Blockchain In a Small Green Tech Start-Up

Maria lives in Helsinki and is working as a Blockchain developer. "I’m in this green tech company that just registered, so we're waiting for the papers to come in, and then officialise." Working in a new tech start up is exciting she thinks, they're a small team and it's a hands-on environment. "I'm coding their website and then we have a couple of blockchain projects coming up. Things that I love to do."

As a person, she would describe herself as a goal-ridden person. "I like to set some goals and then go for them. I like to work with people, I'm a team player and enjoy learning from people around me." Being positive is very important to Maria, as well as seeing possibilities in everything – a good challenge is fun!

Life before coding

Maria is an entrepreneur and has worked within service-related businesses. She wanted to go for coding as she thinks it's very important to turn companies into something that can adapt to tech.

“I was working as a finance manager, taking care of bookings, orders and services for customers. At the same time I started to learn coding through the Boot Camp and my first project was to build a new booking site for the company that I worked for."

Juggle working and studying remote

The Boot Camp is intense, compressed in six months, which Maria thinks is an amazing thing. For her, it's all about time management, committing and waking up early. "You have to have some sort of a goal that you want to aim for so that you can keep your motivation high. I always wanted to get into blockchain development. So definitely, that was one."

Before joining the Technigo Boot Camp, Maria studied IT at the university fully remote. "This was during the pandemic time where everything was closed. It was just you and the material." She believes that remote studies are worth trying and a big trend right now. "You can take your laptop and learn coding from anywhere – this was something that I really loved about the Boot Camp." Combining remote work and studies was key to Maria, as she got to spend more time with her family instead of commuting.

“My ultimate goal in the future is to build my own tech company. But first, I have to learn how to build it."

Working with blockchain at a Finnish green tech company

The start-up environment can look very different, for Maria it's all about meetings and planning ahead with her team. The days consist of 50-50 coding and 50-50 planning. "Right now we have a lot of meetings and discuss the new website that I am coding for them. We are also planning the blockchain platform and the token that they want to build on top of it. It’s like a currency basically." The job also includes working on layouts and the site structure.

Maria believes anyone could learn coding and says, "you spend time in Google most of the days anyway and it's just like any other work. You can learn how to code if you give it time and commitment. It's not rocket science."

Take the leap and learn web development

"Just take the leap. If you feel like your current job isn't something you want to do, or you feel like trying something new, this Boot Camp is really worth it. It made me grow as a person, and then at the same time, it gave me endless possibilities within tech because it's so broad – you can go from frontend to backend to cybersecurity and, even to blockchain. There are so many possibilities."

When it comes to finding a job after the Boot Camp, Maria highlights the importance of networking and says that's how she got her job. She recommends anyone to constantly build their network, relationships and get to know new people. "I've built my network over the years. You'll get surprised when people grow around you and their career change, not only yours, is also something you can utilise."

Thanks, Maria!