I expect to encounter two difficulties throughout my time at The Iron Yard. The first is that I know almost nothing about front end engineering. The classes I’ve taken online have given me some knowledge, but I know learning an entire new skill, especially in a mere three months, will be a challenge. The second challenge I know I’ll experience is being back in a classroom again. I haven’t been in that kind of setting since 2009, so I’m sure it will take a while to get back into a learning/project/studying groove.

While I’ve never gone so long without being in school before, I have changed career paths before. I graduated with a BA in Psychology and then became a court reporter instead of getting a job using my college degree. I had zero knowledge of court reporting before I went to school, and the same is true with my situation now. While completely doing a 180 is scary, it can be very rewarding if you put the work into it. I really think this is the right path for me, so I’m going to do my absolute best to make the most of my time at The Iron Yard. I plan on working hard to absorb as much as I can about front end engineering.

I enjoyed Dr. Dweck’s talk on mindsets and how they can impact us. It wasn’t until I listened to her discussion that I realized how our education system can sometimes raise children to have a fixed mindset, effectively lowering their productivity and self esteem. I did have some professors and teachers throughout my life that have encouraged me even when I experienced difficulties academically. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve learned that knowledge (along with many other things in life) isn’t so cut and dry. I never had names for those ideas, and I really like the idea of “not yet.” I’m definitely going to dive further into her ideas and try to make them a part of my life.

In the past, I was prone to some procrastination with my college classes. I was never one to pull lots of all-nighter study sessions before my exams, but if I had studied a bit more, I know I wouldn’t have been as stressed out throughout my time at USC. While the structure of the front end engineering class is going to be different from college classes, I want to put my best foot forward with The Iron Yard. I want to make sure I take really great notes but also that I make sure to get my projects done quickly and efficiently. I plan on making the most of the lab time we have to learn from everyone around me. I really liked the idea that “Helping is Culture” in Sasha Laundy’s presentation. I realize that sometimes you can learn as much from your peers as you can from your teachers. I also enjoyed her explanation that getting errors in code are interesting rather than frustrating. That’s a great mindset to have when learning a new skill, coding or otherwise. Finally, I think the tips for success article’s suggestion of spacing out practice is great advice. Taking breaks will give my brain time to reset and ultimately help me retain the information better.

I moved to Austin, Texas from Greenville, South Carolina three years ago this October. I’d say that moving to another city where you only know two people will most certainly push you out of your comfort zone. I’m pretty introverted, so putting myself out there to meet new people was very challenging. In the end, I’ve met a lot of wonderful friends here, and I wouldn’t change the experience for anything. It was scary, challenging, exciting and everything else in between. I found the article about breaking out of comfort zones to be incredibly accurate. While I’m intimidated at the thought of starting down this path, I’ve found it a little easier to push myself to try something new after my big move. I have a feeling that my time at The Iron Yard will put me way out of my comfort zone again, but I do believe, like my move to Austin, it will be a fulfilling experience.