Dev Bootcamp Phase 0 - Week One: Students Log

Ok, so I am not really a trekie but I just couldn't pass it up. Another thing that I am not really into is blogging; nonetheless, here I am just a few days into Dev Bootcamp and already writing the second blog of my life. Early on in researching the various programming bootcamps my impression of Dev Bootcamp is that it was a little touchy-feely and--to be honest--that kind of made me uncomfortable. However, the more I read about Dev Bootcamp and watched videos online about their Engineering Empathy Curriculum, I started to realize how the culture makes real world practical sense and actually isn't all that different than who I am and how I learn.

What is my take on the DBC experience so far? In the begining, there seemed to be an huge amount of information, resources and deliverables out there, and they all lived somewhere in a labyrinth of hyper-links. This was initially overwhelming and I started to feel a little of that "I am not good enough" fear that Shereef talked about in his Fireside Chat. As I continued to work my way through the maze and saw posts from my cohorts, I realized that we are all in the same place and are figuring it out together. As the week progressed, I started to feel much better. I now have a grasp on the logistics and how to navigate my way through the curriculum (hopefully not newbie ignorance). I Made it through most of the challenges and I was really feeling good and then I got to the blogs...

Right back to the "I am not good enough" fears, pushing through the technical blog thinking "Ok, not too bad" but now you want me to write about my feelings. So I watched Shereefs Fireside Chat video and I thought about my experiences throughout the week and it all started to make sense. Thinking of Shereef's chefs in the kitchen analogy, I start to understand that the biggest lesson that we had this week is that if we are all engaged as a cohort, roll up our sleeves and jump in, we will all learn together. Once again, the "Not Good Enough" fears have subsided and I am really excited to start working closely with my fellow cohorts in the coming weeks.

P.S. I am sure the fears will be back at least one or two more times... a day!