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Your first developer job hunt: it sucks and you’re not alone. — Part 2

Tuni 🔑 — Fri, 17 May 2019 01:44:08 +0000

Part 2 — It’s only logical. Job hunting is an anxiety filled experience. We’ll see how rationalizing the hiring process can get you closer to that developer title on your resume.

In the first part we covered the complicated feelings and situations you might find when looking for your first job as a developer. On the second and final part I gathered tips and insights that can help you not only deal with these feelings, but also improve your chances of getting your first job in the field.

Hiring: unicorns

You’ve heard that a company you find really interesting is hiring. Sweet! As you start reading the job description your enthusiasm goes down the drain. That’s a huge list of things you’re not. Maybe you match some of the requirements, but how can you compete with other candidates if they’re that much more qualified? I have good news: they’re probably not! If you’re under the impression that they’re describing some sort of coding demigod, it’s because they actually are. Job postings are nothing but wish lists of a made up perfect candidate that might not even exist. Or they are already happily employed at iUnicorns. When applying for positions highlight the skills that you have, and let them know how you‘re going to acquire some of the skills that are still missing. If you have work experience in other fields mention how you will transfer the skills you’ve gained in your other jobs. Companies hire for potential, especially for junior positions. You might not be quite there for that position, but if they see you’re in the right path to become their perfect unicorn they might give you a chance.

Be honest

By now you’re probably aware of what you know and what you don’t know, and if you’re not, you should. Some might try to fake how knowledgeable they are about a certain subject during a job interview. That’s a terrible idea. If you get caught, it’s really shameful and might cost you that opportunity, and if you don’t you can’t fool them for a long time. Even if by a miracle you fake your way through and get hired they’ll expect you to actually do that job. Remember: getting the job is only the first step! A means to and end, not the ultimate goal. Having a career is the real game, and you don’t want to start off on the wrong foot. So be honest, it’s good for everyone. Don’t act like you know or should know everything.

Arm yourself with facts

People underestimate portfolios and fail to realize that their projects are the most objective way to showcase their skills. As I said in Part 1, your portfolio is a reflection of where you’re at this moment and you should use it to backup what you stated in your application. Anyone can say that they know a language or framework, but can they show it? Even a simple project can work in your favor, if it’s a good, finished product. If you have more complex ongoing projects, show them the victories you already achieved, and what are your next challenges. When talking about your projects, go full technical. Don’t say you chose that project because it’s “cool”, “pretty”, or “fun”, talk about what language and libraries you used, and how you solved the problems you faced when coding it. Show them what you can build by yourself, and you’ll be showing them that with guidance and experience you’ll be able to do much more.

They need you as much as you need them

When a company has a position to be filled it also means that they have a problem to be solved. It doesn’t matter the reason for the opening, whether if it’s because somebody left the company, got promoted, or they’re expanding the team. While no one is there to do that job they’re losing money. Hiring is also costly for the company, as they have to pay for things like talent acquisition fees, as well as accounting for the time that their employees are accessing candidates instead of doing their primarily job. As soon as they fill that position with a good fit, the better. Companies don’t post positions to turn people down. So try to remember that a hiring company is not doing you any favor, they actually need you as much as you need them.

They want you to succeed in the interview

We all know that job hunting is a stressful situation, but also an unbalanced power dynamic. Well, maybe not. I was really surprised when most of the developers I talked with — some of them being responsible for interviewing candidates in their company — said that that’s probably in our head. Yes, some interviewers might like the power trip side of it, but if they’re doing their job, which is finding a good candidate for that position, it’s beneficial for everyone that you succeed. They contacted you because they think you’re a good fit. No one has time or disposition to interview candidates that don’t stand a chance.

Be real

If you’re nervous, tell them. Ask for a few seconds to think of an answer, but tell them what you’re thinking. If you don’t know something, don’t pretend to know all about it. Share the extent of your knowledge, or give your best guess. Correct yourself when you notice a mistake, even when you think it’s too late. It not only normal to do all those things, but expected. If you don’t it might be misinterpreted as arrogance or sheer ignorance. During a technical interview you should ask questions. Try to see it as if you’re all part of a team solving a problem, because that’s one of the things they’re evaluating: how you work with others. But expect guidance instead of answers, as they’re also accessing the depth of your technical knowledge. Talking about your thinking process is more important than knowing the answer. Developers don’t always have the right answer to a problem on the first try, what matters is showing that you can come close to an answer and mainly how you get there. Also, take home challenges are not built for you to finish everything, but to see how far can you go. Plan your challenge with a MVP and stretch goals, and if you finish everything, way to go!

Know what you want

In a field that really values culture fit you should also be worried if the company fits you. The interview is a two way thing, you need to evaluate the company and the team the same way as they’ll be checking you. They want you to be happy there, it’s better for them too. You’re going to dedicate a good part of your day working, that’s why it’s really important to know what you want in a job and if you really like the company. How do you feel during interactions you have with their employees? What about their office? If you feel something is off, it probably is. Trust your gut. But you should also trust facts, which takes us to the next topic.

Don’t buy a book by its cover

Some companies do an excellent job on how they sell themselves online, but in reality can be very distant from that image. So do your research. There are several sites with employee reviews. What kind of media attention are they getting? How about the way the company and their employees behave online? Is it mostly positive or negative? If possible, contact former employees. During an interview you should ask a lot of questions about the company and how it’s working there. Some good examples are: What would you change about your work? What you don’t like about your job? What sort of challenges the team is facing at the moment? What kind of mentorship is available? How is your team structured? How diverse it is? Analyze not only their answers, but how they answer it. Once my interviewer refused to answer some pretty generic questions, and seemed very upset about it. It raised a very bright red flag for me. On a later occasion I got to know someone that quit that same company and told me it was a terrible place to work at. Know the place and the people you’re going to work with before accepting an offer. Unless you’re in a situation that requires that sort of decision, don’t jump the gun and accept an offer from a company you don’t feel confident about, just because it’s the first one. Accepting a job that you’ll end up hating it’s harmful for everyone.

Be mindful of other people’s time

It’s OK to drop out of a hiring process at anytime if you don’t like the company or the job. The sooner the better, for everyone. Thank them for the opportunity and their time. And if you don’t get an offer, keep in mind that…

“No” is different than “never”

Being rejected by a company might mean a lot of different things. It can mean that they found a better qualified candidate, or that you were not a fit for their culture. But what it doesn’t mean is that you’re not worthy of a job. You might not be as qualified yet, but you’re improving every day and will get there eventually. You might not be a fit for their culture, but you’ll find a better fit for yourself. If you didn’t got that job at your dream company, there’s always time and opportunity to become their unicorn. It’s not a never, it’s a not right now.

Most things in life are a matter of attitude

Everybody says that your first developer job will be the hardest one to get, and it’s very tempting to give up sometimes. The tech industry is known for the nerve-wracking hiring process and egotistical interviewers that make you feel vulnerable. We have a long way to go before it gets better, but when your time to be a senior hiring a junior comes, remember how it felt to be in that person’s shoes. Be a part of the solution and don’t perpetuate the problem. For now we have to play their game, but with a change of attitude we can bend their rules in our favor. To wrap thing up I’d like to share one of my favorite quotes:

“If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.” — Maya Angelou

I hope this blog post helped you rethink the way you see the hiring process, and that it looks a little less scary and unachievable. With effort, patience, and a little change of attitude, you’ll be closer to your first developer position. Now go get that job!

Your first developer job hunt: it sucks and you’re not alone. Part 1

Tuni 🔑 — Fri, 17 May 2019 01:30:15 +0000

Part 1 — All the Feels. A lot of blog posts talk about strategies on how to find your first developer job, but rarely people talk about what it actually feels like. Well, it sucks!

One of the best things that HackerYou bootcamp have brought to my life is its amazing community, filled with seniors that have been on my shoes before and are willing to help. I’ve picked the brain of several Senior Developers when I was applying for my first job, and here is some knowledge I gathered from these amazing people, as well as some insights I had while job hunting. I ended up collecting a lot of information, which I’ll divide in two parts. The first one will be more subjective, while the second will be insights about the hiring process and job interviews.

You’ll never be fully prepared

A lot of people ask: when should I start applying for jobs? And the answer is now. If you’re going to wait for you to feel comfortable or confident then it’s never. The nature of being a developer is forever feeling unprepared. You’ll always have something to learn, you’ll always have room for improvement, so why not now? Companies will hire for potential and culture fit, specially for Junior positions. Make a portfolio with two or three projects and start applying. But don’t wait for your portfolio or projects to be perfect before you start applying, because — I bet you guessed it right — they’ll never be perfect. Actually, they should never feel perfect. Your portfolio and your projects should be a reflection of where you’re at this moment, so they should evolve with you. And you should always be improving and learning. Also, the added pressure of having companies looking at your portfolio today can do wonders in terms of pushing yourself to improve your projects.

It takes time, but above all, it takes effort

Finding a job takes time. How much time? I don’t know, but it’s usually connected to how much effort you put into it. Yes, unfortunately you have to do all those things that you read about. Research the companies to write the right cover letter, change your resume accordingly, study a lot for the interviews… you know the drill. It’s mostly in the numbers, so the more you apply, the more interviews you have, and the closer you are to your first developer job. That’s not the only factor though. Some people will get a job with half the same effort as you. Which leads us to my the next topic…

It’s a humbling experience

Why them and not me? The answer might surprise you. No, it’s not because you’re useless and will never be good enough, cause trust me, if you didn’t give up on coding when you started learning, as many do, you’re the opposite of that. You might even be more skilled than the candidate they chose, but they were a better fit for the company’s culture. This part of the hiring process is very subjective and hard to accept. Why do we befriend some people and not others? It’s in the little things. And it’s also completely out of your control. But how you feel about it is, so let go. Trust that if the company thought that you were not the best fit for them, they’d also not be the best fit for you. If you’re not having as many interviews as others, that doesn’t mean anything. You just need to succeed once, it might just mean that they’ll have to fail more times to achieve the same result. Don’t compare yourself to others, you know nothing about their journey. Only compare yourself to your past self. There you go! See how you improved?

You’ll fail many times

Job hunting is stressful, doesn’t matter if you’re looking for your tenth job or your first job, it’s filled with anxiety and self-doubt. These feelings come from fear of failing, and they’re completely normal and expected. But let me tell you something: you will fail. And you should fail, cause if you’re not it means you’re selling yourself short. Do apply for that job you think you’re not qualified for, let them be the ones to say no, if they ever. You should only say yes to yourself. Can I do this? Yes. Should I apply for this job? Yes. But what if I don’t get this job? You’ll get the next one, because every time you fail you gain experience. You’ll feel more comfortable during interviews, you’ll gain confidence each time a company reaches back, and if you keep pushing you’ll eventually get a job! You only really fail if you stop trying. Stop using the times you didn’t succeed to evaluate your self value and start seeing it for what it really is: just one of the many steps you’ll make to find your first developer job.

Be kind to yourself

If you’re having a bad day, let yourself have a bad day. Some days will be awful, don’t fight that feeling, let it come and go. If you feel like you can’t write another cover letter, go do something else. But don’t let that be an excuse to just run from discomfort. Starting to code was stepping away from your comfort zone, and if you didn’t you’d not be here, right? Learn to identify when you really need a break from everything. And be kind to yourself. If the things you’re saying to yourself would not be OK to say to a friend, then why it would be OK to say them to you? Be your best friend. Let the voice in your head be the same as the one that supports your friends.

You’re not alone

Whatever you’re feeling, we’ve been there. Surround yourself with others experiencing the same as you. Reach out to the people who have been there (and FYI my DMs are always open on twitter). Don’t be afraid to be the one to vent, sometimes you think you’re bothering someone and you’re actually validating what they’re also feeling but are too afraid to verbalize. If you’re open people will be more willing to open themselves to you. Let this be an opportunity for mutual support.

A self-knowing journey

Take this opportunity to learn as much as you can. About what kind of job do you want, what kind of company you’d like to work at, what are your strengths and weakness and how you can improve.

Knowing what you really want will help you find the job that you deserve. I’ll talk more about that and more in the second part.