Why I Decided to “Break Into Tech”
Back in 2010, I was struggling to make ends meet at a suboptimal job (read: retail management role I enjoyed but left me incredibly broke) and as a freelance marketing content writer. In my free time, I was hanging out on Myspace and WordPress–embedding music videos and posting blog entries using HTML. It never occurred to me that this simple coding language was a marketable job skill, let alone something that could change my worldview and career.
Years later, terms like "innovator" and "industry disruptors" began swirling all over the internet and were practically slapped onto every TV technical school and radio commercial, as well as in my social media feeds. Once I realized these companies were talking about coding websites and building apps using programming languages, making a 'break into tech' became a no-brainer for me. But I had no idea where to begin.
There were many resources, boot camps, and online courses, but I couldn't quit my job to study part-time or full-time, let alone spend thousands of dollars to access instructors and coursework.
Then in 2019, a Twitter friend recommended Skillcrush to me, and everything changed. I'm still a student and am embracing the reality that I can make a living while learning!
Adda was the first founder that I heard of who actively recommended this ideology to students, and it was incredibly encouraging. Testimonials from my Twitter friend, Skillcrushers, and Skillcrush instructors who were once in my shoes solidified my decision to move forward with the Break Into Tech coursework. Since that moment, I've been on an exciting journey to building websites for my friends' bands and family members.
My future professional goals include establishing a web development agency that offers e-learning resources specifically designed for Black children, children of color, and their families, as well as providing affordable web services to small businesses and entrepreneurs.
As I continue to learn more programming languages as a foundation for my freelance Learning and Development career, I aim to utilize my copywriting skills and programming expertise to build simple landing pages and WordPress sites in a freelance capacity.
Opportunities I'm interested in:
Freelancing with Black-owned, woman-owned, POC-owned businesses
Freelancing with small businesses and marginalized communities
Freelance with professionals and entrepreneurs across FinTech and EdTech
Working in Assistive Tech and ensuring WCAG compliance
