A New Opportunity & Better Work-Life Balance
After nearly 20 years of running a small business, Erin was ready for a new challenge and a better work-life balance for her and her family. Living in the San Francisco Bay area, Erin decided to enroll in Bloc’s Web Developer Track to launch a career change into tech.
Tell me: what were you doing before Bloc?
I was self-employed as the owner of a dog walking business in San Francisco.
Why did you end up taking Bloc?
After nearly 20 years as a small business owner, I was ready for a new challenge. Being in the Bay Area, tech seemed like a logical place to start looking for that challenge. I decided to do a Web Developer bootcamp to (hopefully) start a new career. A friend mentioned Bloc after meeting some reps from the company at a conference. The mentor-driven and remote learning aspects of Bloc were a great fit for me. The ability to have one-on-one interactions throughout the course, without having to give up my income or commit to a specific schedule were key selling points.
How did taking Bloc impact your career and life?
This career change will have a huge impact on my family. Although my former career provided a good amount of financial stability, there was a ceiling to it. Working for a start-up will enable me to have more upward mobility, as well as a job that doesn’t require me to be “on duty” 24 hours a day the way small business ownership required. Bloc opened doors for me that would never have been an option before and will allow me to put the stress of my previous career behind me and focus more on my wife and son.
What was your favorite part of the Bloc curriculum?
The mentorship portion of Bloc was by far my favorite part of the curriculum. After being stuck on a part of a project for days, I always looked forward to the clarity that would come with a mentor meeting. Having someone walk you through explanations or show you an entirely different way to approach a problem was invaluable.
What was your favorite project in the program?
https://github.com/erinnoyes/simpsonspedia
