You got your IT job, but now what?
You just got the job offer for your dream job or hit a jackpot with a great internship? Despite this, you are still a little nervous and intimidated by what to expect. For this reason, we would like to offer a helpful guide for developers who are just starting out in their careers (this can of course also be helpful for experienced developers). Career paths are different for every person and situation. Nevertheless, we hope that everyone who reads this blog article is able to positively influence their career path according to their personal definition of success.
Communication
Effective communication is critical to success, especially in today's development environments. Make sure you communicate often with your team. Quickly find out how each team member prefers to communicate. Some prefer email or instant messaging, while others prefer to communicate in person.
If your team eats lunch together often, join if possible. If this is not possible, organize regular team lunches. Relaxed conversations can be a powerful way to get to know your team better and further strengthen working relationships.
Ask questions the right way
If you are new to the team and have to familiarize yourself with new ways of working, then questions naturally arise. Teammates also expect questions from you, so you signal interest and show activity. But before you ask your questions, think about what you've learned before. Have you tried googling the question beforehand? How about Stack Over Flow? If you've already done that, great! If it is a technical problem or a programming question, what have you already tried yourself? What were the results? One last question for you - have you asked this question before? Once you have these answers, you should also be ready to ask your team. Add information to your question that you just answered above. Your co-workers will appreciate the effort you put in. It's incredibly helpful for the respondent to know what you've already tried so they don't have to do it themselves.
Bring new ideas and suggestions
You were hired for a reason and your new team believes you can contribute to the company's success. Use your new perspective to identify process improvements and ask questions about why things are done the way they are done. It doesn't mean questioning everything, but a new perspective can put routine activities in a new light. Sometimes they make sense and sometimes, well, they don't.😊 If you have any improvement ideas, share them because the goal is to help the team succeed.
Take notes
It's pretty easy, but important nonetheless - take notes! When you're in meetings, take notes. If you ask questions or have an idea, take notes. And don't forget to keep these updated, you'll refer to them more often than you might think.
Coding Tips and Version Control
Always add comments when coding and follow the style guidelines used by the team or industry. Why? This simply increases maintainability. This has the advantage that if you are on vacation and a change is required, your team can refer to it in your absence. Also, use version control. If your team doesn't use version control, recommend it. Because when multiple people contribute to the same source code, version control simplifies the process significantly. Even if you leave the company, your code lives on. If that ever happens, your successor will appreciate the history of code changes displayed in version control.
Participate in code reviews
Code reviews are a great opportunity for you to learn how your team members solve problems. They also provide you with an opportunity to show your teammates how you approach and solve problems. In addition, code reviews improve the readability, efficiency and correctness of codes. This leads to higher code quality and maintainability. But during your code review, remember to keep your ego outside of reviews. Use the feedback you get to improve your skills - after all, that's the whole point!
Social Commitment
Participate in meetups within the company or in the local community. Meetups are not only a great opportunity for you to network and improve your skills, but they are also a great way to show your interest. For example, some technology meetups offer "Lightning Talks," where you have about three minutes to talk about your work and experiences. For example, if you are in the process of learning Python through a tutorial, you could give a short talk about your experience in a local Python group. Meetups allow you to open up to a professional community, practice for large conferences, and grow your network.
Attend conferences
Attending conferences gives you the opportunity to network and explore interests. In many cases, conferences provide access to industry leaders and their knowledge. If your employer supports conferences, take the opportunity and select events that are relevant to you. If this is not the case, offer talks yourself, these often cover the expenses. Regardless of any incentives, participation is always worthwhile. Like-minded people can benefit from your experience, but only if you are willing to share it. Sharing your experience, in turn, encourages others to reciprocate, and this can in turn improve your knowledge.
Find a mentor
A mentor should be someone who can help you with your career goals and aspirations through their own experience. Work with a mentor and determine how often you can or want to meet. A good start might be once a month or quarter. No matter how often you meet, make sure you use your time effectively. This is your time to ask questions and gain as much knowledge as possible. A mentor can be an incredible lever for your career and make you a better specialist overall.
