We are now in a leap year

A few days ago I had been writing a little guide for a friend who was relatively new to CS with advice on how to get an internship. I was in the car pondering about what else to include and stared off into the conveniently placed sunset before my eyes. Don’t worry, I wasn’t driving. But almost immediately, I started to doubt myself. What makes me qualified to write this guide? How am I in this position, and how did I get here? Hell, how can I consider myself a front end developer when just a year ago, I didn’t even know what an http request was?

I guess I’ve reached the point in my life where my perception of time has become more fluid, having lost the tendency to think in distinct increments/stages of life. Or maybe this is because I’ve skipped one too many classes and have been off campus a lot this semester. Regardless, being so close to the new year, I decided to think back to events that happened this past year. At first, it didn’t seem like much has changed, but when I thought about what I’ve accomplished, I realized that I have taken more than one step in the right direction. 2015 was the year when I:

• Officially transferred into the College of Engineering and became a CS major
• Started to become more serious about web development and took actionable steps to actively learn more about it
• Got my first internship offer after almost missing the interview because of time zones
• Led a completely new scene for AAA’s Fashion Show, particularly for a genre of dance I could not have imagined doing a minute before the head coords shared what they envisioned

These fools probably thought I knew what I was doing…

• Somehow passed all 18 credits of classes while being a PR chair for the world’s most active college organization (seriously, it’s quite impressive how the board consistently pulls it off)
• Learned a ton during my first “real” job and had a lot of fun doing so. Between all the nerf gun wars and gif wars with my mentor, I never felt that I had to do what I did. I wanted to.
• Lived in a completely new city, not on a campus, and tried many new things (most of which was food)

With some awesome people

• Had the opportunity to interview with companies I had only dreamed of
• Magically won 3rd place at a hackathon while going out to watch a dance show, catching up with friends, and getting a complete night of sleep (heheh jokes, this was all Ryan)
• Signed my offer for an internship as a front end engineer with an awesome company in the Bay Area

Interviewing season was rough, but this was a great ending

Even though I don’t immediately think about all these events, it’s clear that 2015 has been quite a year for me. I am so incredibly thankful and grateful for everyone who has helped me get to where I am now. I’ve had many low points and essentially lived in a cave during the last semester, but those moments are easily overshadowed by all the support I’ve received.

I want to touch on my reflection about my perception of time a little more. Often times, I believe it is easy to think of one’s past as a collection of notable achievements and events, life changing moments. Although I cannot discredit their significance, I think what frequently goes unnoticed are all the small steps taken along the way. The time when you opened up 253 tabs of content because you had to learn everything about something new you discovered, and realized it’s already been bright outside for a while and that you’re not getting much sleep for the third night in a row. The time when you got into bed, and just as you’re about to fall asleep, jump out of bed to get your roommate to record you awkwardly trying to capture your brief inspiration of 2 seconds worth of choreography. The time when you were faced with a decision: to be unadventurous and lame, or to put the funny looking thing in your mouth and realize it’s delicious.

At least to me, these are the types of memories that are immediately available. And these are the types of moments that are more representative of your life as a whole. Although it’s important to try to append to the list of major life accomplishments, I think it’s just as important to not get too caught up in those and let them define you. I got to be in the position of writing the guide because of all the small steps I’ve taken along the way, which formed the basis of my larger achievements. I strongly believe that if you focus more on continuing to take those small steps, learning and growing every day, life will be more fulfilling.