Olu Niyi-Awosusi— Software Developer
Olu is a junior software developer at Paze and is a regular coach at codebar.
Find Olu online at:
@oluoluoxenfree www.opentagclosetag.com
What did you want to be growing up?
I always wanted to be an author actually! It eventually morphed into being a journalist when I was a bit older, but either way I was incredibly interested in narratives and the way stories influence people. With journalism it was a strong desire to change the world as well.
When did your interest in tech start?
To be honest I’ve always loved computers. Back when Virgin Media was still NTL I was the one who set up the dial-up, and I’ve been enthralled with the internet in particular ever since then. With computers themselves, I was always really interested in the way things actually worked mechanically, and took apart a (broken!) stereo when I was in primary school, much to my mother’s horror. I’m doing a course called nand to tetris at the moment to get more of an insight into how computers actually operate, and if anyone has any courses that give insight into the electronic engineering side of stuff in a beginner friendly way I’d be super happy to hear it.
How did you make the transition to being a developer?
In uni I started doing online courses like codecademy and Lynda, and then when I decided that I’d need more help to do a full transition I applied and was accepted for a bootcamp called Founders and Coders. It was one of the most rewarding and difficult experiences of my life!
What was your first development job?
I’m in my first development job! It’s with a fintech company called paze, who help people get their salary when they need it. I’m a junior software developer there, and do python (which I was pretty much a noob to when I started!) and Angular (I’d never used it before). It’s opened my eyes to how startups work, given me so much exposure to how devs work day to day and convinced me that this is the career path for me.
How did you get involved with codebar?
I started off as a student when I was still deciding whether I wanted to take the plunge and go for a bootcamp. I attended a bunch of events and courses around London to get a feel for coding/struggling to code. I transitioned into being a coach after I started my bootcamp.
I love helping people make their first steps into coding in particular.
Why do you keep coming back to codebar?
The food! Nah, while the food is good the people are so warm and welcoming, and it’s a genuinely good and productive thing that codebar is doing. I also want to learn more about the organisational process for my own adventures.
What are your plans for the future?
In the future I’d love to start a coding co-op and/or a startup in the digital health sphere concentrating on evidence based solutions. Or be a CTO somewhere. Or a digital nomad. Lots of options!
What advice would you give to aspiring developers?
Meet as many friendly, helpful people as you can, and you don’t have to do it in person at first if you’re scared! Get on Twitter and Slack and ask for help.
