4 ms·

I'm trying to find a mentor. I need help finding potential candidates. I'm 19 and I'm really interested in doing systems-level work in either C or, more recent

by adbge 15y ago

I'm trying to find a mentor. I need help finding potential candidates. I'm 19 and I'm really interested in doing systems-level work in either C or, more recently, I've been looking at Erlang. I'm just picking stuff up on my own. The thing is, I don't know any professional programmers. I don't really have any idea how one finds a mentor. I don't know who I should contact. If anyone knows someone who might be interested in this kind of relationship, my contact info is in my profile.

mikegreenberg 15y ago
You need to surround yourself with the sort of people whom you want to emulate. And no matter where you are, there's sure to be a community of programmers who are interested in getting together and talking about their trade. Colleges are obvious hotspots for this sort of activity, but also consider approaching some local tech companies for possible internships (even if they aren't looking for any). Seek out people online and get in touch with them. Most of them are quite friendly and will usually be happy to help any way they can. Lastly, get involved in some open source projects. Sometimes, finding a smaller project with fewer contributors will give you the opportunity to build a relationship with them. Generally, contributing to open source projects will give you easy, real-world experience without any of the overhead/commitment of having a job or internship. If you're interested in moving to South Florida, I know a few internship opportunities that I could point you toward as well that would be right up your alley!
- adbge 15y ago
  Thanks, I might be interested in moving to South Florida. I'd love to hear about those opportunities.
  - mikegreenberg 15y ago
    Sent you an email. :)
daniellicht 15y ago
Have you tried going to tech events in your neighbourhood (http://www.meetup.com/ http://www.meetup.com/) to find a mentor? This has worked very well for me. I'm not a developer so I don't think I would be a good mentor for you. However, if you ever want someone to bounce business/marketing stuff off, I'm always happy to help. @daniellicht
- adbge 15y ago
  Yeah, this is something that I've been meaning to do. I'll be sure to hit you up if I ever have any business/marketing questions.

by adbge 15y ago

mikegreenberg 15y ago

You need to surround yourself with the sort of people whom you want to emulate. And no matter where you are, there's sure to be a community of programmers who are interested in getting together and talking about their trade. Colleges are obvious hotspots for this sort of activity, but also consider approaching some local tech companies for possible internships (even if they aren't looking for any). Seek out people online and get in touch with them. Most of them are quite friendly and will usually be happy to help any way they can. Lastly, get involved in some open source projects. Sometimes, finding a smaller project with fewer contributors will give you the opportunity to build a relationship with them. Generally, contributing to open source projects will give you easy, real-world experience without any of the overhead/commitment of having a job or internship. If you're interested in moving to South Florida, I know a few internship opportunities that I could point you toward as well that would be right up your alley!

adbge 15y ago
Thanks, I might be interested in moving to South Florida. I'd love to hear about those opportunities.
- mikegreenberg 15y ago
  Sent you an email. :)

daniellicht 15y ago

Have you tried going to tech events in your neighbourhood (http://www.meetup.com/ http://www.meetup.com/) to find a mentor? This has worked very well for me. I'm not a developer so I don't think I would be a good mentor for you. However, if you ever want someone to bounce business/marketing stuff off, I'm always happy to help. @daniellicht

adbge 15y ago
Yeah, this is something that I've been meaning to do. I'll be sure to hit you up if I ever have any business/marketing questions.