I had been looking for an opportunity to work on a real frontend project for quite some time. As it was difficult for junior developers to find roles back then, the Accelerator Programme felt like the perfect chance to polish my skills and learn from experienced developers. It combined structured learning with hands-on work, which was exactly what I needed at that stage of my career.

I joined the programme and started working with JavaScript, TypeScript, CSS, and HTML. Over time, I became involved in internal initiatives that allowed me to explore additional technologies, including Flutter. Eventually, I was invited to join the Censhare team, which required me to pick up XSLT. The team supported me a lot during that transition, and in return, I could share some of my JavaScript experience since Censhare heavily uses it as well.

Today, I'm balancing two worlds: I continue contributing to Censhare while still developing in more traditional Frontend projects.

The support I received was incredible. When learning something new, having the right guidance is crucial, and my colleagues always pointed me toward the most important concepts first. They suggested further areas to explore, helped me debug for hours, and constantly supported me in understanding how to approach difficult problems. I'm truly grateful for the time and patience they invested in my growth.

I remember one situation where a customer requested a very unusual feature. I agreed to build it before verifying whether it was even technically possible. Once I started investigating, I discovered that no one on the team had attempted something like that before; some even believed it couldn't be done.

But I'm a persistent person, so I kept searching for solutions until I finally found a way to implement it. That experience taught me two valuable lessons:

1) Proper investigation and analysis up front can save a lot of stress later.

2) With enough persistence, almost any task can be accomplished.

The support during the programme was overwhelming—in the best way. People were genuinely interested in our work and always willing to help. At first, I thought this was simply because I was new, but later I realised it’s a core part of Columbus’ culture.

As someone who loves both learning and sharing knowledge, I quickly felt that I fit in. The collaborative atmosphere and eagerness to support one another made me feel at home from the very beginning.