The Gray Coder
I will be retiring: in December 2021 I will leave my current position and start the next phase of my life.
I have spent the last 30 years selling capital equipment. This required the ability to understand complex systems. I was satisfied in this role as it kept me challenged and my mind active. But after 30 years not much new was introduced or was accepted. This industry is extremely conservative. Which is understandable considering the criticality of the equipment and the volatility of the process. But damn it was boring at the end. I kept encountering similar problems which only lent themselves to the same solutions. Oh, to be green and wide eyed with much to learn.
Which brings me to what I have involved myself in over the last couple of months leading up to my retirement. I have joined Coursera. I have started learning to code.
Coursera describes themselves as “Coursera partners with more than 200 leading universities and companies to bring flexible, affordable, job-relevant online learning to individuals and organizations worldwide…”. They offer several subjects to pursue on their web site, but I am most intrigued in learning how to code.
In my career I had the opportunity and the responsibilities of working with data. The data I worked with were product sizing, pricing, sales tracking, and relationship management. All of which required management of a data. I utilized several tools to do this such as excel, SQL, proprietary systems, CRM’s and several programs that are now nonexistent.
I am currently enrolled in Python for Everybody Specialization. I have completed two of the five courses. I will complete Using Python to Access Web Data within the following couple of days.
My plan is to take coding classes over the next year. I want to see if this mature mind can stay keen.
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This blog will provide an outlet for me to recount my experiences as I learn to code.
I hope you come along on the journey.
Thank you.
TheGrayCoder
“You, who are on the road
Must have a code that you can live by
And so, become yourself
Because the past is just a goodbye…”
Graham Nash
