I know what they want us to learn at Bootcamp at Juno…

Learning how to code by being a part of the famous Bootcamp at Juno College (formerly HackerYou, where I took my first coding course back in August before it got it’s fancy new name and renovations to the campus…) has been full so many ups and downs, I’ve lost count. I’ve learned so much. I’ve felt like I know nothing. I’ve felt like this is the best choice I ever made. I felt like it was the worst. Holy emotional roller coaster, Batman. But I had a revelation a week or two ago. I figured out what they are actually trying to teach us here(!!).

See, a web developer’s journey is never over. There is always a new language to learn. There are always more people to meet. A newer, “cooler” company joining the industry. When I signed up for (and got in to) Bootcamp, I couldn’t figure out why they chose to teach the languages that they did. I trusted it, but I had no idea why. The answer is, honestly, that it doesn’t matter.

Yes, of course they are trying to be as smart as they can about what they teach you in your 9 weeks here. They are trying to teach you what they think will be the most used and the most useful. But, ultimately, as it turns out… it’s not so much about what technology you learn. What? It’s true.

Here’s the secret: it’s really about learning how to learn! Because that is never going to end. What they want to teach you here, I believe, is that you have to constantly be trying to figure things out on your own, however that happens for you. Any developer knows that Google is their best friend. But it wasn’t until I started Bootcamp that I really GOT it. My friend, who has been with me in this from the beginning, even mentioned it the other day… that I was getting a lot better at googling and not just asking (Yay!).

But, then what happens when you can’t figure it out on Google…?

Then, you have to reach out to the magical world of Web Devs! It turns out that they are a very collaborative group. I really didn’t know this before Bootcamp. I mean, I had ideas… but between my (truly wonderful, will-go-above-and-beyond…) Cohort25 pals (seriously, I mega lucked out with this group) and the mentors and teachers at Juno and, really, the whole wide world on the “www” (that’s world wide web, for those who may be wondering…)… well, really, the world is there to help you. It’s really quite magical and inclusive and people WANT to help. It is there for you, all you have to do it reach out and have smart questions to ask.

So, this was my revelation. Our work will never be done. We will need to be curious and actually LIKE learning for this whole developer thing to work… because it’s going to be most of the job for, well… forever.