We are closing in on the final days of the Fall term, amid the cheerful haze and glitter of the season. Before the chilly drives to warm destinations and clatter of family gatherings I wanted to turn around and take a look at this journey. It’s hard to believe just how far we’ve come! We all enlisted into this thing with wide eyes and open minds. Since then they’ve been filled with so much knowledge, great new connections, and a mountain of resources. The reason I wanted to press start on this endeavor in the first place was to stay relevant in our current world. As my classmates have heard me say before, I don’t want to end up the senior lady who doesn’t know how to work a VCR, relatively speaking. The technology that we are dealing with has come leaps and bounds in it’s short history, and elementary school kids are now learning it from the start. A reminder of this came when few of us volunteered for Project Scientist to assemble experiment kits for local young girls to promote their involvement in STEM subjects. It was so rewarding to be able to help such a wonderful cause, along with the Kids Code sessions that I’ve not done but sound like a lot of fun as well. I’ve always been a creative person and wanted to see just what I could do with coding and where these skills can take me. Being brand new to the tech world at large, I was hesitant at first when considering the program, but I’ve found that it’s exciting (and so good for the brain) to learn new things, to take on a challenge and grow. The unwavering support and gentle guidance that TTS has provided have given me the confidence that maybe yes…I can do this. The staff and instructors (as well as fellow students!) are a wealth of knowledge and so helpful. I wouldn’t have been able to gain nearly as much insight into this world trying to do it on my own. There have been some times working through the course that I have doubted my decisions (wondering what the heck am I doing?!) and positive that I had messed up so many things. These are what a lawyer acquaintance of mine calls a “dark night of the soul.” If and when you encounter these, please don’t give up. Keep going…you will get through it! Even if you don’t end up in a related field after it’s all said and done, you will be glad you challenged yourself and tried something new. Maybe you will carry on and become a masterful member of the industry. Either way you are doing something big, for yourself and the world around you. Just keep pushing and you’ll be surprised what you can accomplish. After class, I am excited to review everything at my own snail pace and make sure it all really sinks in. Where I go from there, who knows, but I am so grateful for this experience to help me get there. 2015 is going to be a great year with all kinds of possibility, and its due in no small part to all of these guys. Thanks so much!
