I'm Bad At Coding ... (My Software Engineering Journey)

I failed a lot during my journey to big tech. My journey starting in Learning Support, and was daunting the whole way through.

📚Chapters📚
0:00 - Intro
0:47 - First Course (Recursion)
1:26 - Internship/Co-op program
1:46 - Always Look for Opportunity
2:30 - OOP
2:55 - Learn How You Learn
3:36 - Figure Out University
3:54 - Sometimes You Fail The Interview
4:23 - How to be a Software Engineer
4:53 - Slow Down
5:35 - Your Life Isn't Over
6:09 - Do the Research Yourself
7:10 - Take a Chance On Yourself
7:33 - Its All Relative
8:06 - DON'T BE AN ELEPHANT

Watch these too!

**DISCLAIMER**:
This channel was prepared or accomplished by Jason Goodison in his personal capacity. The opinions expressed in this video are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Microsoft, Waterloo, or its affiliates.

[akulabourne]

"If you aren't the smartest person in the room, you're doing something right. And if you are the smartest person in the room, find another room." These words of advice are legendary, mate.

[annaozor]

Dear Jason, thank you for putting this out. I feel highly encouraged. It's funny how I am nearly giving up because of how I usually feel so dumb after failing these coding challenges. I am taking this as a sign. I will try again till I succeed at my dreams. Thank you! You inspire me.

[jacobmaximususaraga]

"If you aren't the smartest person in the room, you are doing something right. If you are the smartest person in the room, find a different room."

Now, this hits me so much. Thanks, Jason!

[mimbec]

The biggest lesson here is that you do not have to be the smartest person in the room to be good at your job. I was terrible at school, didn't go to university and did odd jobs until i was 26. I landed my first IT job at 26 and worked really hard to understand all the different concepts and did a lot of work on certifications. I kept doing this over my career...always trying to learn new things. I was definitely not the leading expert on all technical topics but i did have a very broad knowledge of lots of different technical areas at a decent depth. Now, 10 years later, i work for one of the biggest and most successful security companies in the world.

Everything Jason talks about in this video is spot on.

[CodyBanks]

That Indian guy on YouTube is the real life saver.

[repie]

Thank you for being vulnerable with your stories. It's really inspiring to tell kids that I tutor that they can achieve great heights when I know there's people like you who have done it despite their disadvantages.

[hil]

Dude, you're right in so many levels. I always thought going to these giant companies was impossible. When I started studying for programming competitions back in 2018 some people told me it would help me land an interview and maybe a job in companies such as facebook and google but I didnt really believe them, it was something so distant so I stopped studying. Context: I live in a poor part of Brazil and the school I study in isn't the most prestigious school even in the city. Last year a guy from the same school I study landed an internship at Facebook and soon after that an internship at Uber. I was speechless. I realized it was possible. I thought "if someone from my school did it then maybe I could do it too, why not try?" and I got in touch with him, we happen to be good friends nowadays. This fact gave me the movitation and goals I needed. I got back to studying for ICPC in August 2021, didnt really go to the nationals but its alright, kept studying, then stopped for 2 months. I had finally started planning my future. I planned leaving the company I worked at to spend 1~2 years only studying (the company ended up flopping but its another story lol). Then in February this year this friend was at Meta and said he could referral me and some friends as an intern. I saw this opportunity and got back to studying real hard. Ended up getting rejected in the final round but didnt care, I kept studying because I could clearly see my growth and that alone is so satisfying. Today I got an offer for an internship at Google here in Brazil. I couldn't believe it. Srsly, im stvpid AF. I take hours and even days to grasp subjects other people understand in one go. Im slow at solving problems (that hurts me a lot as a competitive programmer).. this is crazy but the best advice I could give is: if you want it go for it. Whatever it is. Stop worrying, stop overthinking, stop daydreaming, stop wondering, FREAKING DO IT RIGHT NOW. Start studying and apply yourself right now. Go ahead and dont look back. Ignore your feelings and thoughts of self-doubt, they will scream that you are not capable, simply keep going, its worth it. And the best thing is after some time you get some inertia and it becomes easy to keep grinding because now you're used to it. But the hardest part ALWAYS is starting. We dont know if we have another life. STOP DREAMING AND START PLANNING AND EXECUTING YOUR PLAN. Really guys, I cant stress this enough. I've procrastined studying my whole life, I only started getting some sense of accomplishment and growth once I took the guts to actually do it. Do it too, I promise it, if its something you enjoy you're not gonna regret it.
Just to get back to the point of the video: if you want to get a job at these companies do your research, take some time to focus (at least some 4 hours a day) and just do it. Its not that difficult, a lot of people dont even try but if you work your 4$$ off its only a matter of time

[Mat-eqmk]

This reminds me of my own route. I started working at a tech company in a non-dev role and only started writing my own code because I wanted to get things done without waiting for the dev team. I still work at the same company, but I'm a senior software engineer. Initiative and a can-do attitude are two of the most important skills anyone can possess. Subbed!

[mitchellbradbury]

Awesome video! Just finished my first year at UW and its crazy how so many people can relate to all the things you said. I will keep this video in mind as I go through university :)

[brianmagana]

I really needed this video. I have been having a real rough time after dropping out of college (comp sci major); suffered from agoraphobia from pandemic lockdown, anxiety, low self-esteem, undiagnosed ADHD. I recently started becoming more serious and less insecure about prospects in searching for my first job in software development (mostly because I don't want to be a loser almost-30 year old with 100k in debt and nothing to show for it). Hearing you say all of this really changed my outlook. So thank you for that.

p.s. I literally JUST solved that weird zigzag problem OMG it was a ton of fun lol

[dev_insights]

2:55 that is actually the best way to learn. It helps you to understand if you really understood the topic. It also helps to build up confidence.

[dovi]

This is the most accurate and authentic representation, of what an average software engineer's journey is really like, that I've ever seen on youtube. And I've seen a lot. I especially liked the quote: "If you're not the smartest person in the room, you're doing something right. If you are the smartest in the room, find a different room."

[hellomonkeyss]

This is the best YouTube video I have ever watched in my life :) this literally explains what I am experiencing right now ! ur lessons in the video are really great and are things I will remind myself of in these tough times. tysm😊

[ashiunderthemask]

I feel the same. It seems like I'm the dumbest person in the room. I'm trying. Your video is inspiring. Making me feel the worth of who I am and with consistent learning, I will be better. Thanks Jason.

[ying]

As a grad student just changing major from EE to CS, your experience of imposter syndrome and the feeling of everyone better than you is so relatable. Thank you so much for sharing your story and I learnt a lot! You really cheer me up and hope I can get my dream job like you!

[miornouxman]

This actually motivated me because I am also thought i the dumbest among. my coursemates. I eventually got recommended by someone for an internship at Intel. Currently, I am self-teaching my self more about coding and do some mini projects. It actually kind of helpful and watching this video actually boosted my morale even more. Thanks for the video.

[vanessaekanem]

I love your content! It's totally relatable. I learnt C & C++ in school. And although I didn't know what I was writing on my exam paper, I got a B. Honestly, C and C++ are difficult for me and when I see my classmates coding, I feel stupid and insecure about myself feeling like coding isn't for me.
So thank you for this video. I feel better about myself after watching it.

[familyfarmsforever]

45 years old and just beginning to program. Feels like my brain isn't made for it, but your video is encouragement to keep going.

[stevenstraker]

This took many years to learn (especially to not be an elephant), and it feels really good and validating to hear from someone who's gone on the journey to learn this too. Kudos

[AzuraiFrostwing]

You've singlehandedly inspired me to resume learning coding after dropping out of college for Web Dev and Programming.
It's nice to hear about not only your successes, but your failures, hurdles, and lessons learned as well. You don't pretend you're perfect, or pretend everything worked perfectly in your favor.
Thank you!