The article discusses balancing your coding journey with offline college.
The world has seen many unseen circumstances. The past few years haven't been easy for us all. It has been tough to adapt to the online world. Somehow we have survived that. The world is tilting towards normal (well....somewhat).
Now, problem is that we have little knowledge on how to manage offline colleges, develop our skill set, keep growing as a developer.
So let's start cracking on the solutions...
Intro
I am Pratik Singh, a 3rd year Engineering student from Bangalore. My College started offline after the 2nd wave. The stuff I was involved in the last 6 months:
- Internship at Juspay
- Offline Classes with an attendance policy.
- Leading the Google Developer Student Club on campus.
- Participated in Hackathons.
- Applying for Github Externship.
- Involved in some freelance opportunities.
This blog post will be about the mistakes I made as well as how I fixed them. I am no expert, but my intention is to help others in any way I can.
Let's get started!
> Can't be Great at everything!
Yes, this is the biggest mistake I have made, and still struggling with it. People who have several roles and responsibilities in their lives initially consider excelling at each of them. This seems over-motivated and under-evaluated.
Pick your battles wisely.
Input time as per the value of the outcome the task will yield.
> Priority List
I know it seems overburdened right now. There are multiple tasks on your to-do list.
Rather than a to-do list, I keep a mental priority list. The most important stuff has to be done first. I know, sounds like duh!! but the problem is that we forget the difference important and urgent tasks.
Thanks to Harsh Mishra I came to know about something called the EISENHOWER MATRIX. I am greatly grateful to him for introducing this to me.
> Have a Zen time
Don't let internships, colleges, or anyone else interfere with your time alone. Just you and your thoughts. It helps you plan the day more effectively. Establishes mental peace and also stepCount++.
> Time Table
When I am listing the things that might help, this one always stands out to me. I am not the person who is able to stick to a schedule or adhere to discipline.
> Stay Connected
The reason I am active on Twitter and in my communities is not that it's all fun. I keep myself connected to other developers. If you think your life is hard, talk to others. You will realize your life is a cakewalk. It also keeps you humble. You get motivation...
I can seriously do a Podcast on "Benefits of talking to other Developers".
Speaking of which let's connect!
Twitter : Kitarp29
Linkedin: Kitarp29
> Burnout is Real
Yes! I am no robot. I too get tired and feel like "Sabb moh Maaya h" (everything is meaningless). You need to take breaks too!
Relax and come back stronger. Binge, sleep like a sloth, whatever you feel like.
I had ignored this for a while and was seriously ill.
Health is wealth
> Have Fun!
Responsibilities and pressure will keep on brewing throughout your entire life. The irony is you have to build your life while also living it. I like to do community work, hang out with friends and keep time for my personal life.
These were some of the main topics I wanted to talk about.
Since you stayed till the end of the article, I will share a few more cheats :
- College gives attendance for winning hackathons (at least mine does)
- Sleeping in college classes is not a sin.
- Doing your own stuff while professors teach, I mean be cautious.
- Make a great set of friends, share your workload. Help each other. I am blessed with a great set of friends
- Whether be it a freelance gig/ an internship if you are not able to cope with the workload, reconsider. It will not be the end of the world.
Thanks for reading the article. Hoping it helps students like me :)
Top comments (3)
Ow, yeah. Offline college/school has definitely been a challenge for all of us -- but in all honesty, I don't think I would be where I am today if not for everything going virtual.
Amazing!
Thanks Ady :)