How to get into tech as a woman

Did you know that programming was considered a “soft work” in the 19th century, with more females than males working in the field?

That’s right women dominated the early days of technology as we know it today. Ada Lovelace was a pioneer in the discovery of the famous Charles Babbage Analytical Machine; Grace Hopper created “Linked” the first compiler (software that converts English words to machine language; Ida Rhodes was a pioneer in the analysis of system programming and Mary Lou Jepsen was an inventor in the display, imaging and the computer hardware fields.

Although history currently downplays their achievements, the 19th-century females saw families and mentorship that encouraged them to take up and grow in mathematical and analytical fields. And as for those who burned all the more for science, they went ahead to become prominent women in computing.

But then something happened. Sometime in the 20th century, computing evolved into modern software and for a still unclear reason, the importance of women in the world of tech dropped. Regardless, some women continued to make significant contributions and have done so till this very day.

The 21st century has however been very welcoming to women. It has seen women doggedly face the world that was believed to be “dominated” by men.

Thankfully, In the world of tech, there is no manual to grow the passion. There’s a different story for every techie in the world today. It’s just like falling in love. Some came in because they just wanted a well-paying job, others did because they have always been drawn to computers, and a good number of them, were inspired by a mentor who was already into it. Whatever the case may have been, what’s important is that they got in, and they are there.

This means you too, have the potential to be one of them. The 20th century made it seem like women were incapable of making marks in the computing world. This concept has permeated the 21st century to such an extent that every tech woman is held in high esteem in the favor of women.

At least 8 in 10 female programmers have gotten the “wow you are a woman in tech” complement, and that has certainly sparked inspirations as well. However, it shows that nothing is stopping you from chasing the tech dream as a woman.

This is the time to get in as the world today does not miss the chance to celebrate women in tech. Many forward companies are now allowing women to fill more positions in their IT department. This means as a woman, in the aspect of copping a job, tech halls got you covered.

But as a newbie, how do you go about this? 

Well, for one, as we mentioned earlier, there’s no mode-of-entry manual. 

All you need to do is Pick whatever reason it is you want and then add the following to it:

1.  Backup Your Reason With a Goal: Having a reason is not enough. Attach a goal to whatever motivations you have. It gives you a sense of direction. Although motivations and goals may change along the way, one would need to have any at all to help keep the focus when the journey gets tough.

2.  Learn About Where You’ll Fit: Just diving into tech as a whole would get you lost. It is good to make a little research on the many parts of it and see which one best fits your time and personality. Even if you do not know where you fit in, pick one on-demand skill and start learning.

3.  Learn the Basic Skills: When you decide which aspect you have to learn and it’s best you start from the basics. For instance, Web development experts advise that learning HTML then CSS and then JavaScript is the right learning flow. There’s a hierarchy of learning when it comes to tech professions so ensure that whatever you’re learning, you are learning from scratch.

4. Take Up Mini Projects: This is the surest way to ensure that all you learn sticks to you. Secondly, these mini-projects can help you land the job as it is proof of your abilities.

5.  Ask Lots of Questions: whether or not you cut across as annoying, keep asking. There’s always help online and offline when it comes to problems in tech.

6.  Don’t Be Afraid to Go back: The feeling of going back to past lessons in a tutorial may make you feel like you won’t get to the goal faster. But you should remember that your goal is to be competent, so whatever you need to do to hit the competent goal, do it. Even if it means going back 10hours in your lecture just to get it right.

7.  Avoid Comparisons: If you are looking to take longer to reach your goal, or not reach your goal at all, then you can go ahead with comparing yourself with other successful individuals. If not, ensure other people’s success is nothing but the motivation for you that the height you wish to attain is possible.

8.   While Hunting, Look For Startups: When you are looking to work, your best bid would likely be on startup companies. This is because you would get a better chance to grow at a startup than you may at a long-existing company.

That’s it; a few tips to help you get into the tech world. Remember, to develop a passion, what you need is a person with a purpose and the desire to walk the path.

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