DEV Community: Michelle Tan

What I've learnt: The importance of self-promotion

Michelle Tan — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 08:41:42 +0000

For as long as I remember, the phrase "Let your work speak for itself" has always been the way I live by. There is no need for promoting the work you are doing because if it is good work, people will eventually notice and know about it and spread the word. Is it?

From my personal experience, this approach worked well during my studies, obviously as a student we're given projects and assignments to work on for a given period of time. Everything that we submit are graded under our names. That however is entirely different in the open world. So, I needed to change my approach.

Recently, I finished a book called Show Your Work by Austin Kleon. It's an easy book to read. I highly recommend it to anyone who is wants to start or is afraid of the idea of self-promotion and want to give it a try.

The book is a beginner's manual to self-promotion. It actually made me rethink my old approach should have been "Let others know about your work and the work will speak for itself". But hey, it's never too late to learn so I'll using this moving forward.

The benefits

Show your progress 🧾

Borrowing a quote from the book, "Become a documentation of what you do". This resonated with me after I wrote about my learnings What I've learnt: Knowledge Base. Process can be messy sometimes which makes it interesting to understand the thoughts and design that goes behind it. It's like after watching a great movie, sometimes you'd also want to watch the behind-the-scene and the magic is revealed.

Let your voice be heard 🎤

I like the opening of the book with the following quote:

"For artists, the great problem to solve is how to get oneself noticed." - Honoré de Balzac

Come to think of it, this applies to a lot of other profession, even our daily lives. As a software engineer solving problem, how do you let other people know about this GREAT solution that you have? Is it only GREAT in your own head? The truth is, it can be the greatest or worst, but you'll never know until you let others know about it.

At work, our team recently started a sharing session after the weekly meeting. It's a way to demo the project that you've worked, discuss a design or any work-related topic basically. The goal is to share knowledge and get feedback. It's definitely a great way for others to know about your work.

Enables collaboration with others 👩🧑🏻👨🏼🧑🏿

This ties in with the benefit I mentioned above. Now that people know about your work, they might have a feedback or an idea. Some might even have a deeper understanding than you from a different perspective which if they are interested enables a conversation. These little conversations often end up as collaboration.

You can pick and choose constructive feedback to better your work, in the process, you'll learn how to contribute to other's work next time. By collaborating with others, the work is improved, you learn how to communicate better, it enables team or cross-team building. Basically, it's a knock-on effect with a lot of other plus points.

Manufacturing opportunity ✨

"Opportunities are manufactured." - Biz Stone.

The very first time I heard about this idea is when I read this book Things A Little Bird Told Me by Biz Stone. This idea seems mind-blowing at first but it's nothing new. Shawn Wang wrote an article that describes this really well
Create Luck.

This again ties in with what I've mentioned earlier. So how do you create opportunities and better your luck? One method is to let others know about your work; then small conversation might* happen. From there, the possibilities are endless.

Another method is to be more active, show up and contribute to other's work - the other way around. Give constructive feedback or leverage other's work and ask if you can collaborate with them. Respect others if they say no.

Summary

If you loath the idea of self-promoting, just think of it as telling stories. Just state what you are doing, be honest and don't lie, no added fancy verb.

"I did x, y, z" vs "I did x incredibly", "came up with the best y", "and z".

Give it a try and let me know how it works out for you. 😀

Thanks for reading and hope this helps.

Image from The designer's guide to self-promotion

How to be noticeable as an international CS student 🌍

Michelle Tan — Fri, 30 Apr 2021 13:00:21 +0000

Studying abroad is a very unique experience. Being in a foreign country, surrounded by people you do not know, perhaps learning a new language or trying to assimilate to the local culture which can be very different from your home country.

It might be challenging as an international student studying computer science. Mainly due to the fact that you may not have the same advantage or network resources you would have back home. It's almost like a fresh start.

While grades are important, it can only reflect that you understand the course syllabus and studied hard in exams. There are other important aspects which makes you noticeable as an international student:

Build your network 👩‍💻

It is crucial to build your network. Someone might know about a job where you fit the role. Someday you might need a reference letter. Or you simply just needed someone you can reach out to.

The most straightforward network within your reach is your classmates and lecturers. Engage with your peers and help each other out. Ask questions in class or after class if you are a shy person. Have a good attendance rate. Do the basics well.

Ideally, your network should expand beyond your university. There are so many events which you can attend as a student in order to make the most out of it. Attend hackathons or volunteer in a tech event are great ways to expand your network, at the same time it is a fun learning experience!

The most important thing is to make friends and build genuine relationships.

Utilize university resources 🧾

Apart from attending class to acquire knowledge, you should also utilize the vast amount of resources provided by the university. You get to build up different skills such as time management, leadership and communication skills. It's a great way to let your personality shine.

Here are a few of them:

Library 📚

“Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors, and the most patient of teachers.” – Charles W. Eliot

This is pretty self-explanatory. The best part of being having an access to the library is that it's FREE. So, read lots of books.

Clubs and societies

Joining clubs and societies is another good way of building network because you get to interact with a group of people who share the same passion.

Other than that, it is also a great opportunity to step out of your comfort zone to build leadership skills. Take up the role of being the club's secretary or treasury or even president. Can't find the club you wanted? Create one!

Teacher assistant/Peer mentor 👩‍🏫👨‍🏫

“When one teaches, two learn.” –Robert Heinlein

In most universities, teacher assistant (knowns as TA) and peer mentor (knowns as PM) exists for students to support the faculty and at the same time provide their experience to assist other students in a more personalized manner.

TA focuses on academic support whereas peer mentor isn't - it may depend on how your university defines the roles. Regardless, both roles require huge commitment. Time management is essential as you are expected to meet the faculty's expectation, support others while not fall behind on your own studies.

Needless to say, being a TA or PM is a rewarding experience because it's a win-win situation, helping others and learning along the way. In some universities, the added bonus is that you get paid!

Career department 💡

If you have the intention to work after graduating as an international student, you should also utilize the university's career department. Learn how to write CV/resume as the structure may differ from your home country.

Do mock interviews to familiarize with the job-hunting process. For technical roles, do mock whiteboard interviews as well. Some universities even have collaboration with local companies to have campus recruitment scouting to talents.

Keep an eye for any updates from the career department even if you are not actively looking for a job.

Internships 💻

Last but not least, internships - a great way to gain real world experience, have a productive semester break and to earn some pocket money. Internships are beneficial not only because it looks great on CV/resume, it makes use of all the theoretical knowledge into practice at the workplace.

It is also a glimpse into the life after graduation, you get to know if you truly enjoy a certain role. Perhaps the preference is to be a software tester rather than an engineer, or a mobile developer than a web developer. You will know only know once you did an internship.

Enjoy your student life abroad ❤

Being away from home to further your study is already a great achievement. The most important thing is to take care of yourself mentally and physically first.

So remember to enjoy being abroad and travel around (post-Covid) using your student discounts. Student life only lasts a few years, make every moment count.

Thanks for reading, hope this helps.

Nevertheless, Michelle Tan Coded and never looked back!

Michelle Tan — Mon, 08 Mar 2021 13:27:02 +0000

My journey 💻

It's March 2021 - almost a full year of remote working since the start of this pandemic. I've decided to use this post as the first post of 2021 to share my story and as a reminder for myself of why I should keep on writing.

Looking back, it's precisely a decade since choosing Computer Science as my major after high school graduation. It was one of the toughest decision ever made. What I know up to that point was studying science stream and trying to ace 9 or 10 subjects in exams. All of a sudden, I have to decide who to be in a society - Dentist? Journalist? Accountant? Astronaut? It was overwhelming.

The decision

I picked Psychology and applied to a number of universities. But deep down, I struggle to imagine if it is my passion to understand other people's mental health state, talk to people and provide counseling. Obviously, since the lockdown, mental health has increasingly become an essential part of everyone's life that should not be overlooked.

Not all of my applications got accepted, but some did. I went to an education exhibition to see if I missed out on other universities. As I was leaving the hall, a guy handed a leaflet to me saying "Hey, check this university out". It was a well-ranked local university in my country and one of the degree listed was

BSc in Computer Science majoring in Software Engineering.

It sounds interesting, I applied and got in.

First code and never looked back 👩‍💻

I remember attending an optional programming class of week 1 in university. Since it was optional, only few students attended and the class was quite casual. It may sound silly but the very first code I wrote was a batch script that restarts the lab computer. Then and there, I was intrigue by the idea of only writing a few characters, without a psychical action - a push of a button, I can make the computer do something. Something sparked in me and it was one of those "Aha! I really like this!" moment.
Since then, I never looked back.

My struggles, achievement and goals

Technology has opened many doors for me. I manage to further my studies in Europe and achieved my dream career in 2018. Since entering the workforce, I've always struggled with impostor syndrome. My teammates are always doing so well and knowledgeable. I'm constantly comparing myself with others and always doubt that my code or performance is not on par compared to my peers. But now, I'm happy to say that I'm slowly and surely figuring my way out of this. Personally, I label it as a small win.

I will #choosetochallenge and be supportive to others. Hoping to see a more inclusive world.

My advice for allies to support underrepresented folks who code is

To understand the importance of diversity and inclusion. Perhaps start by including underrepresented folks in casual conversation or create a safe space where they get a chance to voice their opinions. Remember to be kind and supportive as well, at the end of the day, you and me are all human beings - not computers. 😊
Thanks for reading.

Banner image from Design Week

Do you have any career regrets? What are they?

Michelle Tan — Fri, 04 Dec 2020 16:09:46 +0000

Maybe regret is too strong of a word to use. Let's face it, we're all human beings at the end of the day. At some point we all make some mistakes in our careers. But not all mistakes are all bad, in fact it's a great learning opportunity because we knew what went wrong.

For me, I learnt that when the task you're handling is going south, it's better to share the news as early as possible and ask teammates for help instead of wrecking my head trying to figure it out on my own. There's no shame in asking for help. 😀

If you had a chance to go back "re-do" it, how would you have done it better/ to avoid it?

What I've learnt: Asking Questions

Michelle Tan — Wed, 02 Dec 2020 19:44:43 +0000

We all know that being in the technology field requires constant learning. In order to pick up new concepts, we study about it, get our hands dirty by implementing it in projects and at some point scrambling to find answers on StackOverflow on issues we encountered.

By asking questions, we learn to how clear up confusions and ambiguities. Additionally, we get a validation of whether our understanding is correct or not.

From my personal experience, especially in the beginning of my career. I'm always hesitant to ask questions due to this mindset:

Ask a stupid question and you get a stupid answer.

Of course, I learned my lesson the hard way, perhaps it's a story for a different time. BUT, in reality:

There are no stupid questions.

Over time, I realise asking question is like a unique skill. It's difficult especially when you don't even know where to begin. Just like any other skills, it takes time and practice to master.

The art of asking question

Start simple, "Yes" "No" questions ✔❌

Have you ever felt like you have a million things to ask and no idea where to even begin? A cliché as it sounds, start with a simple question that will get you a simple answer - Yes or No. Even complex scenarios can be simplified into a flowchart.

"Does this complicated function X produce an output?"
"Is my input correct?"
"Have you tried turning it off and on?"

Ask for validation 🤷‍♀️🤷‍♂️

Once there's enough context, explain it in your own words and ask for a validation. This is a tough one, because we're still trying to understand and might not get it right in the first attempt. So keep iterating till you are satisfied. Most times, you'll find how helpful and patient other people can be when explaining things. Remember to thank them afterwards for their effort and time 😊

"So this function X takes in 2 numbers, adds it up and produce an output?"
"Ok, my input is correct, but in a wrong format?"
"Rebooting doesn't work, maybe some configurations are not setup properly?"

Who or where to ask 🕵️‍♀️

There are also situations when we think the person knows the answer, but it turns out as the opposite. The person might know not have an answer, but might be able to point you to a new direction whether it's a website/documentation/person which has. Aha, now you know what to ask, right? Now, we have a new lead and can easily repeat the process above.

"Function X performs addition on 2 numbers. Does it have a maximum limit? Do you know who knows about this?"
"What should be the correct format for this input? Do you know where I can find the documentation for this?"
"The configuration looks complicated. Do you know how I can log a ticket to fix this?"

Open ended question ❓

By now, you probably have a better understanding of the whole context which enables a discussion. Ask open ended questions to know about other's feedback or thoughts and you might find valuable information. Like edge cases you never would have thought of or a new way of doing things.

"What do you think if Function X takes 3 numbers?"
"I read the documentation but it took a while for me to understand it, can we update the documentation?"
"Is there a way to automate the setup of this configuration?"

It's not easy to ask the "right" question and I'm still learning how to be better at it. Not sure if I can kick off a discussion here, some food for thoughts:
How do you ask specific question?
What useful phrases do you use to get your answers?

Thanks for reading and hope this helps.

What I've learnt: Knowledge Base

Michelle Tan — Fri, 20 Nov 2020 22:28:33 +0000

Technology is a field that's constantly evolving in a rapid speed. As a software engineer, it makes continuous learning almost inevitable. Everyone has a different learning pace and sometimes we forget things we've learnt. Over the years, I slowly begin to understand the importance of having your own knowledge base. It is a great way for learning, self-help and to "retain" those information.

So... What is a knowledge base?

Knowledge base is a collection of documentation that typically includes answers to frequently asked questions, how-to guides, and troubleshooting instructions. Obviously, we can add anything we find useful including code snippets, documentation or even diagrams.

The benefits

Avoid wasting time on the same problem 🕵️‍♂️

Sometimes we spent hours on figuring/fixing "silly" things like setting up dev environment or other random issues. Or it could be one of those important operational things you have to do once in a while, for example, rotating a certificate in the server. So it's a good habit to start writing little "how-to" guides for yourself. Your future help would thank you for it.

Keeping good documentations 🖋📘

Often, we write code, test, merge and forget all about it. 8 months later, we come back to the same piece of work and nothing rings a bell. We often overlook the importance of keeping good documentation - or just plain lazy ¯_(ツ)_/¯ to even write a simple README file. If it's for yourself, it doesn't have to be really well written but at least something understandable when you re-visit.

Discussion starter 🙌

Since you've documented on the things you've worked on, it's easy to share it around and get a discussion going. Perhaps one day, you have a new feature idea on component A(you worked on) and connecting it up with component B(by another developer) will increase the throughput by X percent. It's easy to send the component A documentation with a proposed idea to the other developer and start a discussion.

You learn to write and think better 🤯

It's easy to read and think in our own heads. But when it comes to putting those thoughts in to structured sentences, it can be quite hard (especially for someone like me who's not a native English speaker). It can be frustrating when you can't understand some simple instructions you wrote in your own "how-to" guide. But with a lot of practice and time, you will eventually learn how to organize those thoughts and write better.

Becoming more independent 💪

Now that you've face X number of issues and kept a good record of "how-to" guides/code snippets/investigation notes, you will be less dependent on other people. When you encounter a new problem, there's a chance that it might be similar to one of the old ones. All you need to do is refer to your own knowledge base.

Makes life easier 🎉

Let's say you're transitioning to another team or leaving your current position some day. You probably need to write a handover document for someone who's taking your up tasks. Wait, maybe you don't. Just pick some of the important notes from your knowledge base. It makes everyone's life easier, you don't need to scramble at the last minute trying to figure out if you missed anything important.

Obviously, your knowledge base will grow over time and you have to keep it organized: some links might be broken, some code snippets might not work with newer version of SDKs, some "how-to" instructions are obsolete. So remember to update your knowledge base every once in a while 😊

Food for thoughts:
What are your experience on knowledge base?
How do you organize them?
And how often?

Thanks for reading and hope this helps.

Git Cheat Sheet (Fork Repo)

Michelle Tan — Sat, 22 Aug 2020 14:40:24 +0000

Here's a little cheat sheet for fork repo.

Track original repository

It's best to set this after you clone your fork.

# Set fork to track original repo
git remote add upstream https://github.com/[Original Owner]/[Original Repository].git

Update your fork

# Sync your fork with original repo
git fetch upstream
git checkout master
git merge upstream/master
git push origin master

Check your remote fork setup

git remote -v