I am hoping to try a new career pathway with the skills I gain from the course. I wouldn’t mind if this lead me into a job where it combines teaching with coding. The ideal situation would be that I’d go work at a company for a year or two then go freelance.
I don’t think my strengths and limitations have changed much except for one small thing - I feel like I am becoming less of a perfectionist. I’m more focused on getting things done. A good example of this is my blog. I know in Sprint 2 I was really focused on getting it to look nice but I kept telling myself to not focus on that. I know would have been really bothered before but now I can feel my way of thinking is slowly changing. I know I can always spend more time later if I really wanted to make changes. What I have now is not the end product. I think it will be a strength because I won’t be so caught up things that I spend too much time on one thing.
One of my biggest limitations could be me speaking my mind or speaking up about my ideas. This really depends on the group of people but I do find it can occur when working with new people.
For the learning side - it’s very similar to the support I wanted from foundations - to lead me in the right direction if I am going off on a tangent. To have examples - especially live demos or example codes to refer to. To spend some time explaining things if I am lost. I really appreciate it when people do that!
For the wellbeing side - I think just regular check ins would be really good to see how I am coping with the learning. Seeing that people spend 60-70hrs on average a week a bit scary and daunting but I feel like when I am actually doing it, I’ll be fine especially when regular check ups.
I will take regular breaks every 30-40 mins when working to help with my productivity and help manage any frustrations that might build up as a result of the learning/tasks. I will ask for help if I am stuck after having a go at it myself. I will make sure I don’t spend too long on something and ask for help earlier so that I am using time efficiently.
To work productively and safely with others, communication is key. It will be good to establish with the others in the group our expectation so that we’re all on the same page. I do my best to get my points across and use active listening to ensure we are communicating effectively.
My plan is to become a web developer and work for someone else for a couple of years before I go freelance. Due to the nature of my previous career, I really value the ability of being flexible with my time for myself, my family and my friends.
I have written them out in detail here. I am able to stay focused for long periods of time when I am learning something that is of interest to me. This can also be one of my limitations due to my ‘perfectionist’ nature for wanting my work to look a certain way. This usually leads me down a rabbit hole and then I end up spending too much time on it!
The main one I want to develop further is my communication. I’d like to develop my ability to communicate clearly and effectively without feeling worried about offending the other person. I know I do this very often and sometimes I end up not saying what I really wanted to say. I’d like to practise more active listening and reframing it back to the speaker to prevent miscommunication.
To mange work productivity, I will ensure I take short breaks every 30mins-1hour depending on my focus level. This means getting up and moving around or even just going out to stare out the window just as a way for my brain and my eyes to take a break from the screen. I will put away my phone so I am not distracted and I will put on some background music as I found this helps me with my focus.
In terms of working safely with other learners, facilitators and industry/community representatives, I am hoping to develop my active listening and referring back to ensure that I am communicating effectively and that we’re all on the same page.
When things are building up and is getting to me, I plan to stop and take a break away from the situation or the person to allow myself time to process what happened. This could include going out for a short walk or moving to a different room.
When I notice I am getting stuck and I’m beginning go get frustrated, I will give myself a 5 minute break away and come back to see if I can figure it out. I will give myself 10-15minutes to try and if I really can’t and am getting frustrated again, I will ask either on Slack or ask my facilitator.
To provide support and help lead me in the right direction when I am going down a rabbit hole or when I am just going in the wrong direction. I find examples/live demonstrations and feedback valuable and helps me progress in my learning. I also really value when people take time to explain something to help me deepen my understanding.
I currently am quite flexible with my time. I have decided that I won’t do any work in the weekends (unless I really need to for catchups) to give myself a break from the workload.