Hello again, this topic is one I have meditated on numerous times in the past, so I am going to share with you how I deal with struggles.
The foundation was laid many years ago when I was still a boy. I went for a competitive exam and didn’t do too well. My dad was disappointed and mightily upset with me. His anger made me angry with him too. I thought, "I was chosen to write the exam out of all the students, and I did my best. Why then is he angry?"
So there I was, angry with my dad for being angry with me because I didn’t do well in an exam. I confided in my favorite uncle, and he told me to forget about my dad and to be honest with only myself. Did I really put in my best effort in preparing for the exam? He said he didn’t want to know the answer, I should tell myself the answer to the question. If the answer was yes, then it was fine—my best effort yielded that result. But if the answer was no, then I could have done more and performed better. So I should understand why my dad was pissed, because he knew that was not my best.
I never forgot that conversation. It was one of those eureka moments for me. From that moment onwards, I learned to reflect on things personally and to be honest with myself.
Fast forward to after college, I decided to pivot into IT. Coming from a non-technical background, I found it challenging to grasp some concepts. I started with Data Science and after a few months I left it for Frontend Engineering. I did frontend engineering for an even shorter time before moving to DevOps.
At a certain point, I got honest with myself and admitted that I was struggling to grasp some things. Each time I struggled, I chalked it off with the excuse “it is not for me”, quit and moved on to the next tech stack.
Realizing this made me change my approach, everyone struggles, It was new to me because I always excelled in my academics. Now I had to humble myself and admit that some things are difficult for me to understand.
Now, I expect struggles, live for them, and anticipate them. Repetition breeds mastery, so whenever I struggle, I put in my best effort and keep repeating it until I get it. And I do eventually get it. This works every time.
This has made me a bit arrogant, to be honest. I truly believe that as long as I put in my best effort and repeat a problem, I will get it. It might take time, but eventually, I will get it, and that’s what counts.
This is how I deal with struggles in my IT journey and in my life in general. Hopefully, it helps someone out there. Reach out to share how you deal with struggles too.
One thing is certain: everyone struggles.