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Damilola Owolabi
Damilola Owolabi

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3 Easy Steps: Becoming an independent lady with technology

To be an independent Lady with technology means to be competent, exclusive, not subject to bias or influence with technology. Do you know that the first programmer was not a man, It was a woman.

Ada Lovelace, an English mathematician was called "the first computer programmer" for writing an algorithm for a computing machine in the mid-1800s. Another female tech genius is Grace Hopper. She was one of the most influential computer scientists of all time. She developed the first human-computer code compiler and helped popularize the term "bug".

One other person I so much admire is Ada Nduka Oyom, the founder of She Code Africa, it’s a platform committed to improving the Girl tech-education and celebration of code queens in Africa. Tho, we still have more ladies in technology who changed the world. If they can, you too can do better.

The following are ways on how to become a competent lady with technology;

1. Determination
First and fore most decide on the technical skills you want to dive into and be determined that you are not going to give up until you achieve your goal.
Think about what your unique tech skills can bring to the world, and make a plan to utilize them for your best and highest purpose.
Don't let the fear of failure stop you. Don't let limiting beliefs stop you from moving forward. Mind you the determined ain't lazy
"To achieve something you've never achieved before, you need to become someone you've never been before"- says Led Brown

2. Consistency
Be consistent at the technical skills you choose. It is said that the Little drops of water makes a mighty ocean. You can dedicate 30mins of time each day to learn about your desired technical skills everyday. Learning every 30mins each day is better than learning 12hours at an interval of 2weeks. Practice on a daily basis!
A little bit every day goes a long way.
Welcome challenges too, cos there’s possibility of facing challenges. But don’t worry you’ll overcome. Just get on with it. The more you do it, the more you know it. Success doesn't come from what you do occasionally, it comes from what you do consistently. Like it or not, to be an independent Lady with technology you need to be consistent.

3. Join a community
One of the ways to remain in the tech industry and become competent as a female is through mentorship, peer networks, and social connections specifically for women.
When you're join a community of like minded individuals, you tend to share ideas, tips and resources together.
It enables growth too. I have come to understand that when you learn alone, of course you'll grow but it won't be at a faster pace, unlike learning with like-minded individuals.
Examples of tech communities that encourage ladies are; shecodeafrica, women techmakers, project 18, technovation, markether, girlswhocode e.t.c

I believe with the listed points above we can proudly represent women in technology and thereby have a better world to live. Be focused and keep doing amazing things. Thanks.

Oldest comments (6)

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jswalker_in profile image
jswalker.in

Remember,Great Example : "Dorothy Vaughan from NASA"

Programming Language : FORTRAN

Featured in Movie : "Hidden Figures"

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dammyton profile image
Damilola Owolabi

Ooh yea. Thanks

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xhasumzi profile image
Xhasumzi Maphukatha Dlamini

This is so informative. Thank you mam. I am 17 turning 18 very soon. I am male. I live in South Africa.

Have to say, been self teaching myself code since I was 14, started out with python. And now doing php. Working alone is hard sometimes and at my current position, finding like minded people is hard.

But thank you for the Post. Helped.

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dammyton profile image
Damilola Owolabi • Edited

I'm glad it helped. The journey may be tough and challenging but keep pushing and by God's grace you'll overcome

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fatroom profile image
Roman Romanchuk

While I fully support the first two points, I would recommend to avoid echo chambers of community (either based on your skills or merits). Try to communicate with as much people as possible from different backgrounds and in different areas. You'll always find some ideas that will be helpful in some way or another if you look broad.

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galoisgirl profile image
Anna

Great article, couldn't agree more!

Determination is especially important, and I'm still struggling with it sometimes. Even after 15 years, I do a tutorial, it should work, but somehow it doesn't. However, don't confuse determination with getting into a "rabbit hole": take a break, even just 5 minutes, and try again. I've done some of my best problem-solving while in the bathroom. :)