The One Question That Haunted Me Before My First Data Job

What I Wish Someone Told Me Before My First Tech Job

Hey friends - Happy Wednesday!

This one’s a little personal.
It's for students or anyone learning new skills but still never worked before.

I studied Computer Engineering for 5 years. I learned everything they threw at me: Java, C, C++, Databases, Machine Learning, AI, algorithms, you name it.

But no matter how much I learned, one question haunted me the whole time:

Who the hell is going to hire me?

I had no idea how any of it connected to the real world. I couldn’t picture what a company actually does with this stuff.

I was just a guy from Syria, a country where tech isn’t exactly booming.

I asked my professors how companies use this stuff. How I should prepare. What kind of real problems I’d work on.

But the answers were always the same: theory, vague concepts, more academic talk.

This photo was taken the day I graduated from my Master’s in Data Engineering.
Yes - I’m smiling. But truth is… I had no idea what was next.

Zero confidence.
No job. No real-world experience. No clear direction.
Just a degree, a suit, and a thousand questions.

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Fast forward to today…

I now lead big data projects at Mercedes-Benz in Germany - working with a brilliant team of around 15 engineers, analysts, and data scientists.

So… what changed?

After my master’s, I got a job at a mid-sized company. That’s when everything started to change.

Within the first month on a real project, all those years of questions and fears just… disappeared.

Suddenly, I saw how real teams work. How messy and exciting the tech world actually is. That was the moment I stopped feeling like an outsider.

I still remember that first project clearly. It connected all the dots. SQL, databases, pipelines, ETLs, data modeling, dashboards.
Suddenly, everything I had learned had a real purpose.

And that one question that haunted me for years “Who’s ever going to hire me?”

Turns out…
There are a lot of companies looking for people who can build real systems and turn raw data into real answers.

And now, I’m one of them.

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Sometimes… I look back at that version of me - standing there in that graduation photo - and I wish I could tell him:

You don’t see it yet, but you’re going to be okay. You’ll get there. Just keep going.

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If you're in that phase right now: learning, doubting, overthinking - I just want to say:

Keep going.
Even when it’s confusing.
Even when it feels slow.
Even when you’re not sure where it’s all heading.

You’ll find your place.
You’ll find your people.
You’ll get there.

I did.

Thanks for reading.

Baraa

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P.S.

If you're learning new skills right now, try not to get stuck in too many courses.
Focus on building projects instead.
That’s where the real learning happens, where everything starts to click, and your confidence grows.
You’ll feel like you’re actually building something real, not just learning another concept.

Here’s a list of free projects I shared on my YouTube channel → [LINK]

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Hey friends —

I’m Baraa. I’m an IT professional and YouTuber.

My mission is to share the knowledge I’ve gained over the years and to make working with data easier, fun, and accessible to everyone through courses that are free, simple, and easy!