Professional Development Exercise

pd_questions.md

What is your greatest strength and how do you know?
I think my greatest strength is my ability to empathize with others. Even though I don't always have the same experiences as others, I can find a way to walk in their shoes and understand what they're going through. I am very open-minded and can fit in with anybody because of my professional history working in a courthouse, clinic, and in the service industry as a rideshare driver. I do not get easily offended or turned off so I can work with almost anybody even when our views of the world are different.
How do you work best?
I work best in an environment with great leadership and opportunity to grow. I've had jobs where I was stuck in the same pattern with no forseeable way out of my position. Although I did the best I could, I feel like working with an experienced team helps motivate me to be the best that I can be. My current job as a rideshare driver is fun because I can talk with others and I believe that everybody knows something that I don't and I love to learn new things. With that being said, I prefer working alongside of others so I can improve my own skills and outlook on the future.
What is your greatest area of improvement?
My greatest area of improvement is my maturity in education. When I was younger I didn't care about anything and never looked toward any future. My grades in high school and my first stint in college were abysmal. After years of experience in jobs that I didn't enjoy, it put my life in perspective and taught me to value education and pursue areas of expertise that I will enjoy for the rest of my life. Now I want to become the best person I can be on a professional and social level.
How do you hope to maximize your strengths for your new career in software development?
My ability to learn quickly will help me out in software development. This class is a fast-paced program and languages are constantly updating which means I will have to learn quickly in order to stay up to date. I'll have to work my hardest to maximize focus so I can stay on track and limit stress in inevitable times of hopelessness. My strength in empathy will help when I'm working on a group project because multiple people will be working on the same code and you have to know your teammates strengths and weaknesses. Empathy is also helpful when thinking about the end user who will eventually be using the program. Understanding that not all users are computer literate will allow me to create a program suitable for anybody from a savvy user to once with less experience working with computers.
How might knowing about your strengths and working preferences benefit you as a software developer?
Knowing my strengths will help me but I think understanding my weaknesses will be more important. If I can acknowledge them then I can improve where I need to be the most successful developer that I can be. Knowing how I work best will allow me to maximize my potential in the right learning environment. Luckily I am very flexible but I am also aware that I can be easily distracted by Netflix, video games, or going out with friends when I should be focusing on studying. I plan on ignoring video games for the next 6 months and not starting any new tv shows. I know that I have an addictive personality so keeping my focus away from these things and getting assignments done in a timely manner will help me get through this class with all the tools I need.

I enjoyed reading these responses @kylecornelissen. This approach in particular and I believe that everybody knows something that I don't and I love to learn new things is one I encourage you to build upon as you become more immersed in the Turing community. Everyone within the community has an incredible amount of knowledge and finding ways to build upon your own skill set through time spent with them will help you excel. The sooner that Turing and programming become your focus the sooner you will achieve your goal of becoming an employable developer. I was distracted during Mod-1 when I was at Turing, and it cost me when I had to repeat. I encourage you to limit distractions and dive in with your full cognitive load each and every day.