Touching GRASS: My Experience at the Stripe Developer Meetup
TL;DR
A student overcomes social anxiety to attend a Stripe developer meetup, finding the tech community welcoming and gaining valuable insights from talks and networking with professionals.
Key Takeaways
- •Attending tech meetups can demystify the industry, showing that professionals are approachable and events are less intimidating than expected.
- •Real-world talks, like those on Stripe Connect and adaptive pricing, provide practical insights beyond academic theory, highlighting system complexities.
- •Networking at events can lead to meaningful connections, such as meeting DevOps engineers who offer career advice and LinkedIn contacts.
- •Facing fears and engaging with others, including fellow students, boosts confidence and provides resources like free technical books and strategies for follow-up.
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The "Alien" Leaves the Ship
If you read my last post, you know my struggle. I’ve spent a lot of time feeling like an alien coding in my room, thinking the tech industry was some scary, exclusive club where everyone is a genius and no one is shy.
But I made a promise to stop hiding. So, yesterday, I forced myself to go to the Stripe London Developer Meetup.
I stood outside their office in Bishopsgate for a solid minute, debating if I should just turn around and go home. Am I experienced enough to be here? What if someone asks me a question I can't answer?
I took a breath, walked in, and... wow.
Inside the Beast (Stripe's London office)
First off, the office is cool. Like, "I definitely want to work in tech" cool.
But the vibe wasn't intimidating. It was buzzing. There was that distinctive hum of people excited about what they build. And yes, there were refreshments (free food, wine, beer and soft drinks definitely help cure social anxiety).
I realized something quickly: The "scary professionals" were just people eating pizza.
Theory vs. Reality (The Talks)
As a student I’m used to theory part of things. But seeing how it works in the real world is a different experience. We had two speakers, Marina Kim and Andrew Robinson (Wish I had their accounts to tag them on here, but I couldn't speak to them after the talk).
Marina Kim broke down how to build a multi-seller SaaS using Stripe Connect. It wasn’t just "here is code", it was the actual stories and lessons learned from a technical lead.
Then Andrew Robinson (a Solutions Architect at Stripe) spoke about "The $/£/€100 Problem" and Adaptive Pricing. This was my "brain-blast" moment. I realized that behind a simple "Buy Now" button, there is a massive, complex engine handling global currencies. It made me appreciate the complexity of the systems I hope to help manage one day.
Hitting the DevOps Jackpot (Highlight of my night)
After the talks came the part I dreaded: Mingling.
I saw people chatting in circles. My instinct was to check my phone and look busy. Instead, I first spoke to the people who were seated on my right and left, which was easier since they were in such close proximity. I later on walked around to see people who were just by themselves, I introduced myself and spoke to them and met some really cool people, added them on my LinkedIn!
And I got lucky. I didn't just meet random people, I ended up chatting with two professionals actively working in DevOps and one used to work in that field-my dream career.
This wasn't a formal interview. It was just a chat. I asked them: "If you were me, what would you focus on?"
The advice I got in those 10 minutes was worth more than an entire semester of Googling for a 'roadmap'. They didn't treat me like a clueless student, they treated me like a future colleague. And gave me so much advise and even gave me their LinkedIn to reach out if I have any questions!
The Plot Twist
I also bumped into other students from my own university!
It turns out, I wasn't the only "alien" who decided to beam down for the night. We were all there, feeling the same nerves, trying to figure out this industry together.
The Takeaway
If you are reading this and thinking, "I'm not ready for meetups," you are wrong.
You don't go to meetups because you know everything. You go to meetups to meet the people who do.
I walked in terrified. I walked out with:
Free resources (they let us take one of their technical books for free!).
Connects on LinkedIn (and a strategy to follow up).
Real advice from DevOps engineers.
A huge confidence boost.
The real world isn't as scary as the code errors on my screen. I’m already looking for the next event.