We become professional PHP developers. Part 2: The Importance of Other People

Original author: Bruno Skvorc
I bring to your attention a translation of the second part of the series of articles “Becoming PHP professional”.
First part. The Missing Link

Now we focus on the mentor system. In fact, this is my personal opinion, which was formed by the years that I spent in this area, but nonetheless, I would advise everyone to read the article and find out how many people agree and disagree with me.



Learn and work with someone



In the article “The Missing Link” I mentioned that you can find a mentor, partner or friend to work together. I would like to consider this item in more detail.
When you study alone, you are most likely to come to a standstill. In fact, experienced programmers find themselves at a dead end much more often than beginners, but it is the speed with which they find a way out of this situation that allows them to stand out from the gray mass.
If we consider this problem in more detail, then, in addition to everything, beginners are slowly moving forward only because they know neither where to find a solution to their problems, nor where to direct their thoughts. Alone, the novice stops in front of a problem that he had not previously encountered. This usually ends up trying a lot of solution options and eventually returning to what was at the very beginning.
When you have a partner who is also interested in this matter and has the proper motivation - be it your mentor, boss, member of your team, even the cat to whom you scream your versions of problem solving or an ordinary person who logically thinks and can help you with a solution - the problem is solved twice as fast.
Even an imaginary friend can help you at first, if one is not nearby. In most situations, I explained the problem to my boss, only to get halfway to the solution, and so I listed all the alternatives and the "workarounds" of the solution.
But, you ask, since 2 heads can solve the problem 2 times faster (or even in the same time as expected), then 10 goals can solve the problem 10 times faster, right? Answer: not always.

Command



They say that if you feel like the smartest person in a room, then you are mistaken for a room. This applies to all areas of our lives, but especially to logical and scientific disciplines. Teamwork does not mean that you should solve the problem as quickly as possible, if only you are working on it.
The most important thing is to know each member of the team well and correspond to the level of professionalism of each of you, not to mention the level of individual development (although this affects the atmosphere in the team very well). Being on the same wavelength with your colleagues increases your brain activity, whereas if you separate from colleagues, it only harms you. As a result, a good atmosphere in the team allows you to effectively solve problems.
If you find yourself in a team - find someone you will admire, someone you want to surpass. If you think that this is bad, then I assure you that this is absolutely normal. Just get inspired and act! Follow them and develop. Learn from them, absorb all the information that you get while being next to them, talk. Never be shy about asking for advice and don't be afraid to ask for help from others.
If the mood in the team is hostile, or someone behaves in it in a similar way, if the atmosphere is depressing, if the key member of your team knows less than yours and does not recognize this, you should choose a better place for yourself. This mood in the team not only opposes progress, but also slows it down. You will be surprised how often you will look for a solution on the Internet than you are doing it now. Stay away from such people.

Learn and learn



Don't you have a team? Or does it fall apart and burst at the seams? It's time to get out of your comfort zone and find yourself a good mentor. If you are an introvert and you are uncomfortable talking with strangers, although we, the developers, just need it, try looking for someone in various forums, or use pseudo-anonymous services, for example, Wizpert.
If you need a more narrow-minded mentor, there is a great site for that too! Meet PHP Mentoring. How it works: people who share their knowledge and those who want to get it are registered on the page with a list of all participants. You need to specify only your name, city and level of your skills. Mentors indicate their area of ​​activity, and students indicate what they want to master. In a way, this is something like a dating site - you look at a list of people, and if one of them lives near you, then you can meet someone who will teach you or study with you personally or on the Internet.
You may be surprised to find out how these same mentors feel. They make new acquaintances, communicate with new people and enjoy the fact that they help someone to improve. Some use such services in order to train someone to work in their own company or in order to take on a team to develop their project. And most often, students earn on this.
If you are engaged in this business, and it does not matter whether you are teaching or studying, you should be punctual and constantly communicate with others. And it’s important to note that being a student does not mean being a beginner. Someone may be an expert in OOP, but be weak in testing.
Do not underestimate your colleagues or their main specialty. If you don’t have anyone to follow, then your progress will stand still.

Control your ego



The most unpleasant and dangerous thing on the way to your transition from a beginner to a middle link is your ego. It can be affected for many reasons, but it usually happens for the following:
  • You coped with a difficult task;
  • too flattering reviews about you from the mentor;
  • newcomers to the team are asking you questions;
  • You have successfully sold the site;
  • You were contacted to help you write a book for a quack publisher;
  • etc.


When this happens, the developer begins to think that he is absolutely right and his approach is the best. He believes so zealously that he even tries to convince his colleagues and clients to think like him. It is because of this that project development is slowing down and customers are disappointed. Also, your ego adversely affects others, because it makes people blindly believe you and not think for yourself, and also you put pressure on your colleagues with your arrogance. Sometimes the more assertive team members can stop you, but more often than not you just run out of steam.
But there is a flip side to the coin - an underestimation of self-esteem. This, in truth, depresses a person and he cannot work or develop normally. This happens, again, for various reasons, for example, when a pompous egoist realizes that he is wrong and is replaced by a more restrained specialist. This condition can last several months, because of which you lose the most precious thing - time.
Those around you - whether they are people on the net or in real life - can protect you from this all. A good mentor or partner will tell you that you are wrong and, so to speak, have gone astray. They will give you proper motivation and will not allow you to freeze in one place.

Conclusion



As Bill Nye (an American engineer, actor, and host of Bill Nye the Science Guy, translator's commentary) once said: “Any person you meet knows what you don’t know.”
Do not underestimate others. Go to a conference or gathering, even if you haven’t written a line of code, subscribe to various mailing lists, read forums, talk with people - but never underestimate them! You can pick up a drop of some knowledge rummaging in the minds of others - whether it is a beginner or a professional. And who knows, maybe this drop will turn into a whole ocean.

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