Conquer your impostor syndrome
with JavaScript
Armagan Amcalar
JSConf.be, Brugge
May 30, 2018
Impostor syndrome can be defined as a collection of feelings of inadequacy that persist even in face of information that indicates that the opposite is true. It is experienced internally as chronic self-doubt, and feelings of intellectual fraudulence.”
— Caltech Counseling Center
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When you make authentic and unpopular choices, it doesn't matter if they are right.
People just favor popular choices.
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You tend to ignore
the potential of your choices.
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You try to prove yourself to others.
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Your environment is not always supportive, and it may not be your prime time yet.
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Lack of appreciation doesn't always mean you are not good.
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You feel like you are swimming against the current.
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Welcome to
impostor syndrome.
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Who am I?
Armagan Amcalar
Head of Software Engineering @ unu GmbH
Founder @ Lonca Works
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AUTHORED ON GITHUB
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It all started with
Berlin Hack & Tell
JavaScript is the most powerful thing on Earth.
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First demo
guitar apps with pedalboard.js
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There's a trophy involved!
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that was a one-time luck.
It means nothing.
— your (not so) friendly inner impostor
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Second run
Control your devices with MIDI
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Second demo
CSS image filter editor
with a MIDI controller
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You are a fraud. You are doing toy projects. No one needs these. That’s why no one does these. That’s why people found them interesting and cute, and that’s why you won.
— your enemy, the impostor in you
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Third run
What is the ultimate hack?
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It's open source
Available on GitHub: https://github.com/dashersw/wits
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BRAIN-MONITOR
Available on GitHub: https://github.com/dashersw/brain-monitor
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Open-source P300 speller
that still needs some help!
brain-bits
Available on GitHub: https://github.com/dashersw/brain-bits
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Could I still work in brain signal processing, after all these years?
Face the impostor.
Third demo
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Finally, the impostor is gone.
or is it?
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Discrimination is real.
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Worry no more.
You are indeed capable of doing literally everything you can imagine.
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It's all possible with JavaScript.
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You don’t deserve to feel bad for your choices. In the end, it doesn’t really matter what you chose.
What matters is what you did with that choice and what you achieved.
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thank you!
Let's keep in touch!
Armagan Amcalar
