@Alexander Kern This is exactly what my first couple of weeks looked like when I joined. Let me know if you ever want to touch base again to discuss any material you come across.

@Tammie Oh Hey Tammie! Welcome to CCM. Thanks for checking the project out, and that's actually a sharp observation you made there concerning that bug. I had been thinking about it the last couple days, but just never got around the working on it. If you don't mind...maybe you can open an issue about it on GitHub:https://github.com/SMcGregor199/malcolmipsum/issues Would be a great way for me to get more exp collaborating on GitHub.

Right now, I would say I'm strongest in "owner energy." I attribute this a lot to the coding I've been doing over the past couple months and all the conversations I've had with other engineers. The vocabulary doesn't feel as foreign anymore, and I feel more confident in those conversations. I would like to get better at forming that core network. One thing I did earlier this week, was go through my LinkedIn contacts and form a list of all the people I want to follow up with. I think this will be an important step in creating that core network.

@Alexander Kern Sounds like you're at the "casting a wide net" stage. The good news is that this stage doesn't have to last too long. You really only have to do it once and refine once you start to get those responses.

Here's my most recent post on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/shayne-mcgregor_as-we-roll-into-december-i-always-get-this-activity-7401247453137547264-u8lw?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAABpQwgIBo3VOk_JvotTzw6-NjZ_jq8HHPPA I've been connecting with CCM folk pretty regularly since I joined, and I'll be continuing that next week when I meet with Madison Beatty at Airtable. I have some more recent convos with people at Comcast and Oracle, and I'm happy to say that I already have following up meetings scheduled with them as well.

@Alexander Kern The "good enough" angle is a sharp one. From what I've been told, most SWE aren't experts in their field. Many, however, are good enough to get the job done, and that's probably what we should be pushing for ...something that's just a little better than good enough. That's just my thoughts though. Could be totally off base.

I’m employed right now, but I need to stay in the Philadelphia area, which means location is my top priority. Because I’m not in a rush, I really want to narrow in on one question over the next 90 days: Which companies in Philly pay their software engineers the most? I feel like answering that will give me the clarity and motivation I need to focus. Also not sure how to begin answering this question.

@Alexander Kern I sure you can find a great role in Austin? How far is it from Dallas? I thought I heard a while back that Dallas has a bustling tech scene.

@Alexander Kern I had the same trouble. Glad you were able to find something though.

I've been a part of this Slack group organized by the "Blacks in Technology Foundation" for the better part of 2025. There's a lot of content that gets posted in there, so I definitely plan to be more active in there going into 2026. https://blacksintechnology.org/