Collaboration: the subject of today's blog post, and an immensely valuable tool in the context of software development.
You know, it's kind of strange going from planning/designing/programming small projects in an isolated environment to working with other people. In a recent Develop Carolina workshop we were tasked with solving Codewars challenges in a pair programming exercise. Prior to this experience, pair programming was not something I had really experienced before. I have become quite used to sitting alone in a quiet room, listening to synthwave, and becoming absorbed entirely by the trial/error process of problem solving with no feedback from anyone else. As much as that probably sounds like a hip way to spend a Friday night, it's a really limited experience. If my brain gets hung up on something ("uhhh what's that method that does that thing..."), I have to awkwardly Google around until I find some sort of foothold to climb my way out of the hole I'm in. If I have no idea where to go next, I stumble around until I (hopefully) trip over the answer. With pair programming, there's another brain there to attack the problem. My weaknesses may be their strengths, and we are fortified in our togetherness. Challenges can be solved more effectively through collaboration. And while, yes, coding with someone watching was initially a nerve-wracking and kind of awkward experience, the pros far outweighed the cons when all was said and done. I'm looking forward to honing these skills.
In terms of my overall fellowship project (the "umbrella project"), collaboration and communication will continue to play a vital role in my success. I am so lucky to be paired with a teammate who exemplifies excellent communication, and am grateful to learn from her strengths in my areas of weakness. Though I have done my fair share of group projects throughout my 20+ years of schooling (cue mild existential crisis and feeling super old) and my fair share of professional teamwork within the healthcare setting, this is something entirely new to me. Looking ahead to working within my host company, I'm excited to observe the way that an actual real-world software team(TM) works together to solve actual real-world problems in an actual real-world software company, and to take those lessons with me as I work towards being a valuable team member myself.
Alright, relatively short for my verbose nature, but that's all I've got for today. Here's one more memetastic representation of the last few days for the road:
<3
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