The light at the end of the tunnel, and new challenges
So, I'm still in shock… but I somehow made it to the third module of my courses with only one remaining after. If you would’ve told me in April that I would be a junior web developer by the beginning of 2021 I wouldn’t’ve believed you, but 2020 has been chopped full of things that nobody would ever believe unless we lived them.
So how do I feel? Honestly, still very unprepared. I understand that growth isn’t without its challenges, but the further I progress the stronger the imposter syndrome becomes. I didn’t acclimate to JavaScript in my previous module, I merely survived it, and now I feel like my lack of comfortability with JavaScript is seeping into my newest module. Furthermore, I’m looking for internships and jobs that require 1–4 years of experience and I’m graduating with a few months under my belt, and this is the challenge of Web Development at large. It has been a constant struggle with imposter syndrome, and some days are more crippling than others. Some days I can remind myself of the journey thus far and how I couldn’t even type “hello world” on a landing page. Some days I fall apart because I can’t quite get a grip on express and node. But you know what? Both of these feelings are valid and one of them is only temporary.
Even with that big ole lug of personified doubt following me around, I am still capable of growth and returning to old challenges that temporarily broke me. I remember trying to extract the payload from a cool Pokemon API that I found and panicking because I couldn’t figure out why I couldn’t figure out the fetch promise function to extract Pikachu's data. I remember feeling defeated, but after I few days I revisited the assignment and it all made sense. Sometimes we have to step back, let imposter syndrome run its course, and then resume with clarity and calmness to get our projects done.
Now for some of the nitty-gritty: SEO and Efficient coding
SEO... What is it?
SEO, otherwise known as Search Engine Optimization, is how you draw traffic to your web pages by complying and tuning your code to the ideal parameters of search engines. From title tags, alternate image tags, and accessibility for the hearing and visually impaired. SEO is programming can be what takes your website from the 52nd page in a google search to the 1st one. So here are some things to consider. Accessibility, consider the challenges people may face in accessing the information on your page. Formatting, test to see what tags and functions are actually functional in multiple engines. Cross-referencing, see how your page works and differs between different engines and browsers. Think Google, bing, and beyond. Think Chrome, Safari, Opera, Firefox, and beyond. Test test test!
- List five or more ways you could optimize a website to be as efficient and scalable as possible.
