Perhaps you’ve switched industries and taken on a brand new career path. Whether you’re approaching your first day, or you’ve been in the job a while, you may be feeling anxious, overwhelmed, or out of your depth.
Don’t worry! It’s perfectly understandable to feel nervous about a new challenge. Every expert developer you meet at work, at a conference or online, was one day just like you; an enthusiastic junior starting at the bottom of the ladder. Everybody has to start somewhere. Below are 6 ways you can nail your first iOS developer role, improve your skills, and set yourself up for future progression and success.
- 1. Get to know your codebase
It’s vital that you get to know the codebase you are currently working on, and get up to speed as soon as possible. If you’re working on isolated modules, take a look around and see what else is going on in the project. Pay attention to how other developers have solved specific problems. Are there any new techniques you’ve not seen before? Why have certain things been done a certain why? Can you see an even better way of doing things? It’s good to ask questions, and if you’re working in a team, your peers should be happy to help you get to know the project in detail.
- 2. Familiarise yourself with Apple’s documentation
When you’re not sure how a language or SDK feature should be used, or how a particular piece of logic should / could be built, don’t just reach for Google and Stack Overflow. Whilst it’s useful to see how others have solved problems, using Apple’s documentation will help you gain a better understanding of the various system frameworks and the Swift standard library. Here’s a list of useful links. It could be a good idea to bookmark these for future reference.
The Swift Programming Language
https://docs.swift.org/swift-book/LanguageGuide/TheBasics.html
Apple Developer Documentation
https://developer.apple.com/documentation/
You could also use Dash for quick access to documentation, and don’t forget you can hover over syntax in Xcode and launch the documentation using option + click
- 3. Broaden your horizons
If you’re working on a single project in your day job, you will likely be working on a limited area of the iOS (or other OS) SDK. These frameworks are now huge, and getting bigger and bigger with each passing year. Try to find areas of Swift or the various OS frameworks that interest you and see what new things you can learn. This will broaden your horizons and increase your skill level. Plus, when you begin to work on something new, you may have some good background knowledge before your start.
Tutorials, blogs and books are also great resources for developing your knowledge, and there are tons of them out there. Something to consider when following along with somebody else’s code though; the best way to learn is to actually write the code yourself, so don’t just copy and paste from sample projects! Actually writing the code yourself will help you to really learn the skills and information that’s being presented to you. Finally, the WWDC videos are a great resource, not just for newly released or soon to be released features, but you can search through the archive of videos for information on a huge range of topics. Below are links to some helpful resources to get you started.
https://developer.apple.com/videos/
https://www.swiftbysundell.com
- 4. Build something real
Once you’ve gained some confidence from tutorials, books and blogs, the next progression is to build something real! Following examples provided by others is a great way to learn, but nothing beats solving real problems, particularly if you’ve not come across the solutions before. Figuring things out this way for yourself is hugely rewarding, and you can build something you’re really interested in or enthused by, outside of the constraints of work. This will also look great on your CV, particularly if you can create something useful and release it on the App Store. If you’re struggling to think of ideas for a real app, why not just download some free(ish) UI templates, and see if you can create a mock working version of the design. Checkout https://ui8.net/category/ui-kits for some inspiration.
5. Ask for help and feedback
There’s nothing wrong with admitting you don’t know how to do something. If you have more senior team members you can ask for advice on a problem then great, they should be happy to help. There are also plenty of resources online if you get completely stuck and don’t have other developers you can ask. One thing to note, it’s always good to try a solution yourself first. People will be much more likely to help you, if they can see you’ve at least had a go. Embrace code reviews and ask others for feedback. Don’t be arrogant or feel as though you need to defend your work. The more open you are, the better advice you’ll get. Also don’t take your work personally, it’s just code!
6. Be patient
It’s not possible to learn complex things overnight. Be persistent and keep at it. The more problems you solve, the quicker you’ll learn. Learning takes time, and it’s a skill you’ll need to continually put into practice for the rest of your career.
