If I were to say I joined Scaler to just work hard and upskill myself, I'd be partially lying.
I was looking for opportunities and platforms that would take me to the next level of my career. I was attracted by the high-paying jobs of my friends who were working in Amazon and Google. And to be honest, I just couldn't cope with the fact that despite pursuing engineering for 4 years of my life, I was stuck at a job as a Manual Tester. But after tackling each hurdle at my own pace and time, today, I can proudly call myself a Software Development Engineer at Rebel Foods and then OLX. This is how I did it:
So, right after I got a job at Infosys, I worked there for a considerable amount of time as Quality Assurance Engineer before I switched to being a Manual Tester at MetricStream. Both the jobs were below sub-par for my qualifications, but I stuck with them because it was all that I was getting offered.
When I was in college, all of my friends were coders: it was a great learning environment. I was the only one in the lot who couldn't see a future in coding, which is why I took it for granted for most of my college life. This perspective put me almost three years behind in life.
A Hindi proverb goes - 'jab jaago tab sawera' so one day, I woke up. I woke up to use the potential I knew I had to which I combined my efforts and started seeing the desired results! I already had a couple of friends who were not students but mentors at the e-learning platform Scaler and I also wanted to walk the Scaler path to success. I gave its entrance and failed. Of course, if I were so good, wouldn't I be placed at a good company, or at the very least have the title of 'Software Development Engineer'? But I didn't give up.
I joined a course on another platform to clear the basics of my programming skills first. The instructors of that course were great, and I started to gain some confidence in my ability. Six months were left for Scaler's next entrance when I decided to join a competitor company without having to clear any entrance.
It was very tiring to work a day job and take these classes on the side to prepare for yet another course. At this point, I was falling behind in life. While I should’ve had the skill set to join Scaler in the first attempt, it was taking me two extra courses just to get into a dream course. But my success was already in the making, and I wasn't ready to go back to sleep.
It felt as if I had risen back from the ashes when I cleared the entrance. I was so confident that victory was near that I almost quit my job to prepare and devote my complete focus to upskilling myself. But my family urged me to think more pragmatically and wasn't okay with me not contributing to the household expenses, so I decided to stick to my job. Despite that, I felt like I was on top of the world.
Through Scaler, I was placed at Rebel Foods, and currently, I am working at OLX. However, it took a lot of courage and change that I had to bring in myself to get this far. Scaler was only a guiding light or force, but every transformation I had to make was my own. From watching movies and television in my free time, I shifted to reading technical articles or practicing unsolved questions, and I have probably watched every single video on YouTube about clearing interview grounds.
All of this did not happen overnight: I became addicted to growth and I don't plan on stopping it. From the point in time when I determined that I would become a Software Developer to now when I am one, it has taken an immense amount of effort to transform my destiny.
I don't have a dream job, but I never plan on getting comfortable for more than 1.5 years at any job. If you think you're behind in life, don't pity yourself. Instead, take it as motivation and strive to get ahead in life. Forgive yourself for the past: that is the only way to achieve your dreams.
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