Dev Retro 2022: Reflecting on my journey as a developer

Dev Retro 2022: Reflecting on my journey as a developer

A year of personal and professional growth

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7 min read

A bit about Myself

  • Hi there ๐Ÿ‘‹๐Ÿป, Dhruv here. I am a Flutter developer with over 3 years of experience.

  • I was very excited when the #DevRetro2022 campaign was introduced because it gave me the opportunity to reflect on my journey as a developer over the past years and share my experiences and key milestones with others.

  • Writing this blog has been a great way for me to look back on my journey and think about the progress I have made as a developer.

  • I am excited to share my experiences with you and hope that it will inspire others to continue learning and growing as developers.


How I Started My Development Journey?

Fascination with programming

  • When I first started, I was completely new to the world of programming. I had no experience with coding and didn't even know where to start. But I was fascinated by the idea of creating things using code, and I was determined to learn.

Starting college

  • I started college in 2018, studying Computer Science and engineering. In my third year, my college organized a hackathon, and I decided to participate even though I didn't know anything about app development. (Finger Crossed ๐Ÿ˜…)

Struggles with Native Android

  • We got a task to develop an app using Native Android. I was completely clueless, but my friend knew a bit about it so we tried our best to complete it. By We I mean my Friend ๐Ÿ˜. Cuz I didn't know how all that things work lol.

  • I saw my friend coding the app, and I also got interested so I also tried coding small-small tasks with his help, but I found it very difficult to understand, and in the end, I gave up ๐Ÿฅฒ.

Introduction to cross-platform development

  • That's when a senior of mine suggested that I try cross-platform development, such as React Native or Flutter. And Guess, what I picked?

    Flutter ๐Ÿ’™.

Learning new languages and technologies

  • Parallelly, I was also trying different programming languages and technologies. I learned about JavaScript, React.js as I also got interested in Web Development. So I started experimenting with simple coding projects.

  • At first, it was a struggle. I had to wrap my head around complex concepts and syntax, and I spent hours over documentation, youtube videos, StackOverflow, etc trying to understand how everything worked. But as I continued to learn and practice, I started to make progress.

Focus on Flutter

  • Eventually, I settled on Flutter for mobile development, and I began focusing on learning that.

  • The course that I took to learn Flutter is by Angela Yu on Udemy. The course is designed very well and her teaching is top-notch. I highly recommend it to everyone who just started learning Flutter or wants to start.

  • After completing the course, I started making small applications and published four of them on the Play Store within six months.

  • That was my first big achievement ๐Ÿฅณ. Because developing an app to publish to the play store is a big task for any developer.

  • However, I realized that my development was lacking proper architecture and code maintenance, so my code was not organized well.

  • Also One of the biggest challenges for new developers in Flutter is state management, and at the time, the popular solution was Provider.

  • The course covered Provider, but I struggled to understand it due to my weak programming concepts.

  • So, I studied general programming architectures and concepts to better understand what was happening under the hood. Over time, I became more comfortable with these concepts.

Tough time never lasts.

  • It was not an easy journey for me. Looking back on my journey, I am proud of the progress I have made and the things I have been able to create.

How and Why I Started Blogging?

My lack of experience in writing

  • Starting my blogging journey was not an easy task. I had no connection with writing by the way, but I wanted to share whatever I was learning.

  • Youtube was one option but I was not into video-making things, that's why I decided to write. I was never sure if I was good enough to start a blog. However, I took the risk and decided to give it a try.

The motivation behind starting a blog

  • I started a blog with the intention of documenting the things I was learning so that I could refer back to them and share them with others.

  • At the time, I was confident with my knowledge of Flutter, so I started with beginner-level blogs on the topic.

The challenges I faced starting a blog

  • I had to do a lot of research and learn new things in order to come up with interesting topics to write about. But with time, I started to get a better understanding of advanced Flutter concepts and gained confidence in my writing skills.

  • Initially, I was not getting views on the blogs that I was writing. So, I started to share my blogs on various social media platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn, Discord, Slack, Reddit, etc, which helped to increase my reach and visibility.

  • Over time, I gained a loyal following and my blogs started to get more views and engagement.

The success

  • Currently, I have over 200k+ views on my blogs, and 1.8k+ followers, and written 70+ articles on various topics related to Flutter.

  • I am happy that I took the first step in starting my blogging journey and am grateful for the support and feedback I have received from my readers.

Anybody Can Write

  • In conclusion, starting a blog can be challenging, but with dedication, hard work, and a willingness to learn and improve, anyone can start their own blogging journey.

A Flashback Of 2022

  • In 2022, I was thrilled to start working as a full-time Flutter developer. I had been working with Flutter for a while and was excited to put my skills to the test professionally.

  • I quickly adapted to my new job and also started receiving freelance clients as well.

  • I enjoyed the challenge of working on different projects and learning from my co-developers.

  • My blog, which I had started as a hobby, was also gaining traction and I was receiving a lot of positive feedback from my readers.

  • In addition to my work, I made some great friends online and we would often chat and support each other in our respective fields.

  • Overall, it was a very fulfilling and productive year for me. I was able to grow professionally and personally, and I felt proud of the progress I had made.

What's the Plan for 2023?

  • As a developer, there are many things we can do to stay up-to-date and continue to improve our skills. There are number of things that I want to try in 2023. Here are some of them:

    • I want to try the latest developments and trends, such as new frameworks, and tools.

    • I want to attend conferences, meetups, and workshops related to Flutter or development in general.

    • I want to contribute to well-known open-source projects. Hope I will do this in 2023.

    • And of course last but not least I am hoping to achieve the milestone of reaching over 1 million views on my blog ๐Ÿคž๐Ÿป and also to have my blog featured on Hashnode ๐Ÿฅน.


Conclusion

  • My journey as a developer and blogger has been one of dedication, hard work, and continuous learning.

  • Starting as a complete beginner, I faced challenges but gained a lot of experience and confidence.

My Message to New Developers

  • Starting coding can be challenging, but it is also an incredibly exciting journey. As a beginner, it is important to be patient and not get discouraged.

  • It will take time to understand complex concepts and gain experience, but the effort will be worth it trust me.

  • Also, surround yourself with supportive and knowledgeable individuals who can help guide you on your path.

  • Take advantage of online resources and communities to learn and grow, and never stop pushing yourself to improve.

  • Good luck on your journey! YOU CAN DO IT!!!

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