TL;DR
I had a motto this year - Don't give it to me easy, I like a little challenge winning feels better when you take a little damage. I took it a little too seriously and it caused some trouble. This was a fruitful year of learning, making new friends, gaining experiences and having fun.
Read on!!
Google Developer Student Clubs
Google Developer Student Clubs are university based community groups for students interested in Google Developer Technologies. My university doesn't have a GDSC so I thought of applying for it.
What I learnt from applying
I applied to have a GDSC at my college. And my initial application was accepted too. In May I had my interview. I could say it went okay. But...
In July, when several people on social media were celebrating their acceptance letters, I got a rejection. I was devastated by the news.
I learnt that even if you get an interview, it isn't certain you'll get a role.
Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors
I applied for it around the same time as GDSC. Turns out, this wasn't for me either.
Himanshu takes another L.
I went into thinking about why I should even apply if I am gonna get rejected anyway. I hyped everyone that I'll do so much being a lead or an ambassador, but I couldn't do it. Turns out, it's okay to be rejected.
Rejections are as not bad as we think they are. They hurt, but they also let us know where can improve.
Google Cloud Ready Facilitator Program
In Late April, I tried something new, getting into Cloud Computing. So I registered for a long journey of fun learning, networking and cloud computing with Google Cloud.
It was a whole new experience for me, something I didn't know at all!
Over the few months, I learned a lot about cloud architecture, what are the costs involved, hosting websites, clusters, monitoring and ML and much more.
This reminds me of what Shifu from Kung fu panda said once-
“If you only do what you can do, you will never be more than you are now.”
~Master Shifu
Hackathons, Conferences and Events
Hackathons
My first hackathon was in March, I was very hesitant to do a hackathon in hopes of publicly embarrassing myself with my skills. But I'm glad I did. I didn't win but it surely opened my eyes to the capabilities of the people around me.
MLH has been the absolute best bud for hackathons. Everyone should attend their hackathons and GHWs. Register for their latest GHW here.
Since then I've been to 7 hackathons and won 2.
Plus you get some cool swag along the way 😊
Hackathons help you find new people, build new and existing skills, get more opportunities and are a lot of fun.
Conferences and Events
I attended my first event which was Google I/O Extended 2022 in my city. Honestly, it was a lot of fun because I got to meet so many new people. Since then I try to attend as many of them as I can to interact with new people and know their stories.
"Conferences and In-person events are a great way to network with like-minded people and make new friends and share experiences."
CodeDay Nagpur
CodeDay Nagpur was honestly the best experience I had in the whole year. I volunteered for it because it seemed like a nice initiative.
Experience
The two days were absolutely exhausting and truly amazing. I had so much fun hanging out with high-school kids who are just starting in tech. They were a lot smarter than I initially thought. I loved every minute of helping them and would do it again given the chance.
Here I truly understood why communities matter. This is where you learn, grow, help others grow and have fun while doing everything.
I want to mention all the gem people Laksh Samdariya, Vedant Kakde, Ashwin Kumar Uppala, Kartikey Rawat and all the volunteers and head organizers who made this possible. Aman made the best post on LinkedIn for CodeDay Nagpur.
Photo: Hackers Hacking Happily
Photo: Team CodeDay Nagpur
Conclusion
So this was an eventful year for me. Learning tons of new stuff, breaking mental barriers, pushing new heights and facing facts of rejection.
I hope 2023 can teach me more.
Thanks for reading!!
This blog is part of the WeMakeDevs X Hashnode Blogging Challenge. They provide amazing prizes for winners. Do check 'em out. I'm participating in the special track - 2022 WRAP-UP.