How Did Emmett Naughton Go from Hospital Janitor to Developer? [Podcast #185]

TL;DR

Emmett Naughton became a developer by teaching himself programming with Free Code Camp while working for years as a hospital janitor. He later founded Coder Dads, moved from full-stack JavaScript into the PHP Laravel ecosystem, and continued his tech career after being laid off twice in one year. His experience connects career change with community, consistent effort, social media, and better sleep. Read on for the practical lessons behind his transition.

Transcript

Welcome back to the Free Code Campamp podcast. I'm Quincy Larson, teacher and founder of freecodeamp.org. Today we're talking with EMTT Nton. He worked as a hospital janitor for years while teaching himself programming using Free Code Camp. He's the founder of Coder Dads, a chat community where dads encourage one another. We're going to talk about ... Read More

Key Insights

• Emmett Naughton taught himself programming while working as a hospital janitor, using Free Code Camp resources.
• He founded Coder Dads, a community where fathers in tech support each other in their career journeys.
• Emmett emphasizes the importance of networking and social media to build a career in tech, even if one doesn't enjoy using social media.
• He experienced layoffs twice in one year but continued to persevere in the tech industry.
• Emmett transitioned into the PHP Laravel ecosystem from a full stack JavaScript background, finding the community more welcoming.
• He highlights the importance of sleep, noting that treating his sleep apnea significantly improved his cognitive abilities and coding performance.
• Emmett advocates for being genuine and transparent online to build a strong professional reputation.
• He shares the importance of taking small, consistent steps toward career goals, even when balancing family responsibilities.

Questions & Answers

Q: How did Emmett Naughton transition from a hospital janitor to a developer?

Emmett Naughton taught himself programming with Free Code Camp while working for years as a hospital janitor. He built his skills through online learning and projects, then successfully made a major career transition into software development.

Q: What is Coder Dads?

Coder Dads is a chat community founded by Emmett Naughton where fathers encourage one another. It gives dads a supportive place to discuss pursuing tech careers while raising families and making ends meet.

Q: Why did Emmett Naughton move from JavaScript to PHP and Laravel?

Naughton wanted a new challenge after working with full-stack JavaScript technologies such as Node.js, React, MongoDB, Express, and Vue.js. He was also drawn to the Laravel community because it seemed encouraging and welcoming to newcomers.

Q: What advantages did Emmett Naughton find in Laravel?

He valued Laravel’s built-in authentication because it let him move quickly to building the main project instead of creating authentication from scratch. He also liked Laravel’s official starter kits for React, Vue, and Livewire, which create a ready-to-use project directory from the terminal.

Q: How did the PHP community compare with the JavaScript community in Emmett Naughton’s experience?

Naughton described the PHP community as enthusiastic about PHP and web development and especially supportive of newcomers. When he posted that he needed help, four or five people might offer assistance, while he had occasionally encountered abrasive responses in the JavaScript ecosystem.

Q: What role did social media play in Emmett Naughton’s tech career?

Naughton used social media to share his learning journey, connect with other technology professionals, and build his professional reputation. His experience shows how social media can support networking and career growth even for someone who does not enjoy using it.

Q: How did Emmett Naughton respond to being laid off twice in one year?

He continued pursuing work in the technology industry after being laid off twice in the same year. He relied on networking, kept applying for roles, and eventually accepted a support engineer position while working toward another developer role.

Q: How did treating sleep apnea affect Emmett Naughton’s coding?

Treating his sleep apnea dramatically improved his thinking and coding performance. Better sleep strengthened his focus, problem-solving ability, and overall cognitive performance.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Emmett Naughton transitioned from a hospital janitor to a developer by self-learning programming through Free Code Camp. He founded Coder Dads, a community supporting fathers in tech, and emphasizes the importance of networking and social media for career growth. Treating his sleep apnea significantly improved his cognitive abilities, highlighting the importance of sleep for productivity.

• Emmett's journey into the PHP Laravel ecosystem from a JavaScript background was driven by a desire for a new challenge and a more welcoming community. He shares insights on how to effectively use social media, even for those who dislike it, to build a career in tech.

• Despite facing layoffs twice in one year, Emmett persevered in the tech industry. He stresses the importance of being genuine online, taking small consistent steps towards career goals, and the value of sleep in improving cognitive performance and coding skills.