What Being A Software Engineer For 365 Days Has Taught Me

“IT’S ANOTHER ONE!” I made it to a year in tech and a year as a Software Engineer. It’s been an incredible journey so far. I have struggled, I have learnt, I have cried, I have grown, I have vented, I have flourished and I’m grateful for every experience. With every experience, I have added to my growth.

So where do I begin? From the beginning, I guess!

I’m the only “me”..

The biggest challenge I experienced was being the only black person on my floor. I’ve now come to find I’m the only black woman in the building which is challenging. How can I help people understand this? I remember I had a call with someone and explained why inclusion in the workplace was of more importance than diversity to me. You cannot advocate for diversity and not provide an inclusive workplace where they can be themselves and have ways for them to connect with people that look like them in skin colour or gender. It is a mental and emotional drain and it’s incredibly lonely.

Unfortunately, whether it be in huge global corporations, or large cosmopolitan, multi-cultural cities, there are many people that have the same experience as me but I hope that as our communities are working to change this and lead change, it will no longer be a norm.

What I will say is that by being the only one, I was able to teach and educate others about blackness but it became exhausting so I just stopped. I focused on being sure that I stayed true to my identity, I talked with my London accent (which I’m kinda losing a little.. pray for me), I dressed the way I wanted to, I wrapped my hair in a scarf with Congolese print on a Monday, wore my natural hair on Wednesday and put a wig on on a Friday! At the end of it all, it was important for me to continue to be myself as much as it’s important for those around me to see me being myself.

*this blog is a preview. I hope you enjoyed it. Do read the rest by heading over to my website to read the rest of my blog.

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