Following a stint in the marketing industry, Will Elliott found that his passion for symbolic logic could pair well with his interest in programming. He enrolled in DigitalCrafts full-time 16-week immersive coding bootcamp and, with graduation approaching next month, has used his final project to deepen a focus on cryptocurrency. His project, Block10, pulls real-time data for over 800 cryptocurrencies and shares it back to the investor.
This junior developer has one more non-traditional skill on his roster — he’s quite the wordsmith, thanks to his background in marketing and public relations.
“One problem I uniquely and characteristically provide solutions to is my ability to communicate,” says Elliott. “This may not appear entirely technical at first glance, but given my background in professional public relations communication, marketing, and two writing degrees — I offer a distinctive quality the archetypal programmer may not come equipped with.”
Thinking of scooping up this tech talent? Here’s more on his impressive skills.
What is your previous education?
I attended the University of Georgia where I pursued dual degrees in Public Relations and Philosophy. At the time, I studied philosophy purely out of academic interest. Little did I know the predicate calculus I enjoyed playing with symbolic logic would come to complement teaching myself how to program.
Why the interest in the technology field?
It wasn’t until December 13th, 2015, exhausted from a day’s travel in my role as a marketing director that I sat on a hotel bed and had an epiphany. The problem was that talk is cheap and words lack a certain functionality. It was at that moment that I knew I wanted to become a developer. I had always been interested in and savvy with technology but I realized I could bring ideas to life by learning how to code. I could create value for others by means of development and fulfill all the intellectual challenges anyone could hope for by choosing a career path that requires life-long learning.
What tech projects have you worked on?
The most exciting project I’ve worked on to date is Block10, a cryptocurrency market average stock market application. In a time of surging financial technology and seemingly unlimited potential for blockchain technology, I wanted to create something that would showcase my fascination with it and share a glimpse into the world of cryptocurrency. Block10 pulls real-time data for over 800 cryptocurrencies and reports back everything an investor might want to know.
Refining this data to be relevant to the user, Block10 renders the top 10 cryptocurrencies on a live-ticker stock board and graphs each coin’s individual and comparative history and performance. If you’re looking for a coin outside of the top 10, a search bar enables you to pull up an individual profile for any cryptocurrency. Logging in allows the user to create an account and save their favorite coins. As both a micro investor and proponent of future technology, I cannot wait to discover how these industries will continue to grow together and where they’ll take us.
What tech tools are essential to you as a developer?
As I’ve learned from senior software engineers and been affectionately reminded by mentors, developers nowadays have it good. We get so many tools with incredible technology baked right in! Terminal commands are essential and drastically simplified with package managers. Chrome DevTools and the React Developer Tools extension make debugging a breeze.
Simple as it may seem, I would be remise if I didn’t give a shoutout to Visual Studio Code as well. It’s inspiring to see what Microsoft’s open source initiative has created and become a part of the technologies that I take for granted everyday.
How do you stay on top of emerging trends?
I’m an avid reader and blogger. Following topics and trends on Medium is part of my daily digest. As I grow in my own development experiences, I try and share a bit about what I’ve been learning recently to not only cement concepts for myself but also introduce topics to those who may be at a comparable experience level. Additionally, the experience of reading articles and code written by seasoned developers and technology leaders is part scientific journal and part art. It’s that exposure that changes your perception of what good code looks like.
What are your best technical or creative skills?
I’m a problem solver. Given the appropriate time and dedication, even mountains turn to molehills. If one method doesn’t work, I try another. The greater the challenge, the greater the reward. Few sensations rival the sense of accomplishment and fulfillment to finding a solution to a problem I’ve been working on.
What’s next on your list to learn?
As I become more adept with React, I look forward to exploring React Native and Next.js. The possibility of taking the power of React across platforms to develop native applications seems like the omni-tool of modern development.
Are you interested in working for a startup, mid-sized company, or a corporate giant?
I’m very interested in finding work within an agile environment. Bringing minds together across disciplines to work adaptively and effectively speak more closely to my values than the size of a company.
Interested in looking at Will’s credentials? Here you go! Website, GitHub, and LinkedIn.
