In our team meetings, we’ve been having a lot of discussions about fundraising and social media campaigns—meaningful conversations about how best to reach people and have them support the work Outreachy is doing.
One idea was to have the organizers talk about themselves and what motivates the work they do. Now, I have a complicated relationship with social media, which I won’t get into here, but I do recognize the “Power of Story” and how many new audiences you can reach with a single social media post. So, I’d like to use this month’s report to talk about my journey to Outreachy.
When Covid hit, it felt like the world stopped, and everything that gave me a sense of structure was no longer there. I realized I would be graduating from school with no skills to show for it. It was a scary realization, and it took me a while to snap into action. Eventually, I decided I would have to start learning from scratch and on my own.
I found two open-source educational platforms—Freecodecamp and The Odin Project. This was my first contact with open source, and, to be honest, I didn’t think much about the OS part of it. I was just grateful that the curriculum was free and that there was a community of people who were on the same journey as I was.
I didn’t grow up around people in the tech industry, so finding these communities felt like I was finally doing something right. I made my first OS contributions to The Odin Project, engaged with community members, and it felt great to be a part of something.
Sometime in late 2020, I came across a “year in review” post from someone on X. This person talked about how they had applied to Outreachy and hadn’t been selected as an intern. Funny enough, I used to avoid reading people’s year-in-review posts because I always felt inadequate compared to them. But this time, I was intrigued, so I went to the Outreachy website to learn more about the program.
The first thing that made me determined to get into Outreachy was that zero experience was required, and there were no interviews. I was already in a low place, feeling like I wasn’t good enough and would never get a chance in the tech industry. Now, here was a program offering me the chance to just showcase my skills and let them speak for me.
I immediately got to work. I learned what open source was and realized I’d already made contributions without even knowing it. I looked at the past projects from previous Outreachy rounds and was amazed that I might get a chance to work on big projects like these. It felt like walking through a door that opened a completely new world to me. I told myself I would give my best to be part of the program.
The contribution stage was tough. I was surrounded by brilliant contributors who seemed so much more experienced than me, and I was sure there was no way I’d be accepted. So, when I finally got accepted, I was convinced they’d made a mistake. There’s no way they picked me over that person, right? And so, my journey began as an Outreachy intern.
I’d like to tell you that the moment I was selected as an intern, my imposter syndrome was miraculously cured. The sad truth is that it takes time to overcome years of self-doubt and self-sabotage. I continued to doubt myself and the work I did. My mentors at Public Lab were so kind and supportive. They acknowledged my contributions and regularly posted on social media about the project I was working on, which made me feel so appreciated.
Having people like this around me, who recognized my contributions, made a huge difference in how I started to see myself. Instead of only focusing on my weaknesses, I began to acknowledge my strengths. I went from someone who thought she had no place in the OS world to someone who felt capable of doing amazing things. I could finally see a range of possibilities.
As an Outreachy mentor, I had the privilege of helping to create a welcoming community just as my mentors had done for me. My first round mentoring Outreachy applicants and interns made me feel like I could be part of the change I was looking for in the OS world. Knowing that a simple “you’re doing so well” or “great work” was enough to give someone that extra nudge made me even more motivated to do more.
As an Organizer, my contributions to the program are on a larger scale, but my motivations remain the same—to create more opportunities for people from marginalized communities to contribute to open source.
Outreachy laid the groundwork for the confident person I am today. Professionally and personally, it made me a better person—a better contributor, a better collaborator, and kinder to myself. I feel very strongly about this program, and I want it to continue so that more people like me can experience it.
Stories have played an important role in every major milestone in my life, and I hope that as more people share their Outreachy stories, people will understand its monumental impact and join us in keeping the program running.
Tilda's Thoughts 