This is a submission for the 2026 WeCoded Challenge: Echoes of Experience
My tech journey didn't start with a grand master plan. As a student at NIT Delhi, my initial foray into the software world began exactly how you'd expect: piecing together basic projects, struggling with seemingly endless bugs, and celebrating when a simple script finally ran without throwing an error.
But the real turning point happened when I stepped into the hackathon arena.
I threw myself into building under pressure, but it wasn't an overnight success story. I participated in more than six hackathons, ensuring I had a valid, working submission every single time. My trajectory was a slow, deliberate climb. I went from just being happy to submit, to cracking the Top 50. I kept refining my craft—diving deeper into AI and building complex projects eventually pushed me into the Top 10.
That hackathon grit paved the way for my professional career. My first real break was at Cabeasy, where I learned how to translate theoretical knowledge into practical, fast-paced execution. That invaluable experience acted as a launchpad, opening the door to an incredible opportunity at Microsoft. There, I was exposed to engineering at a massive scale and learned what it takes to build robust, impactful tech.
Beyond the code and the companies, one of the most fulfilling parts of this journey has been growing alongside a developer community of over 5,000 members. Helping others navigate their own paths, debug their code, and land their first roles reminds me of exactly where I started.
To anyone feeling stuck on a basic project or trying to break out of the bottom tier of a hackathon: keep building. Your echoes of experience will eventually become the blueprint for your success.
It’s been a wild ride, and there are many more to go!
Top comments (0)