Photo by enginakyurt on Unsplash
Life would not pause and wait for you.
Let me start with a widely-known quote.
I know these times are hard. Many of us are merely trying to survive.
And that is fine. I want to give you a pat on the back for a job well done. I will not force you to change whatever your state is right now.
But still, reality sucks. Life is not an episode of your favorite series on Netflix that you can pause whenever you hear the call of nature.
Yes, we have our own timelines. However, this is not an excuse to do nothing.
You would be surprised what boredom can do.
Or maybe you do not need these positivity shenanigans; Perhaps you are already craving for something to do. After all, the software development industry is relatively one of the less impacted by the worldwide quarantine. We remain productive as things outside get wild, thanks to the continuous growth of internet-based solutions.
Either way, what can we do?
The most obvious thing is to start a project. We are developers after all. I do not care what this project is. I am sure with years of college/university and perhaps experience, you have an idea or two. Just start one.
You do not need to be in the mood. Gather the tools. Research. You may still be in a dilemma right now, but many times it is just that our brain is wired to crave comfort. Start. Start making something possible.
Still doubting? Let me toss you some ideas you can start with:
Blog. Static-site generators make things easy for you to create one. There are a lot of tools and themes in different languages to choose from. Many of them are free and open-sourced. Nothing to host it on? Start with a free hosting solution via Github Pages.
Create an online resume. This can also be done via static-site generators. I tell employers on my cover e-mail something along the lines of:
My actual resume is attached. You may also see it online at xxxx.xxx.xxxAnd it looks nice. This is where you show off your portfolio and other things people can’t see on your actual resume.
A CRUD app using your favored language. Or even in another language where you printed Hello World years back and never used again. I suggest design with REST web services in mind. Or GraphQL.
Ideas aren’t limited to the ones I told you about. Just keep yourself busy with something preferably (not necessarily) productive.
Feed your brain
Learn a new skill. Another obvious thing, I know. But let’s keep in mind that the industry we are in is changing rapidly. You never know, what you know today may not be relevant tomorrow. Or the next month.
Luckily for us, there is a vast wealth of knowledge on the web. Watch along a course on YouTube. Read books and tutorials.
Or, follow this blog. 😉
You can also enroll in online course providers (Udemy, SkillShare, PluralSight, etc.). Either get a new skill or update what you have. Peut-être apprendre le Français? I googled that….
Stuck with ASP.NET Framework/MVC? Checkout a .NET Core course. Java 1.5 has long been outdated. Data Science (with R/Python) continues to grow. JQuery is nice and all, but single pages and material design with Angular/React/Vue.js are now the thing.
Also, remember to practice what you learn. You can’t tell your employer (or future employer) that you know one technology. Not only that, practicing lets you commit mistakes. Go get your hands dirty. And this goes back to the previous section.
Process some papers.
No, I don’t mean to get married or get out of the country. Certify. Many of us don’t know the value of one sheet.
This sheet, or these sheets prove that you have been filtered by governing bodies. Certifications raise your value by one notch (or higher). It spices up your resume, and hungry hunters flock under you.
After all, it isn’t easy to prove something another party cannot see. You would not be creating a network infrastructure during an interview, but showing them your CCNP Certification tells them that you can.
Sure, this costs money. But it’s worth the investment. And make use of your employee benefits in case you have. You may have one you do not know of. Ask your manager.
Fly high, sky-high.
Many don’t know this (including I back then), but many cloud providers such as Azure, AWS, and Heroku provide free hours/months/credits for new accounts.
Sign-up and get hands-on with cloud services! These skills are not just great to have today, but also this is where you can host the projects you thought of from the previous sections.
Accept everything; Expect nothing.
You may be stuck in a rut right now. Not in the mood to get up, scrolling your Facebook/Twitter feed endlessly. Or sleeping away the day, not looking forward to anything.
That is fine. Fighting against what you are feeling right now is only harmful. Instead, I want you to acknowledge this feeling. Be uncomfortable.
Comfort is dangerous. People who get stuck to comfort find themselves unmotivated to do anything. I am sure you can think of stories you’ve heard in the past as you read. So use what you are feeling right now as a weapon rather than finding yourself succumbing to it.
Reference: that was me a few months ago. If in case you are the same, you may find this book a good read. There’s a lot more to this technique than I am telling you.
PS: I wish I am sponsored with all the links I am putting here, but no.
