Charlotte Zhao — Financial Software Developer
Charlotte started at Bloomberg as a Relationship Manager before transitioning to Financial Software Developer. She is also one of the organisers of the codebar London chapter.
Find Charlotte online at:
What did you want to be growing up?
I thought I’d be a professor, but undecided on the subject. I’ve always been interested in many things.
When did your interest in tech start?
I’ve found technology fascinating since I was a child. However, there was also some irrational fear. I saw technology as this very complicated, mysterious thing, and it’s just somehow not something I could do. Even when I took a Java course at university, and did really well in it, I didn’t think I’d one day become a developer. I really enjoyed the problem solving aspect of coding, but it was my last year at uni, I ended up getting carried away by the current of life and left my newly found interest in coding behind.
I really enjoy the problem solving aspect of coding.
You recently became a developer, what made you want to transition?
I wanted a change. I wanted to learn something radically different, be able to create products, and solve the world’s problems! Discovering codebar and hearing others’ stories made me realise it is an achievable goal! There have been fears in the past about becoming a developer, because the stereotype of how coders are isn’t what I associate myself with. But codebar helped me realise that coding, especially in teams could be a lot more social than other professions. Plus people at codebar are cool & fun!
What is your favourite thing about being a developer?
Being able to solve real world problems, and the lifestyle it promises! I’m tied to an office now, but once I become a freelancer, I can work from a beach anywhere in the world!
Whilst learning to code what was a fun project or thing that you built?
I love audiobooks, but Audible doesn’t have robust bookmarking features. So I tried to create my own audio bookmarking tool.
How did you get involved with codebar?
A colleague of mine mentioned it. After the first workshop in March this year, I fell in love with the community! As I mentioned earlier, I don’t think I’d be a developer now if I didn’t discover codebar.
What are your plans for the future?
Short term — become a good programmer. Long term — help inspire more women to become developers!
What advice would you give to aspiring developers?
If you want to see results, PUT IN THE HARD WORK! Once a week codebar workshops are great, but you should be using the workshops as a space to find answers. Do the work before the workshops and come prepared with QUESTIONS!
