The latest articles on DEV Community by Layne McNish (@laynemcnish). https://dev.to/laynemcnish https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F8917%2F7490960.jpeg https://dev.to/laynemcnish en Layne McNish Wed, 08 Mar 2017 12:44:14 +0000 https://dev.to/laynemcnish/nevertheless-layne-mcnish-coded https://dev.to/laynemcnish/nevertheless-layne-mcnish-coded <h2> I began coding because... </h2> <p>My partner and I were discussing moving away from New York City and I knew that I did not want to continue working in my previous field outside of NYC. A bandmate of mine told me about a bootcamp ad he'd seen and I decided to check it out. When I saw that the deadline was that day, I decided why not and applied. </p> <p>(If you know me well, you'll know that many of my major life decisions were made by saying "why not" and just blindly jumping in.)</p> <p>Anyways, I did my interview the next day and had an offer soon after that. Within a week, I went from never considering switching to coding to being accepted and putting in my notice at work. A few weeks later, I moved across the country to start school and haven't looked back since.</p> <h2> I'm currently hacking on... </h2> <p>a robot that can play the ukulele! I'm in the midst of writing a talk for <a href="http://selfconference.org/sessions">self.conference</a> about integrating your outside passions with your coding practice. I am a classically trained cellist so I wanted to write about combining my passions with music and my passion for coding. Originally, I thought about having the robot play cello but decided that ukulele would be much easier.</p> <h2> I'm excited about... </h2> <p>the robot to actually play the ukulele... So far, I can only get it to move the solenoids back and forth so there's still a ways to go.</p> <h2> My advice for other women who code is... </h2> <p>Just go for it! </p> <p>Also, read "Women Don't Ask". It was such a game changer for me in regards to negotiations and for speaking up for myself. Another great book is "What Works for Women at Work: Four Patterns Working Women Need to Know" which I'm reading right now for a book club.</p> <p>Next, find some folks who you can ask questions, complain about your bugs and chat with without judgement. If you still are searching for that group, try your local meetups, <a href="http://www.railsbridge.org/">RailsBridge</a> events (and other <a href="http://bridgefoundry.org/">Bridge Foundry</a> events) and slack groups like <a href="http://witchat.github.io/">WomenInTech</a> or <a href="https://slashrocket.io/">slashrocket</a>. </p> <p>Finally, if you find that you still need someone to talk to or ask questions to, feel free to <a href="https://twitter.com/laynemcnish">reach out to me</a> and I can either help direct you to someone who might know or answer it myself!</p> wecoded