I recently graduated from General Assembly's Web Development Immersive in Little Tokyo, Los Angeles. My background as a cannabis wellness advisor, caregiver of elders, dog walker, and freelance writer inform my work as a web developer. I believe that technology can help people be more happy, healthy, and connected to the ones they love.
Freelance/Contractor work, Full-Time, Remote
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This is exactly why I love Hasnode. It's hard to find safe spaces on the web. As a queer and trans person of color, I experience unsafe spaces everywhere. And, as a newbie developer, it's hard to find spaces where I won't feel like I'll be judged for not knowing something. Thanks for all the hard work you do. 馃挏
I found my mentors just by building community and hanging out at events/meetups with likeminded people. I didn't necessarily look for them. They came to me because I genuinely wanted to make friends and connect with people. But I'm sure it helps if you tell your community that you're looking for a mentor, so they can help you find one. I found one of my mentors because I told a good friend that I was starting to code, and she basically said something to the effect of, "Here's my lead tech person. She's super busy, but please come to her for any advice you need."
As a junior developer, I focus on building everyday. I'm taking JavaScript30.com right now, I'm going to start CodeWars.com , and I use CodeAcademy.com and GetMimo.com to brush up on basic concepts. Udacity.com has a free course on building responsive and mobile-first websites. Lastly, Egghead.io is a great resource for short videoes. I also have two web developer mentors whom I rely on for advice on how to become a better coder, to explain key concepts that I'm struggling to understand, and I also rely on online communities when I can't figure something out.
I go to school full-time Mon - Fri, 9 AM - 5 PM, I'm married to my beautiful wife, I do my best to stay connected with my community, and I am a freelance writer. I don't have a lot of time in general, so I keep to-do lists and fit in my reading when I can. During my commute on the bus or in rideshares, while I'm waiting for my food to cook or waiting in line, or during scheduled small blocks of time. I am a slow reader and I like to take notes, so I need to break up the text into smaller, more digestible bites.