Finding my mentor

Overview

Learning on your own can be challenging, and when you add the pressure of limited time and financial constraints, it can become a stressful process. I soon realized that I could not accomplish my goals alone and needed guidance. That's when I found my mentor, Andy Sterkowitz, and this unique experience helped accelerate my progress. While having a mentor is not mandatory, learning from their experiences can help you avoid common pitfalls in your journey.

What is a mentor?

A mentor is someone who shares their knowledge and experience to support another person in their area of growth. To learn effectively from mentors, leverage their successes and failures to overcome challenges.

Mentors can be found in various sources, including teachers, peers, and the community. They can be accessed through traditional schooling, online platforms, and books. While the level of interaction may differ, the knowledge that mentors provide can save you valuable time and effort.

There are various sources of mentorship, each with advantages and disadvantages. The key is to find a resource that matches your learning style and needs. To make the most of mentorship, stay curious, ask questions, and identify knowledge gaps.

Unlikely encounter

For six years, I have neglected my growth and learning, resulting in poor learning habits. To improve, I sought a mentor that leaned toward personal interactions and portfolio building. Initially, I considered indirect mentors such as Programming with Mosh, Web Dev Simplified, Traversy Media, and many others for portfolio building. Although I did not choose them, I learned a great deal from them on my coding journey.

One day, I stumbled upon a YouTube video by Andy Sterkowitz where he shared his journey as a self-taught developer when it was not as common. His story resonated with mine, and I found him to be a genuinely kind person. When I discovered that he had a mentorship program, I became curious. After much thought and debate with myself and my family, I decided to take his free career strategy call. I figured that the worst that could happen was wasting a few hours, and the best-case scenario was gaining a mentor.

Interview call

Leading up to the call, I felt anxious about meeting a YouTuber as it was a new experience for me. Doubtful thoughts like "maybe he's a scammer" and "maybe he will hard sell his program" made me consider backing out.

During our online call, Andy didn't try to sell me his program. Instead, he denied my entry due to my lack of exposure to programming. He was looking for a passionate individual who was genuinely interested in becoming a developer. With only two weeks of experience, I was in the honeymoon phase, and there was a risk of losing interest once I realized how difficult programming could be. Although he did not explicitly mention this, I believe this is what someone in my position might have looked like.

Instead, Andy gave me a challenging project: create a ticking clock. We agreed to have a follow-up meeting after three weeks. If I still felt that software development was for me, he would offer the program then. The experience was pleasant, although brief, and left me feeling hopeful about my journey ahead.

The challenge

After meeting with Andy, I felt mentally prepared to take on his challenge. At that point, my programming knowledge was limited to HTML and CSS, and I had not yet delved into JavaScript. As soon as I realized that JavaScript was necessary to add functionality to HTML, I decided to seek out additional resources. Instead of trying to figure things out on my own, I found a helpful tutorial on YouTube that walked me through creating a to-do application. It was a truly transformative experience - adding JavaScript to HTML felt like magic. With my newfound knowledge and motivation a fire within started to grow, and I was eager to try out a variety of new ideas.

At first, I believed that I needed to complete all of the CSS modules in freecodecamp before moving on to learning JavaScript. However, I soon realized that I only needed to acquire a basic understanding of CSS for my immediate needs. Once I finished the to-do application, I searched for more simple applications to create and set a goal of developing three applications every week before my next meeting with Andy. With a newfound sense of focus, I tackled each application without relying on tutorials, breaking down each step and utilizing my existing knowledge to overcome any challenges that arose.

Time passed quickly, I made dramatic improvements in my skills over the next three weeks. My confidence soared as I built ten applications without relying on tutorials. These basic applications ranged from a ticking clock to a small shooter game, and I felt incredibly proud of my accomplishments. This experience reaffirmed my decision to pursue a career as a software developer, and I discovered a genuine love for creating applications.

Leap of faith

In the days leading up to my follow-up meeting with Andy, I attempted to convince my family that his program was the opportunity I had been searching for. However, they expressed concerns about the financial implications and were worried about the lack of a certificate after completing the program. Convincing them that it was possible to secure a developer job without a certificate proved to be a difficult task. Ultimately, it was my choice to pursue this opportunity.

The night before I met with Andy, the anxiety and excitement were over the top which disrupted my sleep. This time I was accepted to the program and my goal and mindset were firmly set. I was determined to do whatever was necessary - to learn as much as possible and become well-prepared for future employment within the next four months. I was determined to prove through my actions that I had what it takes to overcome the biggest obstacle in my journey toward becoming a game developer.

In retrospect, I am grateful that Andy denied my initial application. This experience allowed me to discover my passion for coding, and in the process, I inadvertently became a self-learner. This approach helped me to progress through the Software Development Mastery Program at a faster pace.

Lesson

Mentors can arise from any circumstance and hold the power to expedite your progress toward your goals. Sometimes a minor setback or challenge can act as a catalyst to reveal your passion. It's important to analyze the situation and understand the risks involved. If it feels right, trust your intuition and take the leap of faith. Don't allow doubts or fear to hold you back from pursuing your dreams.

Thank you for reading. If you believe my story will benefit someone who's attempting to make a change please share this post. Feel free to contact me, I would love to hear from you. Please subscribe if you'd like to stay up to date and receive emails when new content is published.