up

0:25:42.130,0:25:45.809
in my old job, too. Because sometimes this[br]uncovered

0:25:45.809,0:25:50.700
an actual misunderstanding about a feature's[br]requirements, where, like

0:25:50.700,0:25:54.090
an offhand comment from a comment email, got[br]interpreted

0:25:54.090,0:25:56.090
as a must-have item.

0:25:56.090,0:25:59.210
Getting rid of these kinds of things saves[br]everyone

0:25:59.210,0:26:01.990
a lot of time and disappointment.

0:26:01.990,0:26:04.850
Has anyone here ever worked as a consultant[br]or

0:26:04.850,0:26:08.840
product manager at all? So you probably have[br]similar

0:26:08.840,0:26:13.279
stories like that, too. Of course, you do[br]want

0:26:13.279,0:26:15.610
to ask your questions in a way that won't

0:26:15.610,0:26:19.159
put people on the defensive. If someone hisses[br]at

0:26:19.159,0:26:22.960
you, that's probably not a good sign.

0:26:22.960,0:26:25.960
Try to express humility, since you're asking[br]these questions

0:26:25.960,0:26:28.590
from a place where it's because you want to

0:26:28.590,0:26:33.250
learn rather than assuming that you already[br]know. You

0:26:33.250,0:26:36.470
can also think about questions that other[br]non-engineering people

0:26:36.470,0:26:40.080
might ask, like your sales or support teams.[br]Getting

0:26:40.080,0:26:42.559
these answers earlier on gives your team a[br]jump

0:26:42.559,0:26:45.720
start on looping in other teams as needed.

0:26:45.720,0:26:47.750
And if the only answers your team has are

0:26:47.750,0:26:51.149
pretty vague, that's an opportunity to dig[br]further for

0:26:51.149,0:26:55.649
greater clarity. OK. We're two thirds of the[br]way

0:26:55.649,0:26:57.399
through the outline now.

0:26:57.399,0:27:01.840
On the other side from asking questions, providing[br]constructive

0:27:01.840,0:27:05.590
feedback is really important, too. If you've[br]had another

0:27:05.590,0:27:07.130
career before now, this is a skill that I

0:27:07.130,0:27:12.659
am sure you have already practiced. Giving[br]useful feedback

0:27:12.659,0:27:15.840
to the right person in the right venue at

0:27:15.840,0:27:18.779
the right time is hard for a lot of

0:27:18.779,0:27:19.960
people.

0:27:19.960,0:27:21.970
For me, when I worked in tech support, we'd

0:27:21.970,0:27:24.720
frequently do quality reviews of each others[br]work to

0:27:24.720,0:27:27.760
try to improve the customer support experience.[br]And we'd

0:27:27.760,0:27:31.820
also just do general peer feedback every few[br]quarters.

0:27:31.820,0:27:34.029
Which meant that I got a lot of practice

0:27:34.029,0:27:36.789
at phrasing feedback in a way that wouldn't[br]lose

0:27:36.789,0:27:40.929
me any friends, hopefully.

0:27:40.929,0:27:43.389
Before offering feedback, I like to spend[br]some time

0:27:43.389,0:27:45.490
thinking about what would be useful to the[br]person

0:27:45.490,0:27:49.919
receiving the feedback. What is it that they[br]want?

0:27:49.919,0:27:53.169
What are they trying to do? You always also

0:27:53.169,0:27:56.399
get bonus points for bringing suggestions[br]for solutions with

0:27:56.399,0:27:58.019
you.

0:27:58.019,0:28:01.010
It's hard, sometimes, to refrain from nitpicking[br]just for

0:28:01.010,0:28:03.649
the sake of having something to say, but it's

0:28:03.649,0:28:06.299
worth it to increase the value that people[br]get

0:28:06.299,0:28:09.230
from listening to you. You just want to have

0:28:09.230,0:28:13.600
a really high personal ratio of useful to[br]not-useful

0:28:13.600,0:28:15.090
things to say.

0:28:15.090,0:28:19.059
Something else I've been trying lately is[br]to give

0:28:19.059,0:28:22.740
positive feedback whenever there is an opportunity.[br]I don't

0:28:22.740,0:28:25.899
mean, like, fake positive compliments or anything[br]like that

0:28:25.899,0:28:28.909
at all. But just that it's a lot easier

0:28:28.909,0:28:32.120
in most cases to complain about something[br]than to

0:28:32.120,0:28:34.490
remember to speak up when there are good things

0:28:34.490,0:28:35.659
to talk about.

0:28:35.659,0:28:38.700
My hope is that this is helpful in the

0:28:38.700,0:28:40.830
longer term, so that I can build up a

0:28:40.830,0:28:44.559
general reputation for being a positive person.[br]And any

0:28:44.559,0:28:47.269
negative feedback I have will be taken more[br]seriously.

0:28:47.269,0:28:52.990
On the other hand, sometimes giving good feedback[br]can

0:28:52.990,0:28:55.740
also mean just stating, I don't have an opinion

0:28:55.740,0:28:58.559
on this topic, so that you withdraw yourself[br]from

0:28:58.559,0:29:01.100
the pool of people weighing in. It makes life

0:29:01.100,0:29:03.570
a lot easier for whoever's in charge of getting

0:29:03.570,0:29:06.169
the group to a consensus.

0:29:06.169,0:29:09.529
So now we've covered two strategies for helping[br]your

0:29:09.529,0:29:14.139
team. Lastly, there's a lot you can do to

0:29:14.139,0:29:17.590
make your team look good to other teams. It

0:29:17.590,0:29:20.419
isn't all that hard. It helps your team feel

0:29:20.419,0:29:23.309
good and it helps other teams feel good, too,

0:29:23.309,0:29:27.409
about working with your team. One of the common

0:29:27.409,0:29:30.159
areas this can come up in is in any

0:29:30.159,0:29:33.649
demo or review team, meetings your team might[br]have.

0:29:33.649,0:29:36.679
You can give awesome demos just by being thoughtful

0:29:36.679,0:29:38.539
and prepared.

0:29:38.539,0:29:40.799
Think about why this change matters to your[br]audience.

0:29:40.799,0:29:43.830
Why should they care? And think about how[br]you

0:29:43.830,0:29:46.490
can show the before and after, doing things[br]like

0:29:46.490,0:29:48.840
grabbing screen shots, so you can show new[br]and

0:29:48.840,0:29:52.500
old side by side. Or gathering metrics to[br]show

0:29:52.500,0:29:54.779
why the thing that your team did is actually

0:29:54.779,0:29:56.169
a big deal.

0:29:56.169,0:29:59.019
Demos are also good for getting full credit[br]for

0:29:59.019,0:30:01.809
your team, for everything that they've done.[br]Even ones

0:30:01.809,0:30:05.480
that aren't easily visible. You can do things[br]like

0:30:05.480,0:30:09.200
talk about corner cases and, you know, choices[br]that

0:30:09.200,0:30:12.019
you either decided to do something about right[br]now

0:30:12.019,0:30:15.830
or have consciously chosen to delay, so that[br]it

0:30:15.830,0:30:18.360
shows other teams, shows these other teams[br]that you've

0:30:18.360,0:30:21.320
been thoughtful about your impact to them,[br]like the

0:30:21.320,0:30:25.610
supportability of a new feature you've released.

0:30:25.610,0:30:28.429
I like to over prepare. So I almost always

0:30:28.429,0:30:32.169
write a script, which is sometimes a literal[br]word-for-word

0:30:32.169,0:30:34.809
script. But more often, it's just a list of

0:30:34.809,0:30:37.850
what I want to show in a particular order

0:30:37.850,0:30:40.350
so that it flows well and I don't end

0:30:40.350,0:30:44.750
up having to backtrack because I've forgotten[br]something.

0:30:44.750,0:30:47.610
I also like to do a test run through,

0:30:47.610,0:30:49.779
so that this way, I'll know everything I need

0:30:49.779,0:30:52.809
to get preloaded onto my computer, which makes[br]the

0:30:52.809,0:30:57.429
demo really efficient and less prone to errors.

0:30:57.429,0:31:02.269
In general, making an effort to be responsive,[br]thorough,

0:31:02.269,0:31:06.470
and empathetic really goes a long way. I'm[br]really

0:31:06.470,0:31:08.830
proud of the time that someone on our support

0:31:08.830,0:31:10.700
team at New Relic told me I was her

0:31:10.700,0:31:14.039
favorite engineer to work with, mostly just[br]because I

0:31:14.039,0:31:17.730
was being really responsive. All this just[br]helps people

0:31:17.730,0:31:21.789
feel heard, and knock down any stereotypes[br]that engineers

0:31:21.789,0:31:25.299
don't care about what other people care about.[br]And

0:31:25.299,0:31:28.639
so this way, when your team needs their help,

0:31:28.639,0:31:30.380
they'll be there for you too.

0:31:30.380,0:31:33.659
That wraps up my ideas for how to tackle

0:31:33.659,0:31:35.399
the challenge of figuring out how you can[br]help

0:31:35.399,0:31:39.809
your team even when you're a junior developer.

0:31:39.809,0:31:41.440
Before I finish up my talk, I do want

0:31:41.440,0:31:45.169
to mention a few caveats and pitfalls to avoid.

0:31:45.169,0:31:47.799
I'm hoping that mentors, in particular, will[br]help out

0:31:47.799,0:31:50.470
with watching out for these.

0:31:50.470,0:31:52.840
Sometimes, I think there's a bit of an issue

0:31:52.840,0:31:57.370
in the tech community of undervaluing non-technical[br]skills, and

0:31:57.370,0:31:59.710
a lot of what I've talked about is essentially

0:31:59.710,0:32:04.600
using your non-technical skills to help yourself[br]move forward.

0:32:04.600,0:32:06.889
The thing is, you just don't want to be

0:32:06.889,0:32:10.690
assumed to just be the secretary, which I[br]don't

0:32:10.690,0:32:13.210
mean as a diss on secretaries at all. It's

0:32:13.210,0:32:17.610
just not the job that I'm working towards.

0:32:17.610,0:32:21.529
There's also a phenomenon called the Girl[br]Scout tax,

0:32:21.529,0:32:23.970
which comes about because we have a stereotype[br]and

0:32:23.970,0:32:29.070
expectation that women are helpful. Unfortunately,[br]this leads to

0:32:29.070,0:32:30.980
a lot of women not getting credit for the

0:32:30.980,0:32:35.259
help that they provide, because supposedly,[br]that's just what

0:32:35.259,0:32:39.149
women do. They're helpful. This is just one[br]of

0:32:39.149,0:32:41.919
those unconscious things that we probably[br]all do from

0:32:41.919,0:32:44.019
time to time, and so we should all try

0:32:44.019,0:32:46.820
to watch out for it so that everyone gets

0:32:46.820,0:32:51.730
recognized and appreciated for the work that[br]they do.

0:32:51.730,0:32:54.200
You just don't want to get sidelined or pushed

0:32:54.200,0:32:57.539
into a role you're not interested in. Everything[br]I've

0:32:57.539,0:32:59.880
talked about today is from the stand point[br]that

0:32:59.880,0:33:02.480
you're willing to do whatever's best for your[br]team

0:33:02.480,0:33:04.500
in the short term, but you all need to

0:33:04.500,0:33:06.950
be doing what's best for everyone longer term[br]as

0:33:06.950,0:33:10.850
well, which is to help you grow as a

0:33:10.850,0:33:12.159
developer.

0:33:12.159,0:33:16.630
Ultimately, keep focused on whatever your[br]end goal is.

0:33:16.630,0:33:19.980
Whether that's getting better at coding, working[br]on bigger

0:33:19.980,0:33:23.950
features, or learning about the market and[br]industry. This

0:33:23.950,0:33:27.559
way you can consciously choose what things[br]you'll do

0:33:27.559,0:33:29.940
that will bring you closer to the goal, and

0:33:29.940,0:33:33.259
not do things that will move you further away

0:33:33.259,0:33:35.159
from it.

0:33:35.159,0:33:38.549
These are some recommendations for further[br]reading. The first

0:33:38.549,0:33:41.450
two are books that are actually pretty quick[br]and

0:33:41.450,0:33:44.639
easy reads. Teen Geek was written by a couple

0:33:44.639,0:33:48.360
of Google engineering managers who actually[br]co-founded the Google's

0:33:48.360,0:33:52.350
engineering office here in Chicago. And that[br]second book,

0:33:52.350,0:33:55.299
the Upside of Down is a good book if

0:33:55.299,0:33:57.169
you feel like you're being held back by a

0:33:57.169,0:33:59.590
fear of failure.

0:33:59.590,0:34:01.350
The other four are blog posts that I also

0:34:01.350,0:34:04.210
found really interesting and full of good[br]career advice

0:34:04.210,0:34:07.070
for junior developers.

0:34:07.070,0:34:09.880
So here's the full outline of everything I've[br]talked

0:34:09.880,0:34:12.850
about today. I think there are two main challenges

0:34:12.850,0:34:16.820
in being a junior developer. For the problem[br]of

0:34:16.820,0:34:19.130
there being so much to learn, the three step

0:34:19.130,0:34:21.889
plan is to get people to want to help

0:34:21.889,0:34:24.870
you, make it easy for them to help, and

0:34:24.870,0:34:28.040
narrow the scope of what you're trying to[br]cover.

0:34:28.040,0:34:29.829
For the problem of not knowing how to help

0:34:29.829,0:34:33.810
your team, always remember that good questions[br]are the

0:34:33.810,0:34:37.290
junior developer's super power. You can also[br]do a

0:34:37.290,0:34:40.730
lot by giving good feedback and making your[br]team

0:34:40.730,0:34:44.129
look good in front of other teams.

0:34:44.129,0:34:47.659
In conclusion, we talk a lot about the benefits

0:34:47.659,0:34:50.349
of diversity, but if you're the one that's[br]bringing

0:34:50.349,0:34:54.159
diversity to your team, that can be hard,[br]because

0:34:54.159,0:34:57.560
the typical narrative won't use your particular[br]strength set

0:34:57.560,0:35:02.780
much, because by definition, they're different.[br]As my first

0:35:02.780,0:35:05.810
boss told me, we can and should work on

0:35:05.810,0:35:09.410
our areas for development. But it's really[br]your strengths

0:35:09.410,0:35:11.710
that you can lean on most heavily to get

0:35:11.710,0:35:13.200
you where you want to go.

0:35:13.200,0:35:16.720
So to all the junior developers and career[br]searchers

0:35:16.720,0:35:19.490
out there, I just want to say, you deserve

0:35:19.490,0:35:23.040
to feel confidence in yourself as a person.[br]Place

0:35:23.040,0:35:26.369
your confidence in your proven ability to[br]learn over

0:35:26.369,0:35:29.500
your current level of coding knowledge. It's[br]only a

0:35:29.500,0:35:31.970
matter of time, and I hope I've helped you

0:35:31.970,0:35:34.970
shorten that amount of time as a junior developer,

0:35:34.970,0:35:37.980
and so someday, when you'll be mentoring junior[br]developers

0:35:37.980,0:35:38.599
yourself.

0:35:38.599,0:35:39.859
Thank you.