I began to code because...
when I was in elementary school, my dad went back to school so he could become a web developer. For Christmas that year, he gave me his HTML4 reference book when I started asking questions about how he was making websites. I started reading and never looked back. Although it has always been a passion hobby of mine, coding did not become something I considered doing professionally until graduate school when I realized that there was a serious need in the policy sphere for web development. I've been fortunate enough to be able to create a position for myself where I can work on topics I care about and build cool web projects.
I recently overcame...
shyness about sharing my work and participating in development communities. Imposter syndrome is incredibly real and has been a frustrating aspect of getting into this career. I hope to be a more active member of the communities I'm in and not just lurk on the sidelines.
I want to brag about...
the team I work on. We're an award-winning creative agency inside of a think tank and are producing some really cool stuff. We're also (almost) an entirely women team, which is a rarity in both the tech and think tank spheres. I love coming to work and feeling inspired everyday by the work my colleagues do and it gives me courage to keep working even when the feeling of imposter syndrome becomes overwhelming.
My advice for allies to support women who code is....
be vocal about your support and be vulnerable about the things you struggle with. Knowing that there is somebody else out there who feels just as lost when they look at the state of the JavaScript ecosystem (seriously though - I finally got a handle on Webpack 3) can mean everything when you're questioning whether or not you have the skills to make it in the field.
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