My EPIC Journey Has Just Begun
After completing school, most people are desperate to get a job. But after landing the job, there is also a sense of apprehension about the unknown. Well April 4, 2018 was my first day at Andela. I can’t describe the feeling I had on how this day was going to be, but yes, excited was part of it. This was not just the beginning of working with amazing tech talent in the world but an opportunity to raise the next generation of technology leaders in Africa and beyond.
In many instances, the job hunt has come to a point where you have to know someone or someone who knows someone. For me, this has not been the case. I am going to share less on how I felt about my first day and more on how I got here.
“Onye gbaa bọọlụ, ọ raacha oroma.” translated from Igbo, one of the native languages of Nigeria meaning, “It is he who plays [great] soccer that would eat oranges.”
Four years ago, I was in my University second year, I was a normal student and by “normal” I mean being in school just for lecturer’s content and passing exams. I did not consciously think about my dreams, goals or what I wanted to achieve. It’s like literally telling life to take you wherever it wants to. By September 2015 I came across a game-changer for my career by the name of SwahiliBox.
I joined SwahiliBox with barely any knowledge of programming for a four month Code Challenge program. I was the only woman learning with 10 men, and to top it off, I had no prior experience in writing code. It was tough, I couldn’t believe I could really do it, but with support from peers, the expectation to meet deadlines and mentor support made the journey more interesting than I expected. After completing the four months of Code Challenge, I realised it was the beginning of an exciting new career path.
By 2017 I was more actively involved in the Mombasa tech scene and I continued exploring other options beyond writing code. Freelance is commonly an the first option for most upcoming developers, but this did not work quite well for me, I spent most of my time working on unpaid projects. I embarked on an entrepreneurship journey and with the experience gained in the field, I would say Entrepreneurship is never a smooth journey, it takes a great team, sacrifice, mentor-ship and always believing in your idea.
Community
Growing up, I spent most of my time with the most generous and selfless person I have ever met: my Grandfather. After he passed on, he left a legacy around impacting people’s lives as a father, teacher and pastor. He is my all-time inspiration.
Everything I have learned has been possible because someone took the time to teach or mentor me. SwahiliBox Community gave me the opportunity to explore my full potential and made me the person I wanted to be. After the first Ruby on Rails workshop in Mombasa by Nairuby, we were inspired to start a Ruby user group in Mombasa. This is when I took the first step to find ladies who wanted to kick-start their journey in Software development. This was a hustle that turned out to be one of the greatest things that helped me grow my Community involvement skills.
“If you wait until you can do everything for everybody, instead of something for somebody, you’ll end up not doing nothing for nobody.” ~ Malcom Bane
The journey began with me hunting for ladies to join our Ruby Community and they turned out to be the most amazing team I have ever worked with. They made me who I am today. This is a family of ladies who believe in using code to change the world.
We managed to hold our first Rails Girls workshop in Mombasa sponsored by a number of companies including Andela, which also happened to be the first Rails Girls Workshop in Kenya. We also helped co-organize Rails Girls Mega-Coding Event in Nairobi.
Evan Green-Lowe says, the best investment you can make is in people. As you think globally, also think locally. What is happening around you?Are you taking a step to change someone’s life?It is not always about doing big things and being the hero. It takes a hi?do you know about a, b or c? I thought you should know Because Sharing is Caring.
Then came The Andela Ladder. The Andela Learning Community(ALC) turned out to be one of the most amazing Community Initiatives that I have been privileged to work with. This is an opportunity for ALC to equip thousands of young aspiring beginners and intermediate developers that make the 99% who don’t join Andela with the exact skills to make them world class developers.
As much as ALC 2.0 was in its pilot phase in Kenya, skills gained and impact created was massive. This is evident from #ALCSuccessStories twitter hashtag.Everyone was excited about ALC 2.0 and this came along with a new ALC Project Management opportunity from Andela for a Talent Partnerships Associate. Excited enough, I knew this was an opportunity for me to change the world on a whole new level. The interview process was rigorous, and for a moment, I doubted if I was going to get this opportunity. I’m happy to say that I am now part of the Andela team. With our values of Excellence, Passion, Integrity and Collaboration, I’m excited about the EPIC journey ahead.
In Summarry
Its always a journey of one step at a time.
Its never a smooth journey, being a volunteer takes purpose, dedication and persistence.
A journey of discovery ends up with you exploring your full potential and finding what you love.
G . R . I . T
Appreciation
SwahiliBox Community: Gave birth to who I am today.
Rails Girls Team: You pushed me to do more.
ALC Program Assistants Squad: Learned a lot from this team, also helped me grow.
Andela: I found a home, Lets Change the World.
Want to be part of ALC 3.0 (Google Africa Scholarship)? Apply today as a Learning Community Ambassador here.
Be part of a life transforming journey.
