The latest articles on DEV Community by Lisa Venezia (@lvenezia). https://dev.to/lvenezia 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%2F330948%2Fa989695c-630c-4aed-b48b-bca05efa4ce1.jpeg https://dev.to/lvenezia en Lisa Venezia Sun, 08 Mar 2020 11:16:49 +0000 https://dev.to/lvenezia/nevertheless-lisa-venezia-coded-3al3 https://dev.to/lvenezia/nevertheless-lisa-venezia-coded-3al3 <h2> Background </h2> <p>I call myself a software developer, but that's not my current title, and that's not always been my role. After graduating from college in the year 2000 with a BS in Computer Science but no experience, I found myself in a role where I was running reports and updating spreadsheets, but doing very little coding. From there, I got myself into a role where I was doing system administrator and configuration management work, but still very little coding. </p> <p>When I changed companies and eventually joined Vonage, I started in configuration management and soon moved into a business analyst role. Getting into all of the areas of the business and learning about their needs and how to document them clearly was very interesting and challenging. I thought maybe coding wasn't the path my life was meant to take. But in my personal life, I still liked to set up websites for the musical groups that I was involved in - drum and bugle corps and choruses.</p> <p>As Vonage grew and morphed into a software company, there was more of a need for people who could both analyze and code. I knew that I had to sharpen my skills in order to stay ahead of the changes. So, I completed a frontend development nanodegree through Udacity. Towards the end of the program, I told some of my co-workers what I had been doing, and one of them agreed to let me work on a project. Even though I'm working on backend code, which is not what I learned in the program, the act of going through the course got me thinking like a developer again, gave me some experience with Github and helped me figure out how to learn from feedback.</p> <h2> I continued to code in 2019 because... </h2> <p>It's something I've always loved to do. I want to make a difference by creating things. I'm currently working in backend Java development, and it's very empowering to create capabilities for my team's platform that weren't available before.</p> <h2> I deserve credit for... </h2> <p>Trying things even when I don't understand everything. Learning how to ask the right questions. Being patient with myself when things don't work the first time. </p> <h2> I hope to see my Vonage community... </h2> <p>Create amazing software that will enable businesses of all sizes to be able to connect with their employees and customers.</p> <h2> Thanks... </h2> <p>For taking the time to read about my journey! Looking forward to reading all the other posts as well.</p> wecoded