I'm a part of a community where guided breathing is a thing. Basically, someone breathes in a certain way and you repeat, reaping the meditative benefits.
So if there's a guided approach to something simple as breathing, why do you think that you could get out coding without a guiding hand?
It's clear that no one makes it in the programming world without a guide. Most people have someone to guide them at some step on the way.
I would have given up on programming a year in if there weren't people giving me a hand during my lowest points.
But also during the highs, you want to ensure that you are on the right path.
In any case, you want to make sure that you take a holistic approach.
Behind a guidance request like:
"I want to learn Ruby"
Most of the time is something deeper. Something you want to achieve. A change you want to perform.
You might get there by binging Udemy tutorials. You also might find a more effective and fun way to do this which I'm always looking for in my own and my mentee's projects.
I can't guide everyone in huge detail, but I often can advise on how to ignite the change because I might have been in similar situations before.
And for some projects, I can go into the nitty-gritty details with you because I've done the exact same thing that you are trying to achieve.
FAQs
How much can you support me? 🪖
Most of the mentoring will occur at the coaching sessions. I won't be able to take homework with me for now. The sessions can be very hands-on in different formats, like:
- pair programming (XP or "over-the-shoulder")
- me coding, explaining, and showing tricks
- you showing some work, describing and asking
- or all of it together
But they can also be more discussional and directional. For example, you could present your roadmap, clear up questions, and get directives for the coming weeks.
In short, you prepare and shape the sessions to make the most of them, and I help improve them.
When can you support me? 📆
Currently, coaching sessions day will be Saturday or sometimes Sunday (if I can't make it on a Saturday)
If you can't make a session for the week, you can request to make up for it with a longer session the week after or on one of the other days (e.g., we could plug in a session on a Sunday if you can't make Saturdays for a longer time).
You will have a calendly link to book the sessions conveniently, but please ask anytime if something is not adding up.
Can I take a break? ☕️
You can pause at any time for as long as you want. I would even ask you to pause the mentorship whenever you see that you can't make progress and get together for the sessions. Of course, it could also happen that I need to take a break, in which case you won't lose on coaching hours.
What about questions in between? 💌
I still aim to respond within 24-48 hours, but I will only be able to handle requests that require me to read/think for, at most, 5-10 minutes on my phone. That said, I'm not against quick chats and calls in between. However, as mentioned before, from my experience, most support occurs during the actual coaching sessions.
What does it cost? 🤑
I have free office hours (for example, below or on other topics scattered all over the blog 🙈), so given availability, you could drive for free as long as you like.
You might also find me active in different communities (https://richstone.io/meet-rich)
I've done a lot of free coaching in the past and the present. I enjoy the process, the conversations, and the tech geeks I meet.
However, I also offer paid coaching to make this sustainable and support people with extended goals and challenges. These can be monthly subscriptions or one-off sessions focused on a specific topic.
To get a sense of the different subscription and one-off prices, check my profile here:
https://mentorcruise.com/mentor/RichardSteinmetz/
All of it is shapeable and discussable, though. So shoot me a message with your thoughts and ideas.
What do others say? 🤗
I only have heard good stuff so far. I've helped novices to get into tech, developers to level up, and entrepreneurs kickstart their SaaS projects.
You can check some track record of the reviews here:
https://mentorcruise.com/mentor/RichardSteinmetz/
https://www.codementor.io/@richardsteinmetz
Office Hours
Here are some office hours for novices and developers who want to learn more about coaching and mentoring or get help with a pressing question: