Draw Your Own Map is all about defining your career path and how it aligns with your values as a programmer. When working at any job it is always important to keep in mind your goals and aspirations; don’t let a company’s goals supersede your own. Sometimes it may be tempting to stay with a company that doesn’t fit your map since they offer promotions and raises, but it will benefit you in the long run to find a more suitable job.

I think this is a fantastic pattern for apprentices to learn since it is very tempting to stay with a job to peruse promotions. I worked at Taco Bell, a job I didn’t like, for four years because I accepted a managerial position. If I had learned about Draw Your Own Map before I began working I wouldn’t have stayed with Taco Bell so long.

When choosing between fast food jobs there is not much difference between work environments, but when choosing between software development jobs there is a huge amount of difference between two companies, let alone the entire industry. This is why it is so important to Draw Your Own Map wisely and choose the right path, because you do not get a second chance.

Your path compounds on itself, as shown by Desi’s experience. She began work as a system administrator, but found that she wanted to program. Few companies would hire her since she had a lot of systems experience, but little programming experience. This is why it is so important to always stay on your map and make sure the experience you gain is experience you want. Eventually Desi found a company which hired her, and is much happier at her current job.

Reading this pattern has definitely changed my perspective on my future career path. Draw Your Own Map suggests to set small goals for yourself since achieving these goals will help you create new ones. I’ve been debating if I should (professionally) hop around jobs, and this pattern has convinced me to do so. Hopping jobs will allow me to experience what the industry has to offer, and to decide what I want to do based on personal experience rather than my own thoughts about what software development is. I thoroughly enjoyed Draw Your Own Map and I think it’s insights are invaluable, especially to someone like me.

From the blog CS@Worcester – Ryan Blog by rtrembley and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

This apprenticeship pattern really tries to tell apprentices, relatively new software craftsmen, to allow their enthusiasm and new set of eyes to help guide older, more experienced members of a group. It encourages us to speak our minds about issues, and offer new solutions that may be looked over by the more experienced members of a development team, but that we can see with fresh eyes. It’s mostly about the value that new developers can bring to a project, and how at this point in our career we can gain a lot from suggesting things, whether they’re accepted or shot down, we will still learn something from the experience, and really there’s nothing to lose.

The thing that I found most surprising about this pattern was that new members of the team are actually pretty important, they cited a study about aircraft carrier teams being more effective with new members, and stated that it is similar in the software field. The new members bring in new ideas and a freshness that the more experienced group members have lost, and that it all creates an important balance between experience and freshness. It is important in the early part of our careers that we harness the new, fresh, outlook on the field in order to bring more creativity to our projects, find new ways of doing things, and are given the opportunity to advance and learn from people that have been around for a long time. And then we will eventually get to be the ones to temper the new apprentices’ expectations, and teach them, but also learn from their ideas. It is just fascinating to think that we are part of this ecosystem that has lasted for generations of developers and that despite our relative inexperience we are still invaluable assets.

I know that after reading this, I am feeling a lot less nervous about graduating in the next few months and that my contributions to my future development team will be necessary for their survival, and I’m excited to learn what I can from them. However, I’m not sure how the “Solution” part of this pattern really addresses the core tenant of the pattern. Yes, it is a good idea to make sure that your voice is heard and have a more experienced person tell you if there are flaws in your idea and where to improve. However, for many of us, we’ve never really been in a professional environment so it is kind of hard to achieve their solution. However, I don’t think there is a real issue or something I disagree with, but it just seems like it isn’t fully attainable for everyone.

From the blog CS@Worcester – Kurt Maiser's Coding Blog by kmaiser and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

For this blog post, I have chosen the “Nurture Your Passion” pattern in which this pattern talks about how one should keep their passion for whatever they are doing secure from the inevitable draining activities that will harm your passion. When one progresses into their career, the circumstances will change and the activities you used to do for enjoyment will soon turn annoyances or be in such a crunch that there is no time for blank. It is up to yourself to mitigate these issues and to help preserve your passion.

The time of coding and working with all these programs and getting a fully functioning product is quite fulfilling to see. The work needed to get there and the problems that life will throw at your way will make you want to reconsider your decisions however such as trying to sift through countless bugs or being in a less than optimal working environment. There a number of different options to consider when trying to mitigate this issue, such as exploring different forms of media that contain information that you would like to look at or interacting with different people with the same passion to help bolster your own. The book goes into different patterns that describe these solutions such as breakable toys and kindred spirits where you have these different resources to use to help keep you going.

This pattern does indeed resonate with me as while coding has started out as a side hobby, quick and enjoyable with no commitments to it whatsoever is slowly changing to me more intensive and time consuming leading to generally less enjoyment. This makes me think of the eventual future of potential crunch times and unenjoyable meeting that will take place in which I will have to start picking up new skills to help mitigate these issues such as improving my communication skills incase any situations such as bad interactions with other people in the workplace could be solved by talking myself out of it. There is the chance of a new hot idea in the future that I could latch onto to help keep my interest up and going.

From the blog CS@Worcester – kbcoding by kennybui986 and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

This week I decided to take a look at ‘The Deep End’ pattern, which covers the next step on your knowledge gaining journey. The main message of this pattern is to not be afraid and take that next big leap, whatever it may be. The pattern certainly doesn’t suggest taking a risk that jeopardizes your career, but rather taking on new challenges. Software apprentices can apply this pattern to scenarios such as taking on bigger projects, more complex tasks, working with larger teams, or in new places. While these opportunities may seem daunting, learning is all about stepping out of your comfort zone, even if it means failing at times. 

I am surprised that the pattern suggests diving straight into the deep end as opposed to starting shallow and gradually growing deeper. But I suppose if you were doing the same type of work day in and day out, your biggest break would come from a new challenge. Looking forward, when such an opportunity arises, I think the best way to face a new challenge would be to go into it prepared. This is certainly easier said than done. There is of course the mental hurdle of overcoming the fear of failure and the risk of actual failure. But again, as mentioned in this and previous patterns, you should be able to reach out to mentors and kindred spirits to help. I think that is one thing I should keep trying to recognize, that I should not be afraid to take on difficult projects if I know there is a network of people that can help guide me. 

This pattern is a good reminder to step outside of your comfort zone and it reassures you that it is okay to take risks in your professional career. Given that you have the preparation and a supportive work environment, taking on challenges will only help you gain more experience. I would think that currently, I am in the middle of one of these challenges. Up until now, I have only worked on smaller-scale projects with at most two other people. And for this capstone course, I am working with a team of 6, attempting to develop a fully functional inventory system from backend to frontend. So through this process, I have only been gaining experience and I look forward to what else I can learn.

From the blog CS@Worcester – Null Pointer by vrotimmy and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

This apprenticeship pattern discusses how software developers should read classic books regarding the craft of software development. Being an apprentice means that you are inexperienced and are still learning what means to be a successful software developer. You should expose your ignorance and ask about any concepts that seem unknown to you, and then try to find the books where these concepts came from. An apprentice should have a list of these books on their reading list.

However, you cannot read every book. There is just way too many and there is too little time. So instead of reading every book, you should invest your time reading the good books. The good books are ones that are useful regardless of time. If you find yourself asking if a book is outdated, then you are reading the wrong type of book. Good books hold timeless information and concepts. Being able to determine which book is good and which book is not a skill that you will be able to pick over time. By reading constantly and reflecting on your work, you will be able to distinguish the “long lived” books.

While reading the good books is certainly beneficial, there is such a thing as taking things too far. If you focus too much on the classics, you might end up abandoning or forgetting pragmatic knowledge and information. This is the knowledge and information that enables software developers to improve on their day to day craftsmanship. Therefore, it is important to strike a balance in your reading list between the classic “long lived” books with modern, pragmatic books.

I personally think reading the classics is one of the most important things that an apprentice can do. An apprentice’s job is to learn as many skills, techniques, and concepts as they can about their trade. As apprentices, our inexperience and ignorance means that we still lack core concepts and skills. Reading classic books could help us attain such concepts and skills. It is from these classic books that we can expand our list of concrete skills and build a foundation for our craft.

From the blog CS@Worcester – Fadi Akram by Fadi Akram and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

For this week’s post, I wanted to look at a topic that I see myself coming back to at a later date, which is the topic of walking away from software development. This may happen after their first job or 50 years down the line when they are a senior programmer. Regardless, the point is this can happen at any time during a person’s career. In this section, the author talks about some of the reasons why a person may suddenly have a change of heart about the field. Some of the reasons listed were that person may have found something else that had piqued their interest, or they found they did not enjoy the field as much as they initially thought. Another aspect that I noticed about this section was that the author really emphasized the importance of being open-minded and supportive of their colleagues. A person may leave the field now, but that does not mean they will be gone forever. In addition, the author also talks about how companies might not look at that person kindly because they left the field and may not be as forthcoming as they should be when/if that person returns. But as fellow programmers, the author implores us to welcome that person back with open arms and encourage them to try to do something different with their lives.

I found this section to be interesting to read because I have always viewed myself as a jack-of-all trades. I have always had many interests and that is why I took so many different classes not pertaining to my major in college. I wanted to explore as much as I could before I graduated because I have always thought of myself as the kind of people who would have many different careers over the course of my lifetime. This section really made me think because I knew I wanted to change careers at some point, but I did not put a lot of thought about what I wanted to do after I changed careers or what career I wanted to pursue after being a software developer. I think part of the reason why I did not give this topic a lot of thought is because I don’t really know when I might want to change careers or when I might get tired of programming.

From the blog CS@Worcester – Just a Guy Passing By by Eric Nguyen and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.