Treat Learning to Code Like an RPG (and You Might Get a Job in Three Business Days), with Scrimba student Tomáš

🎙 About the episode

Meet Tomáš Lukeš 🇨🇿! Tomáš is an audio engineer turned primary school teacher turned developer! In only nine months, he learned to code alongside a full-time job, created an awesome portfolio, and then landed a job in three business days. What?!

In this episode, you'll discover exactly how he did it! Tomáš will reveal why he approached learning to code as if it were an RPG, how he selected his projects, why going the extra mile while crafting your portfolio is a must, and how you can transform code-alongs into something of your own. You'll also learn the definitive answer to the question of how many hours it truly takes to reach a hireable level of coding proficiency. Tomáš and Alex also discuss job hunting strategies,  the power of persistence, self-discovery,and the importance of knowing the exact industries you want to work in.

🔗 Connect with Tomáš

• 👨‍💼 LinkedIn
• 🌐 Website

⏰  Timestamps

• How Tomáš went from audio engineering to learning development (01:25)
• Why sound technicians make good develoeprs (02:10)
• Tomáš had always been interested in coding (03:15)
• How Tomáš learned to code alongside a full-time job, and how long did it take? (04:39)
• What courses did Tomáš use? (06:35)
• Learning coding during the AI boom (07:06)
• Community break with Jan the Producer (08:19)
• How Tomáš approached projects - by taking course projects and making them his own (10:53)
• Why you need good projects to impress HR people (13:59)
• Tomáš learned to code at a hireable level in this many hours! (15:12)
• How Tomáš approached job hunting, and landed a job in three business days (15:30)
• Why Tomáš only applied for local jobs (17:53)
• Startups hire quicker than bigger and older companies (19:26)
• Why you should say "I don't know" during an interview (21:17)
• Quick-fire questions: Tailwind, Josh Tried Coding, and Steve Lacy (23:47)
• How to learn to code: persistence and self-discovery (25:54)
• Advice for building portfolios (28:44)
• Localized job search (33:18)
• Trust the process! (34:53)

🧰 Resources Mentioned

• Colt Steele on Udemy
• Scrimba's Frontend Developer Career Path
• Josh Tried Coding on YouTube

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