Build on your professional story by thinking about how you're progressing at Turing. Answer the questions below in your own gist to use your StrengthsFinder themes to add to your story:
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Write 1-2 paragraphs about your StrengthsFinder themes: How have you seen yourself using these strengths at Turing? Has your understanding of these strengths changed since you first reflected on them? If so, how?
I think one of the strengths that I've found myself using the most since being at Turing has been the Input strength. Since being here I have rediscovered my ability to take and organize notes. I've been writing down almost everything I hear, registering it in the process, but also knowing that, should I need to revisit that information, I'll know exactly where to find it. I've also started hoarding book marks for various sources and categorizing them appropriately, so I'll know where to find them if I ever need a particular resource.
The Learner strength has also been evident in a strong way, most obviously from the fact that I am learning a completely new skill set. However, I think I have learned most quickly in the areas that brought me to Turing, such as overall design and CSS manipulation. These are the areas where I have been strongest and have taken hold of best when working. However, looking over my notes and saved resources, I have the most detailed information about JS and JQ. I think this is because, before coming to Turing, I knew that this would be the most difficult thing for me to grapple with on a personal level. Therefore I have taken to learning a lot about the subject matter in a short amount of time and am very proud of where I am now in comparison to where I started.
Strategic is likely the strength that I have unearthed the most, in particular with pairings. Often times I have deleted entire blocks of code, just to try something different. Initially, I thought this would be really difficult for me, but I quickly realized I cared more about trying something new more than hanging onto something I've created, especially if it resulted in a quicker and more efficient solution. Similarly, I've been quick to accept my partners ideas should it help me to achieve something I was working on, scrapping anything I had that was causing me frustration.
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Write a story about your Turing experience so far: When have you struggled? How have you dealt with struggle? When have you succeeded at Turing? How did you accomplish those successes?
Thus far at Turing, I have managed to only really struggle a couple of times and both happened when personal stresses butted up against feedback from other people. Most recently, in Week 4, I was stretched very thin both with school work and things going on in my personal life. I managed to get all of my assignments done, which I was very proud of. However, on receiving feedback from my instructor, I hit a tipping point and took the feedback very personally. To solve these issues, I reached out to my instructor and set a time to meet with her. They weren't able to meet that day, so I took it upon myself to go outside and decompress. Upon returning, I was able to put things in perspective, gather myself, and realize the comments for what they were: an attempt to help me grow and become a better developer.
My successes have come from my partner pairings. With each there have been bumps in the road, but what has surprised me has been my ability to handle these situations in an appropriate manner. I generally view myself as more of a lone wolf, someone who likes to work on their own and depend on themselves, so I was a bit more trepidatious about the pairings. Once immersing myself into them, however, I found my sea legs quickly and was able to adapt to the way my partner worked and wanted to accomplish things. Even when difficult situations came up, I felt calm and able to address the issue for what it was, rather than take it to heart. This is something I haven't always been good at and I think that going into Turing knowing that I would have to pair program with other people, sub-consciously prepared me for this experience.
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Answer the question: how does your Turing story end? Create a vision for your future and your career transition into being a junior developer.
The ideal end to my story at Turing is something I have thought about a lot. I'm torn in two directions between wanting to work for a larger company, such as Google or some derivative, and working for a small, start-up team. I think there are pros and cons to both and am unsure of where I'll land. However, I lean towards a bigger company that allows me financial security and a substantial footing to start my career. Ultimately, in the future, I would love to have a managerial or senior position in a large company, while also being able to have my own entrepreneurial endeavor on the side. Currently owning a small business, I want to re-brand it as an independent design student, specifically making ourselves accessible to local small businesses that can't afford a large overhaul of their brand presence. Additionally, I have several friends that are creative and I think this would be an excellent avenue to work with them and also increase my own creative opportunities at the same time.
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After you practice storytelling in the session, answer this question: What was particularly easy or difficult about telling your story? What are 1-2 steps that you can take to continue to improve your abilities to tell your story, talk about yourself with ease, and examine your strengths?
I feel particularly comfortable telling my story overall, but my issue comes when I try to hone in on a particular quality to talk about in any given instance. I have a lot of things that I know define me and a lot of experiences that I think make me valuable and unique, but in an interview or when meeting someone or on a profile, I only have so much time or space to tell that story. The steps I would take to help me in this struggle would be to: 1) Come up with a concise story that is less verbose, but still representative of all of the qualities that I find important in myself; 2) Quality over quantity: How do I communicate the most meaningful message I can in the least amount of words? This is something I need to tackle.