From 'Not My Thing' to Hackathon Winner

If you asked me a few years ago what I thought about coding, I probably would have rolled my eyes. Honestly, I felt like it just wasn't "my thing." The syntax looked alien, the logic felt abstract, and sticking to a screen for hours debugging a missing semicolon? No thanks.

I gave it a shot, sure, but it felt forced. I was doing it because everyone said it was the future, not because I actually enjoyed it. I struggled with the basics, felt like an imposter constantly, and more than once, I just wanted to quit and do literally anything else.

The Turning Point

But then, something shifted. I can't pinpoint the exact moment, but I think it was when I stopped just "learning" and started building.

I realized that code wasn't just text on a screen; it was a tool to create. I built a small project, nothing fancy, just some basic utility, but seeing it work, seeing something I created come to life and actually do something... that was the spark.

Suddenly, the frustration of debugging turned into the thrill of problem solving. The "alien" syntax became a language I could speak to machines. I wasn't just typing; I was engineering solutions.

The Hackathon Rush

That spark turned into a fire when I entered my first hackathon.

If you've never been to one, it's chaos. pure, unadulterated chaos. 24 to 48 hours of caffeine, bad food, and intense focus. But in that pressure cooker, I found my stride.

I wasn't just a student anymore; I was a creator. I teamed up with other passionate people, we brainstormed wild ideas, and we built them. The feeling of demoing a working prototype that didn't exist two days ago is unmatched.

And guess what? We won.

That validation was everything. It proved to me that not only could I do this, but I could be great at it.

Where I Am Now

Fast forward to today, and I'm building complex full stack applications, experimenting with AI, and crafting experiences (like this portfolio!) that I'm genuinely proud of.

Coding is no longer just a career path; it's my craft. It's how I express creativity, solve real world problems, and constantly challenge myself.

So if you're out there feeling like this isn't for you, or that you're just not "smart enough" to be a dev, trust me, I've been there. Keep building. Keep breaking things. Find that one project that lights the spark.

You might just surprise yourself.