Being consistent takes a lot of work but it’s not impossible. In the same breath, I can be good and bad at learning to code. I reached the seventeenth day of my commitment to the hundred days of coding challenge and fell off the wagon. I have had some sleepless nights because I thought I was getting left behind in my cohort. I’m getting ahead of myself.

Two or three weeks ago, I can’t remember exactly now, it’s been a while but I started the backend module of the Command Shift bootcamp. I was buzzing to be back and moving on from the ten weeks of foundational work we’d just completed. The first lecture made a nice change of pace and the breakout session changed from being an often quiet affair to a more jubilant discussion about coding. I felt well prepared and I was able to install everything I needed for the next six weeks. Docker. Check. pgAdmin. Check. PostgreSQL. Check. Postman. Check.

However, as it frequently does, my life got twisted and turned upside down. Dramatic? Who me? Well, maybe ever so slightly. In reality, in recent weeks I felt like I’ve been struggling with the backend module. I was a bit surprised by this. Not because I see myself as a backend whizz but because the last time I wrote SQL I really enjoyed it. That was probably about five years ago when I was undertaking the Codecademy Frontend Pathway. The cause of my frustration is due to a lack of consistency. My day job and coding time balance had been on an uneven keel. Then I got fixated on a problem that turned out to be a bigger deal in my head than it actually was.

How did I get over this? I asked my tutor for help. It turns out that Docker was displaying a yellow AMD warning to tell me that the northwind exercise container I was using, was not designed for my Apple silicone chip and might be less performant. The other problem was with me. I hadn’t read the track properly and felt then felt hopeless when it came to manipulating the database in pgAdmin.

Now, I always have Docker desktop running when I’m using pgAdmin. I know how to refresh, remove and reconnect a server if I need to. Very important if like me, you forgot the password because you’ve relied on Google to save them for you for so many years. What else can I do now? I can write statements to create tables, insert new data, select data, update, and delete data. All the repetition of completing exercises and building muscle memory like this has put me back on track and I’m ready to crack on with the next module. I’ll be creating a Web API using Express that exposes the JavaScript functions I solved in the first weeks of the course.

Two more things before this blog post ends.

Firstly, I have a coding podcast called Codewords and I would be very grateful if you would listen to it. In the last episode, I was joined by Chris Edwards , Mike Brewer (thanks for helping me with pgAdmin 😀) and Anthony Moran from my cohort to reflect on our progress so far. As mentioned in my first blog post, I decided to take the plunge, and start learning to code with renowned Bootcamp, Command Shift, formerly known as Manchester Codes. The course offers a comprehensive understanding of how to build interactive websites and covers all aspects of software development, to help you upskill as a junior developer. It’s a remote, 28-week part-time course, and we’ve finished the first 10 weeks.

Secondly. This blog is pointless for me if my aim is to use it to leverage my first role in tech. Where did that come from? I hear you ask. Well, a few weeks ago I attended a webinar hosted by coding bootcamp careers coach, David Roberts, who helps bootcamp developers stand out by maximising their visibility to potential recruiters. My key takeaway from that was to make my LinkedIn account look attractive to recruiters by giving them the answers they want, in the quickest way possible. During the talk, it was clear that the more I can do to help a recruiter match me for the roles they’re looking to fill, the more chance I have of securing an interview. Since then, I’ve updated my header image which easily displays the programming languages I can write. My profile clearly displays what roles I am interested in and I’ve bulked out my bootcamp curriculum. The other key thing I took away from this, is that recruiters want to see the struggles of learning to code documented in your feed. Not like this. By adding code snippets to my posts, people can see the struggle and eventually how I overcame it. Like my portfolio, this will always be a work in progress.

With that said, does that mean it’s the end of days for this blog? The answer is no. Yes, the aforementioned LinkedIn best practice is an absolute must for gaining employment as a developer. Yes, I will be building my connections on that platform, and I can see why saving recruiters time is so important. However, this blog is for me to document my journey, it’s for me to look back on. Or, maybe you’re reading this from a non-traditional tech background and it feels more accessible for you. Then that’s great too. It’s about knowing your audience, so I’ll be doing just that. This isn’t the end of the blog, just the end of the post. By the way, today marks my sixth day back on the coding challenge. See ya.