It has been a couple of weeks since we hosted a group of incredible and happy people as you can see above. The Goal? Provide you with all the necessary information for you to take control of your career from the start. We believe we did our part, but are you taking that control with the advice we gave? Let’s recap that advice once again and highlight the tips you need to use now.
Day 1:
“I was always very good at knowing what I didn’t want to do, I wasn’t so good at figuring out what I wanted to do.” — Ana Almeida, Senior Front-End Engineer @ Buffer
The lack of a clear plan should not stop you from going after new things to learn. In the panel that IGNITE(d) the event (pun intended), Ana Almeida, José Teixeira & Pedro Torres, were pretty clear that you don’t need to know everything. You won’t need to have a lot of experience, and you should never be afraid to ask questions. What companies are looking for in a junior candidate is their ambition, communication skills and other soft skills that can make you a good fit for their company. You can always learn the hard skills since you can always teach someone how to code, but it’s harder to teach someone how to have an enthusiastic spirit. Check the video here:
“Can I ask about the salary on the first interview? — This is the tricky one, right?” — João Aires, Engineering Lead @ Landing.Jobs
Yes, you can and you should. It’s a matter of knowing how and when to ask it. It is actually usual in some companies for them to ask you about your salary expectations and you shouldn’t be afraid of negotiating your salary. This was one of the many so-called difficult questions that Rita Gouveia and João Aires took the liberty of asking and answering right away. When going through interview processes, you may feel that you’re there only to answer questions, but that’s not true. You should use the interviews to also ask the questions that matter to you and get to hear the recruiters share their experience of working in the company you’re applying for. It’s a two-way conversation, make the most of it! You can see all the difficult questions here:
“There is no magic formula for getting a job. The most important thing is your story.” — Inês Quaresma, Talent Acquisition Specialist @ Blip
Getting a job may not come easy for everyone. Some of us have different things that we look for in a possible job, so sitting and waiting for it to fall in your lap won’t help. Following a specific set of tasks may be useful but you always have to show yourself to the companies. That’s where your own personal story can help. Each one of us has a specific background and set of experiences that make our skillset unique. That’s what you need to show to companies! Inês suggests you do it while being humble, being committed and being curious, not only showing what you know but also what you want to learn. You can check this session once again here:
Day 2:
“Don’t undervalue yourself, even if it is your first job. You were hired for a reason.” — Carlos Rodrigues, AI & Analytics Lead Engineer @ Siemens
On the second day, we started by discussing the differences between finding your first job in a startup versus finding it in a corporate company. Clearly, there are differences between them and you probably can easily enumerate a couple of them. But what our panellists wanted to share was not only that. No matter if you go for one or for the other it’s up to you to make the most of it. If someone hires you, it’s because they are confident of your value, so you should honour that confidence and never undervalue yourself. You are joining the company with your own merit and you’ll need to learn a lot. So use the opportunity that a company provides to really make the most of your time there. Re-watch the whole panel here:
“Own your present, and don’t fear your future self” — Pedro Castro, Business Lead for Portugal @ Landing.Jobs
Pedro Castro had the mission of closing the event. He shared a lot of insights on the current PT Tech Market, specifically for junior candidates and recent graduates, like what are the most used languages in Portugal right now, the ones who pay the most, and the ones that have been growing. But you cannot expect that to be the last message of an event, can you? No, an event should always be an inspiration for the people attending, and of course, IGNITE couldn’t be different. Choosing your first Tech Job is a big decision and can influence your future a lot. But remember that, you won’t ever have all the information you need, and when deciding things on the present you won’t ever find the perfect solution. Your choices will always have trade-offs, and that’s how you should aim to evaluate your choices! Check our great closing session here:
What about now? Are you feeling ready to really take control of your career from the start? Then check these tips to knock your virtual interview out of the park. We also already received messages from a couple of you saying you are, as these two testimonials can show you:
“Best way to understand the onsite market before diving into opportunities and negotiating the package.” — Anonymous
“IGNITE dotted the i’s and crossed the t’s of the big questions of future tech workers.” — João Martins
It’s time to move and IGNITE your career. Check our currently available junior roles here and we will help you take control of your career from the start!
Pedro Saraiva
Event Producer @ Landing.Jobs
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