• I was in school but wasn’t doing well.
• Some people thought I wasn’t smart enough.
• During the lockdown, I decided to do something different.
• I got my trusty laptop and started exploring the world of coding.
• This decision changed my life forever.

I started with Python tutorials on ‘Malayalam Tutorial’ and www.codecademy.com. Then, I learned HTML, CSS, and JavaScript from Debug Media and W3Schools etc...

1. I tried out React
2. I tried out Node & Mongo.
3. I tried out Flutter.
4. I tried almost everything that I like.
5. As I gained new skills, I felt more confident and capable. I realized that tech stack is just a top layer of skills. The real power lies in understanding how things work, how they scale, who our customers are, and more.

Against all expectations, I landed my first job as a Flutter developer. It was an amazing opportunity to work on real-world projects and learn a lot. However, it was still a figuring-out phase since I was at a startup. Initially, I only shipped Flutter apps (frontend only), but then I built the entire project, including APIs, databases, and authentication. This is an unfair advantage you get when working at startups.

I’m proud to say I was able to pay all my bills, including my education fees, gadgets (iPhones, MacBooks, etc..)

I won first prize in the hackathon organized by IHRD Tharang (2x), I was the only participant from a higher grade school against college students. Despite the tough competition, I beat over 80 members, each with fou
r team members.

Edit: I now manage 9 team members, including a software developer, QA engineer, and UI designer, as project manager. We’re building a highly scalable project from scratch.