How I Learned to Code in 6 Months - And Got Into Google

TL;DR

In just over six months, the author goes from never having written a line of code to landing a job as a software engineer at Google, sharing their story and lessons learned along the way.

Transcript

what's up everybody how's it go and just want to do a quick introduction here basically in this video I wanted to share with you the story of how I went from quite literally never having written a line of code in my life to landing a job as a software engineer at Google in just a little over six months and as you'll see in this video I really tried... Read More

Key Insights

• 💻 Attending a coding boot camp was a pivotal point in the narrator's journey to becoming a software engineer at Google.
• 💡 The narrator initially had misconceptions about their ability to learn coding, but quickly realized the importance of coding skills for their desired career paths. ⏰ The narrator spent a significant amount of time studying and practicing coding during their boot camp, dedicating themselves to the craft.
• 💪 The narrator's focus and dedication to coding challenges and projects, such as Code Wars, contributed to their success in learning and mastering coding skills.
• 🔀 The narrator strategically chose projects that aligned with their coding interests while also providing opportunities to learn and practice algorithms and other programming concepts.
• 📚 The narrator faced challenges when preparing for coding interviews, particularly in learning new programming languages, but overcame them through diligent preparation.
• 🎯 The narrator's perseverance and commitment paid off when they passed their coding interviews and received a job offer from Google.
• 🌟 This story serves as an inspirational example of how someone with little prior coding experience can achieve their dreams of becoming a software engineer with determination, dedication, and focused preparation.

Questions & Answers

Q: How did the author's misconception about coding hinder their progress initially?

The author initially believed that only those who had been studying coding since childhood or high school could pursue computer science, which delayed their entry into coding and learning programming skills.

Q: How did the coding boot camp facilitate the author's learning process?

The coding boot camp provided preparatory materials to teach the author coding fundamentals and interview practice problems, allowing them to progress from having never coded to an elementary coding level.

Q: What approach did the author take during their time at the coding boot camp?

The author focused on coding, dedicating long hours each day to practice, complete projects, and further develop their skills, taking advantage of their immersion in the boot camp environment.

Q: How did the author leverage their coding boot camp experience to enhance their learning?

The author extensively used Code Wars, a website offering coding puzzles and challenges, to practice their coding skills and algorithms, which contributed significantly to their success.

Q: How did the author combine their coding projects with their other interests?

The author strategically chose project topics related to programming, such as visualization tools for algorithms and creating their programming language, to maximize exposure to coding while pursuing their other interests.

Q: What challenges did the author face during their job application process?

The author initially underestimated the coding interview process and failed a phone interview, leading them to intensify their coding interview preparation in Python and Java.

Q: How long did it take for the author to secure a job at Google after starting their coding journey?

It took the author around six months from their initial coding boot camp application to receiving a job offer from Google, with a significant portion of the time spent on intensive coding preparation for interviews.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The author graduates college without any coding experience and initially dislikes coding.

• After discovering coding boot camps, the author applies and starts learning the fundamentals of programming.

• The author attends a coding boot camp, immerses themselves in coding, and completes projects that combine coding skills with their other interests.