Chapter 1 – Angst “A feeling of dread, anxiety or anguish” Thursday – December 16, 2021 - 6:59 pm WAT - Hang becomes the harbinger of good tidings and renewed holiday cheer. Nestled between emojis of what I had previously thought to be raw slabs of fish, Hang’s email title read “Welcome to the Hackership, Asher Umerie”. Shortly before I received this, I had been in a car with two friends, on our way back from a faculty dinner party, a deliberate effort to unwind on our part. It’s the end of a school year, the last end of my last school year, and exams had been intense, but an education in water resource and environmental engineering helps you find a happy place in the middle of stressful tasks. What university doesn’t necessarily prepare you for – at least the iteration of it I was privy to, in an institution with its many limitations – is how to properly communicate value and obtain scalable structure. I’m Asher Umerie a content writer, self-proclaimed film buff and as of the 3rd of January 2022, an Editorial Intern with Hacker noon. Following an intense period of freelancing and charging through mountains of course content for school, I realized that I had existed in a vacuum adjacent to the work ecosystem that I would soon need to traverse. So when I read the description of what the Hackership was set to look like I jumped at it with not-so-reckless abandon. As I imagine everyone invested in an application process does, I researched the company as diligently as I knew how, and my findings excited me, but they also filled me with some worry, and stress over how I would fit into the structure that kept such an impressive boat running, Chapter 2 – Calm “Without rough emotion; still or nearly still” Tuesday – Jan 4, 2022 – 5:45 pm WAT – Limarc says all the words I need to hear. In the days leading up to my first 1-on-1 meeting with Limarc – my mentor for the extent of the hackership program – I had begun to feed off eager energy and a shared curiosity, from interns and mentors alike. This is the first program of its kind, essentially offering every player involved an opportunity to exchange value. It becomes apparent before long; and in an introductory slack thread, that everyone is aware of this and roaring to get started. It, ergo, came as no surprise for me to realize that my Kaleidoscope of shifting emotions had been replaced by a near invariant fog of palpable joy. I am lovingly caressed by the culture, seamless diversity, and overall approach to communication at Hackernoon. I’m faced with tasks that are compassionately paced and grouped with a mixed-match team of pretty cool people. “… Limarc says as our 1-on-1 draws to a close. If this is what you want, I’m confident we can draw a roadmap that will be helpful to your education,” I feel relief – I came onboard the Hackership to streamline career advancement efforts and with every interaction, my confidence in this decision is reinforced. With 6 months to go, I’m curious, excited, and eager to see how I grow through this process. I’ll be sure to provide semi-regular updates as I progress. To Infinity and beyond!
