#wwcode

[nihilistvet]

How To Keep Productivity And Motivation During The War?

It is my first post on Medium this year. And it has nothing to do with Vue.js. That doesn’t mean I suddenly quit programming. I have a full-time job, which regularly provides me with coding challenges. Recently I was writing the E2E tests for the first time, which was painful. Also, I am currently working on a small pet project, where I’m trying to implement new features more flexibly and less stressful. I have a project board on GitHub, but no sprint goals or strict deadlines. Besides, I am a participant in the WWCode Kyiv Mentoring Program, where I met a talented and motivated mentee. I’ve been consulting her on her way to becoming a web developer, and I hope the process is insightful for both of us. Today I want to talk about mental health and motivation during the war. It is hard to believe and accept, but more than a year has passed since the russian troops invaded Ukraine. Over this time, Ukrainians learned what russian people were capable of: while their propaganda machine was spreading lies, the opposition kept silent, and the whole world was watching how their ordinary young men were looting, raping, and mutilating innocent civilians. But it isn’t a movie — we cannot press a stop button or leave a cinema anytime we want.

I’ve been staying in Kyiv for half a year now. The winter here was severe: the residents faced and courageously endured frequent shelling, several total blackouts, and the risk of potential evacuation. As for me, for the last couple of months, I mostly stayed at home, suffering from fear and apathy. Every time I went shopping, I couldn’t get rid of the thought: what if the russian missiles target my building next time? That affected my productivity and daily routine. After doing some work, I spent the rest of the day in bed. I couldn’t eat. I couldn’t read books or watch movies. I couldn’t even use social media to distract myself. My feeds on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and even Linkedin are full of messages about someone’s death on the battlefield. When I look at their pictures, those brave women and men, lots of them were younger than me, my heart clenches in pain.

The human body reacts differently to stress. I’ve read an article where Ukrainian IT specialists describe how the war affected their productivity. Most of them say that they experience difficulties focusing on tasks. Many people had to leave their homes and look for new places to live and work. That caused a loss of a favorable working environment and a general worsening of working conditions. Some people complain about problems with concentration and memory. They procrastinate, continuously read the news, and worry about the safety of their family. Some specialists lost their jobs. Admitting a problem At the same time, fewer people claim their productivity, on the contrary, increased. Work helped them to distract from the news; they felt enough energy and motivation to earn more money to support the Ukrainian Armed Forces. I wanted to be one of them, but how? The first and hardest step was to admit the problem. I spent day after day trying not to think about the future, eating sweets to reduce stress, until one day, I weight myself. The number I saw shocked me. All at once I realized I needed to change my way of life. Creating a plan I asked myself: what can I do besides working and sleeping? The first thing that came to my mind was to increase physical activity. I set myself a goal to spend more time outside walking and running. On the 1st of March, I went for my first run this season. 2 km for 14 minutes — that was the result. I used to run 10km+ daily a few years ago. Now I had to start from the beginning. So I tried to be patient. Two weeks later, I was able to run 4 km. On the days free of running, I go to the gym or walk. I plan to get 8000 steps per day no matter what. Sharing tiniest progress Daniel Lieberman, a paleoanthropologist best known for his research on the evolution of the human head and body, wrote a book about physical activity. He claims that sharing information about what you do can help to save motivation and not give up. So, I posted a thread on Twitter about my progress and got a lot of positive feedback. Also, I use apps to visualize my work and get some stats. I loved Avocation: you can plant a tree and watch how it grows after you do a planned activity. Awesome. Asking for help This week I am having a short vacation. I have a job where management cares about the wellness of employees, but not everyone is so lucky. Many people in my country cannot afford a break during the war. They have to make for living and support their families. That is why the advice to quit a job and go to Peru does not make sense. At the same time, physical exhaustion and permanent fear of your life cause anxiety, sleep disorder, and other mental health issues. It seems like a blind corner, and the only one who can help is a psychotherapist. War experiences for soldiers and civilians are different, but there is one thing we have in common — we all are traumatized. I did not mean to write a positive article. The honest answer to the question in the title is: there is no way to keep productivity and motivation while your nation suffers from violence you cannot imagine. I described a personal attempt to preserve the remains of mental health. I gained weight, and that was a signal for me to change my habits. I accept the possibility that my plan may not work. But I will enjoy the process, as long as I can, and that is what matters.

[bellaspadiva]

Coworking in Denton @Regranned from @stokedenton - Our #2017bestnine shows exactly what we are all about. Community, education, and resources for startups and entrepreneurs. Looking forward to an even better 2018! #Denton #coworking #wddi #dentontx #entrepreneur #startup #techmill #tech #mentors #wwcode #dentoning (at Stoke)

[corwinlim]

KLJS + WWCODE + JuniorDev Special Edition : ? #kljs #wwcode #juniordeveloper #microsoft #coders #codergathering (at Microsoft Malaysia) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bzp6UU3AVKG/?igshid=167ov5uy0up9m

[riverflowsthroughit]

CEO, Women Who Code, San Francisco

Alaina leads an organization whose primary purpose is to help women break into and thrive in the tech world. This undertaking is not for the faint-hearted. Currently Women Who Code is in 20+countries and over 60 cities. Do you live in Kiev and want to connect to influential tech experts and investors? No problem. Accra? Sure. From Santiago to San Diego, Women Who Code values mentorship and female empowerment combined with honing in on the necessary skills required for professional development and career advancement. For a woman who travels between continents on the montly/weekly basis, Alaina struck me as a pretty grounded person. She is kind and passionate about her goal to grow and insists that "while the big picture is important, it's even more important to remember that the services she provides aim to inspire and empower individuals". And if there are any doubts whether she is hopeful about the future of Women Who Code, check out the last image in the series. Hope you peruse the website and spread the word to your friends across the globe. Empowering women in STEM professions is something I'm passionate about as well, thank goodness the outlook is pretty good for Women Who Code community. Thank you Alaina for your hard work and dedication. 1. Name. Alaina Percival 2. Where is your hometown? Atlanta 3. What is your profession/career/title/self-label/designation? CEO and Board Chair, Women Who Code 4. What was the journey like to get where you are (career wise)? When was the mental shift to start the journey? My background is in marketing and brand management. However, when I moved to San Francisco I was inspired by all of the amazing things that were being done with technology. That motivated me to immerse myself in the culture of tech, learning to code, while also connecting with incredible people. 5. What did you study in school? I have a bachelor degree in International Business Relations and an M.B.A. from Georgia State University, and a Masters in Organizational Management from the Sorbonne, Paris. 6. How is your life different from what you pictured at 20? Like many women I didn't think about technology as a field when I was younger. It wasn't until I started meeting amazing women engineers and saw the things that they were doing, that I started to see the possibilities and feel connected to the industry, so I decided to get involved. Now I'm helping to fundamentally improve a field that affects every facet of society, by making it more dynamic, and sustainable through inclusive practices. 7. Biggest accomplishment since making the (physical/mental) move? My biggest accomplishments are individual in nature. Whenever I hear that someone's life has been positively affected, or that their career has improved as a result of being a member of Women Who Code, I'm more proud than I can possibly express. That's what our real goal is, and while the big picture is important, it's even more important to remember that our service is to inspire and empower individuals. 8. What was biggest disappointment and plan to overcome it? I don't find dwelling on disappointments to be a useful process. Sure you have to be willing to admit mistakes, to understand where things went wrong, and to try and correct them. However the focus should always be on what can be learned from mistakes rather than past regrets. 9. Advice for other women? You do belong. Don't be constrained by a mental image of what you are supposed to be. You can do anything, you can accomplish incredible things, and you aren't alone. There are so many of us out there already conquering the world. All you have to do is have faith in your abilities and you can help write the future of humanity. 10. Knowing what we know now in current political climate, can women be "all that we can be" in today's world? What is the way forward, as you see it for "feminist values"? Women can do anything and they've been doing it all along. Just in technology alone you have pioneers like Grace Hopper, Anita Borg, Jean Jennings Bartik, and even Ada Lovelace who basically created the technological revolution we are living in. It's vital that we keep that in mind and remember that women are a force to reckon with, and that they only need to be given the time, tools, and opportunity to succeed. 11. Where in the world do you feel “tallest” (i.e. where is your happy place)? An adventure is trying something new or seeing a new part of the world. Women Who Code is a global organization that is growing and reaching more people around the world every day. I’m thrilled my passion has finally found a match with my career. 12. What extra-curricular activities/hobbies are you most proud of? Why? I love to travel and have been to nearly 70 countries. This isn’t what I’m most proud of, but it is a big part of who I am. 13. What do you want to be when you grow up? Future goals/challenges? I’d love to start or lead a for profit company and I want to be on the board of a public organization. I’d love to continue to excel in my career and become a role model for other women and girls. 14. Anything you'd do differently (if you had another go at life)? I don't believe in regrets. You have to live the best you can and your choices help make you who you are. If I had to choose, I’d have learned to code early on. 15. What inspires you? I'm inspired by people. They're so different, so varied, each with a perspective and a voice that is unique and wonderful. When I meet someone new I become a fuller person for having had the chance to experience in some small way their view of the world. And the more people I meet, the more I am amazed by what they can think, do, and become. 16. What are you hopeful about? I believe in people, in their capacity to grow, in their capacity to change, and in the ability of all of us to succeed, better, together, than we ever could apart. That will lead us into the future. 17. What are some ingredients to a good life? Chocolate, champagne, hope, inspiration, travel, my family 18. What are you reading now? (what books do you gift most and what are your favourite reads?) Honestly, baby books, they aren’t my thing, but I’m having one and need to increase my knowledge. The book I’ve given away most often is 1000 things to do before you die 19. Who is a “WOW Woman” in your life who inspires you (and why)? Anna Thomas ;) 20. Where can others find you/your work (links to websites, blogs, etc.)? WomenWhoCode LinkedIn

[seotorank-blog]

Monthly JavaScript + SEO with WWCode Boulder

Monthly JavaScript + SEO with WWCode Boulder

✨Lightning Talk ✨

Lacy Rudd will be speaking on JavaScript and SEO! Learn how search engines crawl and index websites with JS content. Websites with JS present a unique challenge to Google and other search engines because JS rendering requires substantial resources. Discover some of the common pitfalls and best practices for writing search engine-friendly JS.

🎙️ About Our Speaker

Lacy Rudd is a…

[carlalberto]

Interesting upcoming collab event of #wpupgh & #wwcode - Women Who #WordPress - probably first in Asia? (at Zendesk, Philippines)

[releaseteam]

via Twitter https://twitter.com/releaseteam

[vuejs2]

RT @ladyleet: This special @angular International Women's Day is especially important because of the female leaders on the Angular team itself! Tune in for a panel about the future of #angular with core team members @jules_kremer @kapunahele @IlonaBudapesti and Cindy! #fempire #wwcode https://t.co/NGTsAnz3Ey

[nodejs-fan]

Learn the 5 W's of Deno | Monthly JavaScript Session with WWCode Boulder ☞ https://school.geekwall.in/p/S6T53DT-D/learn-the-5-w-s-of-deno-monthly-javascript-session-with-wwcode-boulder #nodejs #javascript

[shehustlesinc]

RT @WomenWhoCode: Love all things #WWCode? Join the team! We are looking to grow our team, #apply now! ✨ https://t.co/GbQHjhePg2

Love all things #WWCode? Join the team! We are looking to grow our team, #apply now! ✨https://t.co/GbQHjhePg2

— Women Who Code (@WomenWhoCode) August 11, 2018

from Twitter https://twitter.com/shehustlesinc

[ratracegrad]

Just Pinned to Women Who Code: My WWCode Connect 2018 Experience #womenwhocode #womeinintech https://ift.tt/2Lu5O1O

[pwdoblog]

Thank you WWCode Manila for honoring Form Function & Class 8 as Most Diverse Tech Conference! 💖 #WWCodeManilaHackathon #FFCPH #PWDO #WomenWhoCode

[cristian-randieri]

Tweeted

#WWCode Shadow Emperor Habsburg #GoldenLily #treasurehunt #Hackathon #feminism #OranjeNassau https://t.co/ETCPLcgfHj

— Ageha D'Oronjoh (@doronjoh) July 24, 2017

[nicolefellouris]

A tweet

*LAST DAY* to apply for the @HackReactor - #WWCode full scholarship to the Hack Reactor NYC Immersive program. https://t.co/tmpt5eHEFM

— Women Who Code (@WomenWhoCode) January 25, 2017

[50x50brand-blog]

Check out @welshzoe absolutely killing it with 50x50 brand and helping the non-profit Women Who Code! . . . . #slayqueen #mondaymotivation #getitgirl #wwcode #wearyourvoice #WearingYourVoice

[womenwhocodeatl]

#GivingTuesday

Want to support your friendly neighborhood Women Who Code network and help us inspire and empower women in tech?  This year, thanks to our fearless leaders, we have two ways for you to show WWCode Atlanta some love:

1. Donate

As you may know, we had a pretty big year with our 1st community wide International Women’s Day celebration and our 1st regional all-women hackathon + career expo.  We’re planning for an even bigger 2017, with huge events every few months!  We need your help to bring these events to our community of 1800 lady coders. Check out our Open Collective page to donate to our network: 

 https://opencollective.com/WWCodeAtl

100% of the proceeds will be used to support our efforts in the Atlanta tech community.

2. Swag

How about a little swag to go with that warm fuzzy feeling of supporting your community?  We’ve got you covered with 4 different styles of t-shirts to show off your WWCode Atlanta love: https://teespring.com/search?q=wwcode%20atlanta

With more ways to give, we hope you can help us reach our goals this Giving Tuesday!