My Trailblazer Story: Break New Ground

I'm a triple-star ranger! It was interesting as always! So, I think it's time to share #MyTrailblazerStory

I changed my profession radically at the age of 27 (and my profession changed me) when I tried Salesforce on the Trailhead platform…

Before that, I worked for several years as an economist in a bank, then organized an author's pub quiz and even participated in exhibitions as a craftswoman, etc. In general, I was looking for myself.

To be honest, it seemed to me that programming, working with code, was not my thing at all: I didn't feel confident and smart enough for it. But I accidentally got into a free online course from one of the companies, and then into another course. I couldn't tear myself away from the Trailhead modules, it was so interesting and exciting!

One, two, three...ten badges!

Not everything worked out the first time. I learned all day on some modules instead of a stated time of two hours.?

The second intensive course included an offline exam, and I did not have time to complete all tasks for it. I was very nervous the evening before the exam and wanted to cancel it. But I still decided to go, even if not fully prepared. At this stage, a lot of guys from the group dropped out: they just didn't come.

I did not pass the exam the first time: I did not answer all the questions, the practical task was not completed, but I showed my other Salesforce developments that were not related to the course. I was given a second chance to finish what I started, and a week later I received the desired certificate and... And everything stopped.?

There were no offers, there was no understanding of what to do next, and there were no similar success stories in my surroundings.

I wanted to give up again. After all, moving forward feels scary and difficult by touch without a visible and understandable road. I could use a mentor! But I haven't heard about them in Salesforce yet :)

But a couple of months later, on my birthday, I received an invitation to an interview for a position as a Junior Salesforce Developer. What a gift!

***

Then there were new challenges, new downs and ups.

Oh, I cried with joy when I completed the first, although very simple (one line of code needed to be added) task on a real project for a real client!

I called my family and was proud of how I solved it myself, although they had no idea what I was talking about :)

The tasks were becoming larger, more complex, and more important. But every time starting something from scratch is much easier now. By the way, my experience in other areas allows me to look at issues from different angles and understand clients better.

We are motivated by other people's stories, and the unconventional actions of other people, we believe in luck, and happy chance. But, it seems to me, our main incentive is ourselves and our achievements. It's worth showing a little more perseverance and diligence to maintain your spark and then impressive results will be your core in new achievements.

Now, when I face a new challenge or difficulty, I say to myself:

"I was able to become a programmer step by step from scratch. I got Salesforce certificates. I have excellent reviews from clients. I even trained other developers. And I can do it too!"

Do you have your own motivating story? :)

P.s. My Trailhead profile: https://www.salesforce.com/trailblazer/hp13