Introduction and Personal Journey (0m00s)

Jo Franchetti, a developer advocate for Samsung Internet, introduces herself and shares her passion for mentoring, which she's been doing for three years. She reflects on how mentoring has taught her valuable lessons whilst helping junior developers.

"I'd like to share with you some of the amazing things that I've learned by teaching."

"My own career as a web developer started when I realised that I had just got a degree in a subject that I absolutely hated, and needed to retrain in something else."

The Loneliness of Learning Alone (1m31s)

Jo describes her own difficult journey learning web development through copying code and getting stuck without anyone to ask questions. She emphasises how asking questions can be scary when you're unsure and feel like everyone else already knows the answers.

"I didn't have anyone to ask. And even if I had known where to look or who to ask, I didn't really know what it was that I was asking."

"I wanted to be the person that I wished that I'd had. I didn't want anyone else entering the industry to go through the loneliness and uncertainty that I went through."

Mentoring is for Everyone (3m09s)

Jo passionately argues that mentoring isn't just for senior developers - everyone can mentor, including juniors. She explains how mentoring transformed her own confidence and skills whilst helping others.

"The internet is for everybody. It's not just for the seniors, it's not just for the middleweights, anybody can mentor."

"Even junior developers, you can mentor too. You can all mentor."

"I wouldn't have my current job, I certainly wouldn't be up here talking to you, if I had not first been a mentor."

Overcoming Imposter Syndrome (4m44s)

Jo addresses imposter syndrome and the fear of not knowing everything. She emphasises that nobody expects you to know everything and that admitting gaps in knowledge is powerful.

"Nobody expects you to know everything. In fact, it's the belief that it's possible to know everything that's causing so many of us to suffer from imposter syndrome in the first place."

"Admitting that you don't know something is one of the most powerful things that you can do as a mentor."

"You teach what you do know, and you and your mentee can work together through that which you don't."

Teaching Solidifies Your Own Knowledge (5m57s)

Jo explains how teaching others helps reinforce your own learning and fills gaps in your knowledge. She notes that explaining concepts to different students with various questions makes your knowledge encyclopaedic.

"Teaching a subject helps you get a better grip on that subject yourself."

"By the time you've explained a particular topic to a handful of different students, each with their own set of problems and plans and questions, your knowledge is gonna be so encyclopaedic, that when you next have problem yourself, the answer is gonna be at your fingertips."

The Importance of Communication Skills (7m37s)

Jo discusses how mentoring improves communication skills, which are essential for working with clients, managers, and colleagues. She quotes Claire Sudbury about the importance of being able to communicate knowledge effectively.

"Deep held knowledge is worth nothing if it can't be communicated."

"Practise communicating a complicated topic to a junior or lay person is gonna improve your skills of communication in general."

Avoiding Assumed Knowledge Syndrome (8m31s)

Jo warns against using alienating language like "obviously" or calling things "easy", which can make junior developers feel inadequate. She advocates for assuming zero knowledge but infinite intelligence.

"When we say that something is easy, we're taking away the achievement value of actually learning it."

"I want you to stop being the person who says, 'Oh, my God, I can't believe you don't know that thing.' And start being the person who says, 'Oh my God, this is so great, you're gonna love this thing, let me show you!'"

Developing Empathy and Patience (11m20s)

Jo explains how mentoring develops empathy and patience, making you more pleasant to work with. She shares how understanding different learning styles and being patient with learners has improved her life generally.

"Having empathy and understanding is such an important part of teaching, and an important part of being a good developer a good colleague."

"Remember that there's no such thing as a stupid question."

"I've learned that I have an infinite amount of tolerance for someone who is trying to learn."

Learning from Cognitive Diversity (16m39s)

Jo shares a powerful example of learning from a student creating a website with a "leave site" button for women in abusive relationships. This taught her about use cases she'd never considered and the importance of understanding diverse users.

"Now, I would never have thought of this use case. And now that I have, I can't stop thinking about it, and about how little we know about the people who use our websites."

"By not only working on our own cognitive diversity but encouraging people from minority groups into the tech industry we're increasing our ability to problem-solve, to provide better and more valuable products and services."

Non-Technical Mentoring (19m24s)

Jo emphasises that mentoring isn't just about technical skills - it includes career advice, CV writing, interview practice, and being a conference buddy. She also mentions "backwards mentoring" where juniors mentor executives.

"These are all great ways of mentoring."

"Supporting your colleagues to get a promotion. Supporting your colleagues to take time off when they need to, or work how and where they need to. All of these things count."

How to Be a Good Mentor (22m52s)

Jo provides practical advice on being a good mentor: setting expectations, understanding individual needs, establishing regular meetings, listening before advising, and providing constructive feedback.

"A mentee is not an empty vessel into which you can pour your knowledge."

"Remember that feedback isn't criticism."

"Assume zero knowledge and infinite intelligence."

The Joy of Mentoring (28m29s)

Jo concludes by describing the Hebrew word "firgun" - genuine delight in another's accomplishments - as the best description of mentoring's joy. She encourages everyone to share their knowledge and make the industry better.

"There's a Hebrew word called firgun, which describes genuine delight or pride in the accomplishments of another person. And that is the best description that I've been able to find for the joy that mentoring can bring."

"Hopefully today will not only give you new skills and excitement for great tech, but also a desire to share that new knowledge with others and make our industry the best it can be."