I bombed my first technical interview. Like nuclear β’οΈ
I froze and couldnβt answer fundamental object-oriented programming questions. Felt like my education was a waste of time because it seemed like I didnβt retain or deeply understand anything. This was the spring semester of my senior year. My peers were receiving offers and I was destroyed by my first interview experience.
I decided to mentally take a βbreakβ from post-graduation anxieties. After graduation, I took a month to do nothing and worry about nothing but breathing after a stressful year (Covid, newborn, senior year, and work).
After that month of doing nothing, I reframed; I prepped; and tried again. I put in many applications and got no follow-ups. The local networking group I participate in (
@SWFLCoders) had just announced their first in-person meetup since the pandemic lockdowns began. It was here where everything changed.
I learned of a local office that was hiring all levels, including entry-level developers. I threw my hat in the ring again and my preparation delivered my first job offer. The rest is history.
Moral of the story:
be resilient
keep trying
and NEVER underestimate the power of your network.