Esco Obong’s Post

"What are your plans after graduation?" I've had this question asked to me around 10^20 times, and I've always said "Just looking for a secure full-time role." Job-searching is hard. Competing may be hard. So, you have to be versatile. Over the past summer, I took the time to learn countless skills that I can use to turn ideas into full-scale businesses and truly be able to show my abilities. This fully culminated into my newest project "widgie" where businesses around the world can show off their Google and Yelp reviews, which in turn can bring in more revenue and clients for them. I first made a widget for my family's business almost two years ago, and I took great pride in doing it because it had its many hurdles. During my learning the past summer, I realized how much this can benefit other businesses also striving to recover from the trace effects of the pandemic, so on August 7, I got straight to work. Here we are, and none of my projects comes remotely close to the effort I put into this, which includes Multi-Factor Authentication and a clean payment process. I'm glad I was able to do this and I hope it becomes a huge help for the businesses that use it. Site Link: https://widgie.vip #ReactJS #fullstack #jobsearching #computerscience #recruiting #trending #coding #javascript #html #frontend #blackexcellence #accomplishments

Trying to learn everything before landing a tech job? Stop! Here’s the truth: You don’t need to be an expert in every language or framework to get hired. You just need to know enough to solve problems and show you’re adaptable. Employers care about your ability to learn fast and contribute quickly. Here’s how you can break into tech faster: ✅ Focus on core skills like HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and a backend language. Forget the shiny new tools for now. ✅ Build real-world projects to showcase your skills—hands-on experience beats memorizing theory. ✅ Craft a killer portfolio with these projects. Don’t just tell employers what you know—show them! Your goal isn’t to be a master of everything. It’s to be good enough to get hired and then level up on the job. 🚀 Don’t wait till you’re “ready.” You’re ready now. Start applying. #TechCareers #CodingTips #BreakIntoTech #LearnByDoing #JobSearchTips I wrote more about this in depth. Link in comments!

By December 1st is a very special day for me. 10 years ago I started my career as a developer. I’m a completely self-taught programmer. I don’t have any relevant education. At that time I was a single mom with a stable job that I hated. When I decided to pivot my professional path, I googled “what is PHP”, applied for my first job, completed test task and got an offer🤓 Then for few years I was mastering my skills. When I realized that I lack knowledge in relational databases, I started to spend hours solving SQL puzzles. I ended up writing such huge queries that I never knew existed. When I discovered for myself DSA problems, I started to spend every spare minute solving tasks at HackerRank (btw thanks to participating in one of the Hackerrank’s challenges I got invited to Booking’s hackathon in 2018. And I had my first interview at Booking! So when people ask “How long did it take you to get an offer from Booking?” I honestly reply: “5 years”) In 2019 I joined Yandex . Instead of regular 4 sections I had 7 of them but I got an offer! These were great 4 years at the Billing team at Yandex.Eats (of course they were great: it was a perfect combination of programming, food and money). It was a time when my real growth happened. Yandex is the company where you can speak aloud and you will always be heard, they are very supportive but also extremely demandable at the same time. Special thanks to my manager Alexandr Pavlov who always trusted me the most complex projects. We always had disagreements but I’m very grateful that I had him as my mentor. At that time I started to receive a lot of invitation for interviews in international companies. Which is weird because I never had a really good Linkedin profile and never knew about SSI (and recruiters are still inviting me a lot). I had interviews at Google. Amazon, Meta and many others. In 2021 I got an offer from Microsoft and… declined it. I still don’t know if it was a good or bad decision. At that time it felt right… In 2023 (on my 3rd try) I joined Booking.com (and it’s another perfect combination: programming and travelling✈️). Sometimes it feels like I’m starting all over again and I’m lucky to have a great team and a great manager Jeroen Hofman. I’ve started to dive into Machine Learning and AI (not just Chat-GPT level). I learn a lot of new things every day. Work in progress… Wow. It was a long flashback on my path. It never was easy. It’s challenging and requires much effort sometimes. But I truly believe: when I was googling “what is PHP” 10 years ago, I was making a right choice…

Hey there network! After a valuable three month hiatus from the world of work, I'm ready to go back on the job market. I've been really pondering who I want to work for and why I do what I do, and I realize I want, more than anything else, a high quality of life. What that means to me is a company with a strong sense of identity and company culture that values: - Transparency - Honesty - Accountability - A truly excellent work life balance - Corporate, social and environmental ethics - Making a difference in the world beyond monetary gain - Improving the lives of its employees This means I'm not seeking a top dollar role, or a top prestige role. I'm seeking a top *quality* role. I'm seeking the best personal fit. In that interest my job search is prioritizing companies fall into one or more of the following categories: - they have a glassdoor rating of 4.0 or above - they are on 'Best Places to Work' lists or have won similar accolades - they have 32 hour work weeks - they are B Corp, non profit, union or government jobs - they are working on mission-driven, impactful projects While I prepare for one of these roles, I'm also working on: - learning MongoDB and mongoose while working on my first ever full stack project - Learning end to end and integration testing in Mocha (this has been a glaring gap in my front end skill set for years now) - Finally studying Data Structures and Algorithms and working Leetcode - Launching an up-and-coming YouTube channel geared toward mentoring junior and mid level front end engineers (I'll be posting here when my first course is ready to launch!) If you know of a company that falls into any of these categories, or if you're working on any of the same things I am, let's chat! If you're trying to land a similar role, let's chat! If you have a beloved cat you love to gush about, send me a picture and let's chat about that too 😁 🐈⬛️

(NOT an April Fools joke) Jobs for JUNIORS in tech are more rare than… UNICORNS 🦄 Its not YOU! Its the process you are using. Another reminder 😳 for anyone ready to ripe their hair out, chill for a bit. Take a hot shower or cold? And lets start from the fundamentals. 1. Build something useful for a business need 2. Share it with others 3. Network (like forever!) JK, Network for 3 months straight. YOU will find something to start. Not convinced? DM me to ask how this works! I have MANY posts about it. Please please repost so other see this, not for me but for the thousands of jr devs struggling. 👏💜 Keep it going.

The complexities of the tech landscape and the rapid evolution of tools mean that continuous learning is key to staying relevant. It is a never ending process of adapting, whether through systems thinking or mastering fundamentals, as there is always something new to grasp.

Over the past few months, I've had the opportunity of chatting with several folks in software engineering from experienced folks to folks just starting software engineering careers or about to take the plunge.  A few common themes kept popping up: 1. The job market's tough for entry-level positions right now. 2. Tech's evolving at high speed, making it hard to build a solid mental model.  Two approaches that helped me:         systems thinking (Thanks Kishore Gopalakrishna for introducing me to this concept at StarTree)         awesome blog (link in comment) for strategy to review systems by Jack Vanlightly 3. The age-old question: should we focus on new tech or fundamentals to prep for the industry? 4. Building a profile is crucial, but which open-source projects should we contribute to? 5. Startup or big tech? That's the million-dollar question! 6. In this AI-driven world, which tech should we prioritize? And why bother with OS or databases anymore? 7. Resume building, job applications, coding interviews, system design - how do we tackle it all? Folks like John Crickett and Kaivalya Apte who are doing an amazing job bringing industry insights to newcomers. I'm also a big fan of Jack Vanlightly and Murat Demirbas (Distributolog) blogs - they have a knack for breaking down complex topics into bite-sized pieces. Thanks to Phil Eaton for inspiring me to step out of my comfort zone and connect with people to share experiences. After these in-person chats, I thought, why not extend this to Google Hangouts? I've set up a calendar https://lnkd.in/g2SRySzE feel free to book a slot if you'd like to connect and swap stories! Looking forward to more great conversations! 🚀💻

"Vocation to be in IT / В айти только по призванию 🚀 Today, thanks to a career coach Anastasiia Gracheva, I had an insight: Wanting to work in IT for the benefits is okay! 😊 No matter how funny it may sound, I struggled to admit it to myself for a long time. I found more and more flaws in myself, doubted my choice, and worried that I wouldn't find a job. Everyone around me insisted that becoming a developer is only possible if you naturally coder from the beginning and career transitioning isn't the best choice. Is that really true? No. Your interest in profession and willingness to develop is enough. "I ended up here not by chance." That's the thought that sums it all up, as I didn't randomly choose this profession: - Working in IT is indeed well-paid, but what does that also mean? It means that I will work just as well as I did as an engineer, but my life will be better. I'll stop worrying about not having enough money, and I'll be grateful to the company, accomplishing tasks with satisfaction. 💼💰 - There's a trend that employee care is significantly higher in IT. From having medical insurance and perks for employees' children to a well-established feedback system. You can be aware about your work, receive approval, and support for your contributions. 👨💻👩💻 - Continuous learning is challenging but great, and it's normal when you're given the opportunity to learn for free. There's a chance to grow in your skills, be constantly up-to-date, as technologies have not remained unchanged since the mid-20th century. 📚🌐 Of course, the material aspect doesn't save you from burnout and disappointment in the industry, but the absence of all these benefits leads to burnout many times faster. This realisation lifted the burden of social disapproval, and now I see much more positivity in this work. And i want to be valued, cared and happy as a frontend developer 💻🌟 #IT #frontend #developer #career #job

Recently, I switched to Microsoft and during this process, I also interviewed with Uber Sharing my interview experience (hope this helps!) ✅ Round 1: Technical (DSA) → I was given a matrix of integers and had to build a Quadtree out of it. → I initially took 10-15 minutes to understand the problem and later was able to code it quickly. ✅ Round 2: Technical (Machine Coding) → I was asked to design a railway seat booking app where one passenger can book a ticket for destination A to B then another passenger can book it from B to C. → The main focus was on SOLID Principles, Design Patterns and Inheritance/Interfaces. ✅ Round 3: Technical (System Design) → I was asked to design a system to capture unique addresses in the entire world. → I discussed the overall system design, APIs, and techniques for cleaning and storing addresses. ✅ Round 4: Hiring Manager Round → The interviewer asked questions based on current work and past projects. → He also asked lots of behavioural questions to determine cultural fit. This is where I got stuck and couldn’t answer the cultural fit questions. Shocking, right? Even I didn’t expect it and had to go through rejection because of it☹️ Please learn from my experience, practice behavioural questions and give mock interviews. For this, you can try connecting with experienced SDEs at Preplaced Just book a FREE trial to begin - https://lnkd.in/g-tKgD73 These SDEs have a very unique way — they provide 1:1 live training, mock interviews and ongoing support you won’t find anywhere. This is why, I’m recommending you connect with them💪🏻 #interviewexperience #collab #preplacedcollab

#ስራ #ስራ #ስራ😁 Getting hired as a software developer (+ from my last post about marketing your self as a developer) You have been taking programming courses and honing your craft for some time now and you are looking to get hired but don't know where to start? አይዞሽ ገለቴ አሉ😁 I'll give you some tips that will help you out when looking for a job 1, Build Your Arsenal, Master the tools of the trade! #JavaScript, #Python, or whatever language you love, get them under your belt. Flex those coding muscles with side projects, i can't stress this enough: contribute to open-source, and build a personal portfolio that screams, "ምሰራውን አቃለው😏", we don't wanna embarrass our self now do we 😁 2, Fall in love with gaining knowledge Knowledge about anything is truly a beautiful thing, learn to love the struggle, i still get exited like a little child when i find out about something or gain knowledge about something, and i mean about any topic, i sit down with my little brother(a kid prodigy of history, math, physics, biology and many more) we talk about fascinating subjects, theories, history whatever and we both exchange knowledge while being exited about it like a kid in Disneyland 😁, everyone should love gaining knowledge, staying curious; it's the easiest shortcut to master anything and i mean ANYTHING. 3, Form Alliances Networking is your multiplayer mode. Connect with fellow devs on LinkedIn, attend meetups, or join online communities. Sometimes, it’s not just about what you know but who you know. Allies can help you discover hidden job opportunities or offer tips to ace your next interview. 4, 💥Boss battle! You've reached the final level! Prepare for the boss battle your job interview. Practice coding problems, mock interviews, and know your resume like the back of your hand. Remember, every question is just another challenge to overcome. Slay the interview, and the treasure (job offer) is yours! (tip): Your interviewers are just humans don't be afraid act or better yet be #confident and #charismatic, technical interview question are just a portion of the interview. 😉