MY SUCCESS STORY IN TECH, 2019.
People call it yearly review but I have a different name, for me it’s a SUCCESS STORY, my journey in 2019.
2019 wasn’t just a year for me it’s a story I know I will tell better someday, maybe on a ted talk event or on a show. It has was a year of tears and smiles, weakness and strength, it was indeed a colorful year because I saw the different colors of humans {friends and family members} around me. It was a year I choose to end love and at a long run choose to give it another chance, it was a year I learnt what love is, how to define it, I really learnt the true definition of it.
It was a year I finally picked up my career in tech like I said, I will talk about my story in 2019, for now all I want to share is my journey in the Tech world.
I will start from what finally made me choose to go for tech about all the motivational talks from my best friend Trust Onyekwere and a close friend Vincent aka carton, 2017 I went for an event and two person in that event made me feel I have wasted my years even though I was a Computer Science student, the two persons are Samson_Goddy and kolokodess (Ada Nduka Oyom) and ever since has been my role model.Its an amazing year and I will be sharing my experience.
Early this year, I was among the few given a scholarship to learn web development at RAD5 TECH HUB and I was opportune to be taught directly by two amazing persons Mr Nnanna and Mr Igwe.
THE TRAINING CHALLENGES:
1. I was the only female among guys.
2. I had to try and learn very fast and most times I had to say “yes I understand” even when I don’t, so it wouldn’t seem like I was the only one not following.
3. I was so bad with team work. I did all my assignments alone and often they were not done right.
6 months have passed and I am grateful for the great improvement I’ve made and knowledge gathered.
Being a part of RAD5 Tech Hub also gave me an opportunity to be a part of the GDG Aba ( Google Developers Group Aba) community called. It is a community where I learnt to collaborate with like minds in the technology space and this broadened my knowledge about the scope of my career in tech.
Next, I took a course on Digital Marketing from Google where I was taught how to :
1. Build online presence
2. Social media marketing
3. SEO/SEM (search engine optimization/ search engine marketing).
4. Email Marketing etc.
It was an amazing training process because I got additional skills a little different from my field and I saw things better from a customer-concentric point of view.
After weeks of rigorous and intense learning, I took the final exam and passed. I am now a certified Google digital marketer.
This year also had me participate in the TeenHack project hosted by RAD5 Tech Hub and I was opportune to lead of the team of scratch programming instructors.
This new assignment was challenging because I was not familiar with the scratch software at the time, so I began learning and finally got to understand how scratch works.
My team was made of amazing tech instructors like Timothy Chinonso and Nneoma Nnorom, they made the work so easy for us all.
After TeenHack 2019 which lasted for 5 days, I got Contacted to teach a group of kids at the 30Days in RAD5 program during the summer and I was to teach these Kids scratch programming.
During this time, I met 3 amazing kids (2 boys and a girl, the youngest was 5 years old and they were amazing. The girl among them designed a game and a conversation story app.
At the end of the program, I wondered : what if we taught kids coding at an early age right from school? At what level would we be in the technology space?
I applied for the the Google Africa Developers scholarship hosted by Andela but I couldn’t get in because applications were closed.
I tried again but this time for the Facebook Developers Circle scholarship hosted by Andela with Facebook and I was accepted into the program.
I went through lots of training from openclassrooms online platform and was certified in some courses but I was unable to continue because of internet/data issues as all course were to be streamed online. I also had my school exam around that period too, so it was challenging continuing the program. Sad as it is, I didn’t give up.
Some weeks passed and I was selected to be a part of the Africa Code Week project in Aba as a scratch educator. The goal was to train 1000 kids/teens in 2 weeks.
I and my team were assigned to trained over 100 kids/teens in coding using the scratch software, which we did in just 5 days.
This year had me learn a new skill — scratch programming and I have grown to be a scratch educator who have trained over 120+ kids and teens in 2019.
I didn’t just stop at helping others I also saw the need to refill myself to so I attended event that I know will contribute to my growth.
This year I kicked off with WOMEN WILL which was held in Aba were I was taught on how to learn skills as a lady. The events topic was centered on digital marketing, how you can use social media to promote your business, make money and how you can brand yourself on social.
Next, I also attended the INTERNATIONAL YOUTH DAY which was held in Aba and the events topic was centered on education, how youth can be transformed through Education.
I met amazing people like DR. OBIAGELI EZEKWEISI who talked on IQ EQ LQ and left us with an amazing quote “It’s okay to negotiate your view when something with high view is on the table BUT never ok to negotiate your value because your value is you AND never to dignify nonsense! ”.
CHIEF OSITA CHIDOKA talked about our growth and jobs that will be valid in 2030 and how our system of education is not helping matters he encourage us to be able to Produce, Manufacture and export knowledge. He taught us to look for problems in our society and try to fit them and he left us with an amazing quote “always use UCHE(Wisdom) UCHU(hard-work) EGUCHUKWU(character/value) in our day to day life because it’s one of the key to success”.
NKECHI HELEN she used her song to tell a story about our system of education seriously I cried while she was expressing herself in her song.
I also attended GOOGLE I/0 EXTENDED which was held in Aba but was late at the event because I had exams that day so I had to attend after my exam.
I have been taught by great and amazing instructors both on physical class and remote classes I was attended events and I have met and listen to great men speak I realized one thing, great people are great not because of how rich or wealthy they are but they are great because of the lives the have touch and made impact on.
Look at some amazing and great persons like Nnanna John Igwe Uguru Trust Onyekwere Ikechukwu Ezema @Samson_Goddy and all other amazing people that are being talked about, check and make esquires you will notice that it’s not the money they have rather it’s the lives they made impact on that speakers for them.
After I sat and taught about this I said to myself what can I do to solve and touch life? I found out that ladies like me want to learn tech skills and most times the resources are not available then I decided to help out and contribute to my society with the knowledge I have gain so far.
On 3rd of Oct 2019 i started up a foundation called FemCode Africa. FemCode Africa is an organization whose aim is to teach, mentor and guild ladies in Tech through Boot Camps, fellowship, events and meet-ups.
FemCode Africa kicked off with FemBoot 1.0, training over 500 ladies in font-end web development and Android through its Boot Camp section.
Now am not just a software Developer, I am also a founder, Mentor, Instructor, HRM at FemCode Africa.
With ways of making FemCode Africa becoming a dream come through in mind, I attended STARTUP SOUTH 5 UYO which was held at Uyo and was for 4 days so I traveled for the event. It was another amazing event because I got to learn a lot about starting up and things involved.
I learned to network in every event I attend, this one was not different during the process I met amazing people like KAY, she own a blog and works for Tech Cabal and she is also an amazing career lady.
I met Funke Opeke, Nze Nkem, also guys from PAGA Company and I had a wonderful conversation with them. I also met SUBA(Start Up Business Africa) and so many amazing persons who gave amazing life experience.
Next was STARTUP GRIND where I met up with Daniel Chinagorom Co-founder and CEO of Innovation Growth Hub and I listen to him talk and give his experience in starting up a Company.
It was an amazing event, they took their time to break down fact from what should be your Core value as a startup, things you need to do like steps involved, how to pitch and things you need as a start up.
I attended the second event of WOMEN WILL that focused more on Career.
I was opportune to be among the committee for DEVFEST 2019 and I was assisting the swag team lead. I also help a break out session
Next, i was among the team that went for data collection for an African Search Engine for trade and commerce called CHOOYA.
A FEW SOFT SKILLS/KNOWLEDGE I HAVE LEARNT IN MY JOURNEY SO FAR:
1. Team work is very important for growth and success because no matter how much you think you know there is someone who knows more than you do or knows something you don’t know.
2. If you don’t understand a concept, say you don’t rather than nodding blindly in agreement.
3. It doesn’t matter many times you fail, what matters is that you get it, stand, try again and get it right.
4. It doesn’t matter if you’re the only girl in a team, what matters is that you do things right, use opportunities around you and make a difference! It’s doesn’t matter how long it takes, Just make a difference! .
5. Your gender shouldn’t be your reason to fail.
NUGGET WORTH SHARING:
Don’t limit yourself in one place, yes it is said that you shouldn’t be jack of all trade but you can always learn and add to your knowledge, because no one has ever die because of knowing a lot.
Coding is a language, every kid deserves to learn how to speak it.
Don’t let failure be a reason to stop, keep pushing!! If you fail, stand and keep pushing!
Don’t only give out try to refill yourself because if you don’t your growth will be static. Attend events it helps in the refilling process.
Don’t wait to be a genus in what you do before you start making impact, start from somewhere and start touching lives.
Look for a problem and start solving, you never can tell where it will take you tomorrow.
Networking helps you a lot. Any event or meet up you attend try and know who the next person seated beside you does, you never can tell maybe He/Her might be the answer to your long prayers.
MY 2020?
I can’t say how it will look like because am not God, but I’m sure and looking forward to:
- Scaling more than last year in all ramification.
- Going into becoming a full stack Web Dev.
- Learning a new programming language (Python).
- Follow all the schedule that we have for FemCode Africa.
- Improving in my writing skills and balance my work with my self learning so neither of them will suffer like it did in 2019.
- Will see to it that i complete 6 books this year.
- Applying for and giving more talks this year and also engaging in work shops.
I have big hopes because I have smiled to the sun and held my confidence so high that i look forward to a wonderful 2020.
THANK YOU!!!
