Women @DevC Fireside Chat with Zoe Kuyanda
Tell us your story as a woman in technology
I am Zoe, a tech enthusiast aged 22 with a passion for technology that has been burning since I was nine(9) years. With the dynamic nature of technology, most fields have captured my interest, although I am more inclined to programming.
I wrote my first line of code in 2017 at the University of Zambia during a training session on Web development with Html, CSS, and Javascript.
Observing how simple lines of code created beautiful products intrigued me. The ability to turn an idea into a product gave me a certain amount of esteem that has enabled me to face situations(outside of tech inclusive) uniquely, This helped me break out of my shell of feeling less of a contributor to innovation as a woman because evidently, men have been leaders in building technology and women have been more of consumers.
To inspire more female contributions to innovation and technology, I founded Girl Coders Zambia, a non-profit organization focused on teaching girls programming.
How did you get into tech?
I was inspired early by my brother-Israel Kuyanda who is a computer Genius. I would invade his space and keenly observe as he worked on his computer, watching him work would intrigue me.
I was still very young then, and I did not think about what I wanted to focus on for my career until later when I had an opportunity to learn Web development through a program I participated in by the University of Zambia. After going through this program, I was motivated to pursue a career in tech.
Since then, I have been a fanatic!
What Are your tech super powers?
I consider teaching programming, problem-solving, and project management my tech superpowers!
What are you learning right now?
I am currently multi-learning; this includes database management, programming, AI, and Robotics.
What has been an unexpected challenge along the way?
Navigating the tech space without proper guidance has been a challenge. It’s one thing to be skilled and, it’s another thing to have a star guiding you to the desired destination.
Safe to say that women have natural tendencies towards communicating and building support networks for opportunities to get mentorship, but this has been a challenge that I thought would work out differently.
With the truth that direction is better than speed, I am always looking forward to pursuing a mind to drive me to reality rather than just a quicker route with the uncertainty of the outcome.
What do you want women and girls to know about being in tech?
As a woman in tech, first and foremost, you are a star!
Tech has been a male-dominated space for many years; the likelihood of working with more men than women is very high, even today.
You may hear words like :
And, you are more likely to be perceived as incompetent in comparison to your male counterparts.
Here are few tips from me to stay winning:
- Don’t Let the Minority aspect hold you back.
- Being confident is a virtue to own: I’ve learned that being confident in yourself makes a world of difference in what you’re able to accomplish
- Take ownership.
- Seize opportunities to use your skills.
- Be your biggest cheer-leader: I always tap myself on the shoulder to say, “well done” once I accomplish a task.
I am grateful to have had the opportunity and choice to pursue a career in tech up to this date! Despite the challenges like any other career path, It is worth it.
How has the Meta Developer Circle impacted you?
Since I joined the Meta Developer Circle, I have witnessed people in the local tech space support each other; this gave me a sense of inner peace, knowing the developer community is ready to help and support me through my journey.
I tap motivation from the space and the success stories shared. The success stories have helped me realize that I can do it too!. Many times, while working on something, “Impossible” can trigger. The Meta Developer Circle has been a safe space to overcome this by drawing inspiration from others.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
I thought choosing a career was very easy! I was ready to enter the medical field until I heard these words:
“Start your career with something that you love and effortlessly find yourself doing. When you’re in it, work to make an impact and not just to get the work done, so always be on time, value your network, always welcome feedback, work on your speech, value your health and focus on the results!
Finally, you will never be the next person. You can only be a bad example of the next person as you are trying to imitate them. You will malfunction in the process of trying to live out someone else’s purpose. That is why you should just focus on being “you” because there’s no other you. Above all, Never stop learning. “
Fun Fact about you
I can actually dance! Its my hidden talent
Thank you for reading Zoe’s story.
