Tariro

Growing up, I wanted to be a… Play the African drumroll… Doctor! Of course! That’s what my dad (and mum I think) wanted me to be, and going against the wishes of African parents was simply not an option. I genuinely enjoyed studying Maths, Biology, and Chemistry at the start of my O-levels, so it felt like a no-brainer to carry on with these subjects at A-level. This was my clear path to studying medicine and eventually becoming a dermatologist. But then, life had other plans. I had to transfer to another school mid-O-level, and the new setup split classes into Arts and Commercials, or Sciences and Commercials. Unfortunately, the Sciences class was full, and I’d have to join the Arts class. I really didn’t care – I was more excited about starting at a new school. However, my dad wasn’t happy. He asked the school head, “Can’t you just take a desk from the other class and place it in the Sciences class? Because ini mwana wangu akuda kuita doctor” (Translation: Because my child wants to be a doctor). The school didn’t budge. My dad, clearly disappointed, asked if I could manage Arts and what I’d consider as a career instead. Without giving it much thought, I blurted out, “I’ll be a lawyer.” His silence said it all – likely even internally rolled his eyes. He probably knew, deep down, that I wasn’t cut out for Law. What was I even thinking? 😂 Fast-forward nearly two years later, and it was time to decide which subjects to study at A-level. My dad called me to ask what I’d chosen, his tone almost carrying the unspoken “But these won’t make you a doctor, though, will they?” vibes. When I confidently said I wanted to study Computer Science, he was (kind of) stunned. He asked if I was sure. I was. And that’s how I officially began my journey into the world of computers, eventually studying Computer Science at university. The rest? Well, that’s a story still being written. Here’s why I chose this path: 1. My Dad’s Laptop When we were kids, my dad sometimes brought home his work laptop. It ran WordPerfect and Lotus 1-2-3, and we passed commands on it through the DOS prompt. I know this probably sounds so ancient and giving away my age but, at the time, navigating these felt like magic! We fought over it so much that we had to take turns. Most of our one-hour turn-taking slots were spent exploring these same apps, randomly pressing keys, and issuing commands that did absolutely nothing – but it was still exciting. I was obsessed with figuring out how to “talk” to that machine, even though I didn’t fully understand how it worked and my dad could only teach me so much. And he did teach me a fair amount of things to be honest – especially as I got older – spreadsheets & documents in particular. 2. Miss Indechi, Miss Kubi & Mr Nyamukachi In primary school, our first computer teachers, Miss Indechi and Miss Kubi, were my heroes! My first tech superstars that looked like me. They introduced us to monitors, CPUs, keyboards, and floppy disks. I adored them and wanted to be like them – confident, knowledgeable, and sophisticated in all things computers. Then came Mr Nyamukachi, my A-level Computing teacher, who remains my all-time favourite educator. He made learning about computers exciting, challenged me without making me feel inadequate, and inspired me to use tech to solve real-world problems. His influence even sparked my love for mentoring and coaching others such that to this day, whenever I have to step into a role I have to teach, he often comes to mind. 3. Bill Gates During my childhood, teenage years, and early 20s, Bill Gates was the world’s richest man. Seeing tech dominate global wealth conversations in the early 2000s and then those brave enough to innovate reap financial rewards and recognition, was inspiring. I mean, who doesn’t want to build some wealth? While I didn’t realistically imagine myself in Silicon Valley (yet), the idea of building a stable, well-paying career through tech was deeply appealing. 4. Hollywood’s Portrayal of Silicon Valley I’ve grown to not be a TV person but when I do make time, I’m a sucker for geeky movies and series about startups and Silicon Valley. Such shows fuel my imagination, and experiencing Silicon Valley remains the only long-standing item on my bucket list. It’s been there since way before I ever had a passport. While I’ve never pictured myself in a courtroom as a lawyer or a consultation room as a dermatologist, I’ve definitely held close a vision of me working in Silicon Valley. 5. Desire to Solve Problems If you scroll through the notes app on my phone or laptop, you’ll find scattered ideas for solving everyday problems. Many are quite odd and probably silly, but some are practical. I love seeing how technology can be applied to make life easier, and even when I’m not building these solutions, watching others innovate to address my problems really lights me up. That said, choosing a career in tech wasn’t something I had to agonise over. At some point, it seemed like a natural fit for my curiosity, interests, and desire to make an impact. While my journey to thinking seriously about my career started with a little twist of fate, it’s shaped who I am today. By pursuing a career in tech, I’ve learned how it offers endless opportunities to innovate, solve real-life problems, and positively impact communities. I know my story isn’t unique. Many people have taken different, sometimes surprising, paths into tech. Some stumbled into it by chance, like my university friend who ended up thriving in a programme he took as a default option. Others, like me, had an early spark of fascination that grew into a passion. What’s your tech story? Did you always know this was your path, or did you

The other day I called my friend to catch up and somewhere in between our conversation she said one word, “Python”, that plunged us both in some fit of laughter. Why were we laughing? Well, because about 2 years ago we both (individually) embarked on journeys to learn Python – the programming language. However, for varied reasons, we didn’t really get far with it. Let me speak on my own. So around November 2022 I decided I wanted to start learning Python and I enrolled for the famous 100 Days to Code Python Bootcamp by Dr. Angela Yu. Out of excitement, I also decided I wanted to share my learning journey publicly so I used to post reels on my Instagram speaking on the different challenges I was working on. My friends and colleagues were incredibly encouraging and it made me want to show up even more. Initially, I did show up – for the first few days of the course. Then I started to lose interest and became less engaged. The challenges started getting a bit harder for me to complete in a day because this is something I would only dedicate about an hour or two in my day. After more than 100 days since starting the challenge, I remember recording my Day 10 video🤦🏽‍♀️. I was watching the video the other day and in it I actually said that at the rate I was going, this challenge was going to take me 5 years to complete! View this post on Instagram A post shared by Tariro | Remote Work, Tech & Life (@iamtariromakina) And that was the last video I did. I stopped my learning at Day 14. I didn’t even make it out of the Beginner’s class, even though I was almost there! So what happened? You might be wondering: Did I even want to learn coding in Python in the first place? I did. I have always loved programming – SQL being the only language I can “speak & write” fluently 😉 . However, I never chose to pursue software development as a career for many personal reasons. One of them being, I tend to get so immersed. I was scared of one day forgetting to feed my children or pick them up from school because I was trying to debug something. I mean, I had seen myself in action before. I took debug issues so seriously to the point where I would wake up in the middle of the night to fix code because a solution would have come to me in my sleep. But, this is decades later. I thought I was ready. Was I though? I did some self introspection over the past few months around this and realised that I wasn’t ready but, this time, it had absolutely nothing to do with my initial fears. My motivation around taking the 100 Day Challenge wasn’t really purely to just learn the language. There was something else I was looking for. At the time when I decided to start this challenge, I was an emotional wreck. I had just lost my dad and life was generally showing me flames. I wanted something to go right. I was desperate for a win and, to be honest, I thought me taking up this challenge would give me that feeling of conquering and winning against adverse life situations. Remember I mentioned I was also sharing this journey publicly. I got to a point where my only motivation was when someone asked me, “What day are you on?” I would think, let me do another day’s challenge so that they can see how I am so enthusiastic with this – yet somewhere along the way, I had honestly lost all zeal for it and struggling to move forward. As much as I desired to learn coding in Python, at this particular point in my life, I stopped wanting to do it for myself and for my personal development. I wanted to do it for external validation, so that people would pat me on the back and say, Oh you are doing amazing! I was sick of feeling like I was losing in life and wanted to hear someone or some people tell me how well I was doing. Unfortunately, for me, that failed to sustain my learning journey and I soon fell off that wagon. Because I wanted to win so bad, I ended up feeling like it was now an impossible milestone to reach. I was too focused on the “prize” that I had made up in my head and not the learning experience itself. In the end, I felt defeated as I thought there was no way I was going to be able to master this skill and become a pro – not in a hundred days and not ever. I was pretty much done. It didn’t matter how much I loved the idea of coding. My life circumstances and mindset at the time completely clouded my approach to learning. That said, the 100 Days of Code Python Bootcamp is an incredible course and excellent value for money. I got mine for just $12, and I have lifetime access! The challenges were engaging, and the content was solid. My lack of progress had nothing to do with the course. It was all about how I approached it. Fast forward to today, and I’ve decided to give it another shot. This time, I’m taking a completely different approach. So, What’s Different Now? Will I Share My Journey This Time? Yes, but differently. I’ll post updates occasionally, particularly when I hit milestones like moving from Beginner to Intermediate to Advanced to Pro. I’ve learned not to let public validation dictate my pace or progress. This time, it’s all about investing in myself and celebrating genuine growth. Looking back, I realise how much I let self-inflicted pressures and personal struggles derail me. I’ve learned my lesson: never take on a challenge just for the bragging rights. It’s

First of all, I am not a “real” designer. Now, that’s out of the way. Let’s dive into the (tiring) never-ending debate in tech and design circles about whether or not designing in Canva should be considered “real” graphic design. Recently, I’ve seen a number of experienced designers give the platform some bad rap, often claiming that you can’t truly call yourself a serious designer if you’re using Canva. In case you’re wondering what Canva is, in short, it’s graphic design for dummies. OK, that might not sound kind (even though there is a book with the title now), but I hope you get the drift. Canva is a free-to-use online tool designed to help users create social media posts, presentations, posters, videos, logos, and more. With its user-friendly interface, pre-made templates, and drag-and-drop functionality, Canva has earned its spot as a go-to platform for many beginners and non-designers wanting to tackle some graphic design project. Think flyers for a cake sale, community event or banners for social media pages. Canva’s versatility, simplicity, and accessibility have allowed it to gain popularity, especially with the explosion of social media content creation over the past decade. With nearly 200 million users now and a $2 billion revenue realisation in 2023, Canva has not just proved to be useful, but also profitable as many more users (including me) are willing to pay to access their premium features. Personally, I discovered Canva in 2015 and haven’t looked back since. It’s one tool, apart from my domain and web hosting, I have (almost) religiously paid for since 2020. At the time when I started using it some 9 years ago, I even created a short video tutorial on my (old) YouTube channel. I said “Old” OK? So as you watch it, just remember that Canva has evolved so much since – and so have I. I love it for both us. And who knows, I might just make a return to YouTube. Anyway, prior to using Canva, I remember trying to learn Photoshop and it just wasn’t my ministry and calling. I also tried to use another free open source Photoshop alternative called Gimp and it used to give me constant headaches as I would end up spending more time figuring out the tool because it was so complicated and not necessarily designing anything. Why Has Canva Gained Such Popularity? I think my simple answer to this would be: It really is that easy to use! It has empowered many creatives from small business owners to social media managers to bloggers like me. Many people can now achieve professional-looking results without needing a course in design or needing to master any complex software. Canva has democratised design, allowing anyone with an internet connection to put together simple, polished visuals in minutes. From beautifully designed Instagram posts to compelling presentations, the platform offers an impressive range of templates, design elements and stock assets to choose from. People are even designing e-books using Canva and some are making good money from selling these digital products. If you see me selling an e-book here (yes, it’s coming), don’t even bother asking, I would have designed it in Canva. For the average user (I think I fall in this category), Canva is revolutionary. For me it has simplified the design process and given me the confidence to experiment with some of my creative ideas. And in an age where content creation and branding are essential for personal and business success, Canva fills a major need. It saves time, eliminates the learning curve associated with traditional graphic design tools, and, most importantly, when done right, it offers high-quality results. Earlier this year I wanted to see how some t-shirt design I had done would come out and guess where I went? It’s as if I can just imagine something now and Canva will do it. But here’s where the debate really heats up: Can a designer truly call themselves a “professional” if they’re using Canva? Or is the platform a shortcut to a more legitimate, well-rounded skill set? The Divide: Canva vs. Photoshop and The Others When we talk about traditional graphic design tools like Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign, the contrast couldn’t be clearer. These programs are designed for professional, high-level design work, and they come with steep learning curves that can take years to master. They’re equipped with a wide range of advanced features that allow designers to craft highly customised designs which include photo manipulation, vector illustrations, and fully custom typography. These tools are designed for people who know exactly what they’re doing, and the results reflect the expertise and time invested in creating them. I have so much respect for graphic designers out there who have mastered any of these tools especially because I have been there, I have tried learning them and the only thing I came out with was an incredibly dizzy head. So, where does that leave Canva? Canva, by its very nature, is a simplified version of design. By doing away with much of the complexity and giving users pre-built templates and easy-to-use features, it has eliminated the need for the detailed customisation that traditional design software requires. For example, you won’t find the same degree of control over colours, typography, or image manipulation in Canva that you can achieve in Photoshop. Canva is built for speed, convenience, and efficiency – not for crafting complex, bespoke visual masterpieces. So does that mean that designers who use Canva aren’t “real” designers? Absolutely not. The Case for Canva in the age of Modern Design While it’s true that Canva lacks the flexibility and depth of traditional tools, it’s important to recognise that the world of design has changed. With the rise of social media and digital content marketing, speed and convenience have become just as important as high-level technical skills. When I think about the time I used to spend just trying to figure out Photoshop or Gimp back when I was starting out

Last year my sister went to visit her (our) friend and sister in Germany. Our friend has lived in Germany for more than 20 years now and speaks fluent German. However, whilst my sister was there, she had to speak mostly English and Shona. My sister said that as they were about to leave, our friend said that she would need to exercise her German tongue again because she hadn’t used it much recently. I was baffled because I thought to myself, but isn’t it a skill that just sticks and kicks in when it needs to? I have another friend who spent about 2 years in a leadership program and working in Germany. She had to learn to speak German before even getting there. Almost ten years later, she admits that her German is no longer that good and it’s mainly due to the fact that she hardly speaks it any more. I also have a friend who is currently learning French while living in Zimbabwe. Her stories about her learning experience always leave me in stitches 😂 She’s shared how missing just one lesson or not reviewing her materials can set her back significantly. However, she’s found comfort in practicing her writing through her job and watching French TV content, which helps her stay engaged with the language. There are times that even I tire speaking English and as we say this side of the world, the English bundle would have depleted. Sometimes whilst speaking to non-Shona speaking colleagues, I just find myself “accidentally” throwing in Shona expressions like “Handiti?” (Translation: Isn’t it?) or “Hanzi” (Translation: He/She/They said) whilst trying to drive a point across. I am sure if you don’t understand Shona, you are just left wondering, “What was that?”, right? This made me reflect on the power of consistent practice. I thought about getting back into my Python learning and nearly had a mini-panic attack realising I barely remember what I learned at the beginning of last year. I hadn’t actually tried any exercises yet, so I was worried it might all seem new. But that’s not entirely true, is it? Usually, it is not that we have entirely forgotten a skill. I think that the skill will now exist in a part of our brain where, if some effort is applied in recaling it, it would come back to us. More like trying to ride a rusty see-saw that has been lying idle for years. It’s going to be rough or almost impossible at first. However, with a little bit of oiling of the moving parts, you’ll be back in full swing. Tech skills are not any different. We can actually learn and get to fully understand them, and then spend years without revisiting them. When the subject is brought before us again, it may seem like we have forgotten how to write an SQL script, for example. But once you start working on a project, it all slowly starts coming back to you. This was definitely the case for me as I revisited some concepts over the past 3 weeks in my postgrad programme which I first learnt some 14 to 18 years ago. Of course you may find yourself on sites like W3Schools and Stack Overflow every now and again, but you will realise that the core concepts are familiar and all you needed to do was to put them into practice. I certainly hope that will be the case for me when I do revisit Python again. In case you are wondering, why Python? What is Python? Do I have a snake? 😂 Python is a programming language that is used in web development, data science, AI and automation. Some of the popular services that use Python include Amazon, Facebook and Google. The founder of the Python programming Language, Guido van Rossum, actually worked for Google between 2005 and 2012 developing the language. which is used as one of the server-side languages chosen for its readability and ease of maintenance. So here’s my advice if you’re building a tech skill: Don’t stop practicing! Thanks to my friend and coach, Thembe, who introduced me, I am now such a James Clear fan and his best-seller book, Atomic Habits. It’s from him I learnt that, according to a UCL study, it takes on average anywhere between 18 and 254 days for a person to form a new habit. That’s why I think that the 100-Day Python Challenge I never finished was sufficient to at least lead me to that point where I would actually be able to form a habit. And you don’t need to dedicate that much time in a day. Some challenges in my 100-Day challenge took under an hour. However others actually took me a couple of days to figure out. But who is giving who pressure? Nobody right? So establish your pace and find a learning rhythm that works for you. Before you know it, you would have gained a skill that you can add to your resume or apply as part of a new project, freelancing or volunteering opportunity. Here’s A Learning Challenge! Remember, no experience is wasted. If you have some free time, try learning a new skill over the next 30 days – whether it’s Excel, Canva, Project Management, or anything else. When you’re done, let me know because we’re definitely going to celebrate! 😉