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Episode
259
Interview
Web News

Succeeding in Your First Week as a Junior Developer

Recorded:
July 25, 2023
Released:
August 2, 2023
Episode Number:
259

Your first week as a junior developer can be nerve wracking and anxiety inducing. Not only are you meeting a team of new people, but you're starting a new job as a newbie to coding. This week Matt and Mike discuss how to make the most of your first week of the job, making a great first impression on your team members, and hopefully letting you absorb as much knowledge as you can. By handling social situations with grace, asking valuable questions, and being honest about your capabilities; you'll be well on your way to becoming a valuable development team member.

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Who’s in This Episode?

Show Notes

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Topics

What to expect

  • Meetings
  • Device setup
  • Onboarding
  • Codebase
  • Documentation
  • First Task

Tips for Success

  • Read the Documentation (RTFM)
    - Anything that is not clear is where you want to ask questions and potentially make clearer for future onboarding
  • Ask Questions
    - Attempt to solve, then ask 
  • Don’t expect to make an impact in the first week
    - It’s ok to not know everything and feel underskilled. That means you have more to learn and acknowledge that part of the battle. 
  • Know GIT best practices 
    - Written piece on Git: Git Basics
    - Podcast episode on Git: Why Do We Need Version Control?
  • Break stuff locally
    - You sometimes learn more from breaking the code vs trying to figure out how it all works
  • Handle social situations with grace
    - If you get into trouble, explain what happened with honesty, and navigate through it politely
    - Learn the team dynamic, avoid stepping on anyone's toes

What not to do

  • Ask the same questions over and over again
  • Rewrite working code just because you’ve done it differently before
  • Suggest new frameworks and libraries that would take forever to reimplement 
  • Pretend to know things you don’t
  • Take other peoples tasks without talking to them