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3 Criteria to get you hired as a programmer

zooboole

Published By zooboole

I use to think that being a professional programmer equals knowing all the functions in the C's standard library. Being a bad boyfriend to a girl, or not having time with the family, and always be frozen in front of a dark screen. As I continued to practice this craft over the past few years, I have realized how much more is needed. And I start to question myself every time on the right way of being a good programmer. Nowadays, I understand better that the things that matter the most are to be good and have good relationships with people.

That being said, as a programmer, people who hire you will always pay attention to your human side. Then, they will look at your programming side. People will look at how comfortable it's to them to work with you.

In this short article, I would like to share with you three criteria to get you hired as a programmer.

The point of this article is:

  • to help you as a programmer to understand what to develop in and transform yourself into a desirable programmer,
  • to help you know what other programmers you could call when you need to collaborate on a project,
  • and to allow any potential clients to know how to find the right developers for their jobs

Criteria #1: Have good collaboration skills

Every project, even as small as creating just a paragraph of text, requires collaboration. The collaboration deals with decisions and we humans are different. To put two different people together to create one thing is always a challenging thing. To make a collaboration a success, it's important to define rules that all members will abide by. And even while creating the rules we need to have understanding and agreements, more rules for rules... That's why I propose that you do introspection and build some basic inner rules which allow you to give others the chance to express themselves so that you can have the chance to understand them. And here are the three basic rules I suggest:

- Be a good listener

Take time to listen to others. Try your best to understand their point of view. Do not make assumptions. When you don't feel comfortable, do not talk.

- Communicate clearly

Inversely, when others are listening to you, allow them to get the points you are making by making your statements as clear and explicit as possible.

- Have a good attitude and morality

Avoid offending others with your tongue. Be polite in your behavior and respect others' boundaries.

Criteria #2: Be ready and eager to learn new/more things on your way

We cannot know everything in life. Even the things that are specific to our profession, we can't pretend to know all. And that's one of the main reasons collaborations started in the first place, to allow people to bring their share of the knowledge together. So, in this exercise, make sure you learn from others as they learn from you.

Don't be offended if you need to learn new things before you join a team. Don't be offended if you have to drop some habits in favor of new ones.

People will always make you get acquainted with their environment when you join them. It's a human thing. Be ready to learn new lessons even if you think you have completed school. Learn and hunt for knowledge even when you are not asked to. Always work toward the best of yourself for yourself.

Criteria #3: Know your craft

It wouldn't make much sense not to know the craft that you are being hired for, but with criteria #2 there is a high probability you can make it.

Nonetheless, we put ourselves in the shoes of someone who has been in it already. It's key to be a practitioner of your craft. You must be used to your work to make it look natural, that's how you can expand your intellect as well.

Don't be a seasonal developer who codes once in a while or when there is no choice. Our brain buries in the dark subconscious level everything we don't focus on. And from there they move to the forgotten realms.

Don't give it the chance to play that trick on you. Remind yourself what you do best by applying it. Code every day.