Mitchell Oliver: Being the Change for My Community

Welcome to Formation’s Fellow Spotlight, a blog series designed to introduce you to former Formation Fellows who have landed their dream jobs. Today we’ll meet Mitchell Oliver, a P3 Software Engineer at Atlassian. Mitch was working in a career he didn’t love when his father passed away and made Mitch question what kind of legacy he’d leave for his own children. Because of an incredible amount of drive and perseverance, Mitch just landed his first SWE role at Atlassian. Here is his story.

What was your background prior to Formation?
For the last few years, I’ve been working in a warehouse where I moved boxes in the freezer section for a living. Before that, I spent nearly 7 years working for my brother’s cleaning company, where I both cleaned houses and managed other cleaners. I became a father at a young age and never attended college.

What originally got you interested in engineering?
I’ve always been interested in code in general. As a kid, I wanted to become a game developer and move to Japan to work for Nintendo. I didn’t know how I was going to do that, but I knew coding was involved. But, I had it in my head that you needed to learn to code when you were young in order to be successful when you’re older.

Software engineering isn’t a common career path for people in my community, and I knew I would be sacrificing a good-paying job, time with my family, and the friendships and circles I was comfortable with. But when it came down to it, it wasn’t about what others would be happy with, it was about what I would be happy with.

What made you want to pursue software engineering as a career?
My father passed away when I was 27. When he died, I started thinking about what I would leave behind for my family. My father worked really hard but had no accomplishments to show for it. He didn’t know what he could achieve. He was deaf, like most of my family, and I learned growing up how much context is lost when you can’t hear. I, on the other hand, got the privilege of being able to hear. So when he died, it sparked this desire in me to leave behind something I was proud of. I wanted to see how far I could push it, where I could go. I knew I had the work ethic, I just needed to put it toward something that was going to help my family. I was making good money at my warehouse job, but it wasn’t something I wanted to do. I ended up starting a side business to buy myself a laptop so I could start learning to code.

My father only left his knowledge of what he knew, which was a hard work ethic. We took that and ran with it, but I wanted my kids, nieces, and nephews to know that if they believed in what they had, they could reach their biggest goals, too. When I decided to pursue software engineering professionally, I was met with a lot of doubt. Some of my friends and family understood and some just didn’t. Software engineering isn’t a common career path for people in my community, and I knew I would be sacrificing a good-paying job, time with my family, and the friendships and circles I was comfortable with. But when it came down to it, it wasn’t about what others would be happy with, it was about what I would be happy with. We have the biggest library on the internet, it’s just a matter of being willing to do the work. I was confident that the outcome would be great if I stuck with it.

My wife...moved back with our daughter but, because I hadn’t saved up any money, I was living in my car in Las Vegas. That was the 2nd time I was homeless in my life...Then, my dad died, and I re-evaluated everything.

How did your family impact your career choices leading up to becoming a Software Engineer?
My older brother is all about routine and consistency. When I was 20, I moved out to Las Vegas in December to work for his cleaning business. You’d think it would be hot in Vegas year-round, but it was freezing and I didn’t even have a bed! I lived alone for about 2-3 months before my wife and young daughter joined me. With my brother’s company, I was managing cleaners and cleaning homes. I learned so much, like how to work with other people on teams, what different perspectives from different business owners looked like, and how to run a business. I didn’t want to run a business at scale, but I learned that I loved working with a team. I worked with him for 7 years and soaked up that knowledge.

My son was going to be born in 2018 and I wasn’t prepared. I had no money saved up. My wife and I decided we would move back to California, her first, and then I’d come a few months later. She moved back with our daughter but, because I hadn’t saved up any money, I was living in my car in Las Vegas. That was the 2nd time I was homeless in my life. After a few months of that, I got a job at Sam’s Club where I worked for 6 months. I moved back to California, my wife had our son, and I started working in a warehouse where I spent the next two years moving boxes. Then, my dad died, and I re-evaluated everything.

I would write some code, but honestly, it was a struggle. I wanted to grow as an engineer, so when I found out about Formation, it seemed like it was right in my wheelhouse. The part-time option really gave me a comfortable aspect where I could complete my work on my days off and in the mornings.

What led you to join Formation?
I joined an open-source project for Mozilla where I contributed some code and worked with other engineers across the world. I was in meetings on a weekly basis, but I no clue what they were talking about. I would write some code, but honestly, it was a struggle. I wanted to grow as an engineer, so when I found out about Formation, it seemed like it was right in my wheelhouse. The part-time option really gave me a comfortable aspect where I could complete my work on my days off and in the mornings.

What was your specific goal in becoming a Fellow?
I just wanted to become an engineer. At that point, I was willing to work for any company. I would’ve worked for free as long as I was getting experience. I just wanted out of the warehouse life.

With the [Formation] platform, everything was in one place. I could see all my tasks and knew when I needed to get them done in order to be on track for my job hunt timeline. During my interview prep, it was the best platform I honestly could have had.

How did you work with the Mentors?
I used to joke with one of my Mentors, Matt Oates, that he was like the boss in a video game: I had to pass him to get to the next level. I had a lot of insecurities and it took me a while to realize the Mentors weren’t people to be afraid of like video game bosses; they were trying to push me to be uncomfortable to help me grow as an engineer. The Mentors helped me so much with algos! Sophie and Daniel were both a pleasure to train with.

What did you think of the Formation platform?
I definitely needed it. I had no organization before! With the platform, everything was in one place. I could see all my tasks and knew when I needed to get them done in order to be on track. During my interview prep, it was the best platform I honestly could have had. Overall, it helped keep me accountable and organized; I would have gone crazy had I tried to do all of this on my own.

Formation taught me how to structure my answers, what companies are looking for, and how to prepare for an interview. I know what to say and how to say it, and I can control the interview by taking the interviewer on a journey to understand who I am, how I think, and what I can provide.

How did you balance your work, Formation training, and personal life? Every Sunday, I would have a reflection moment, not only for development but for my mental and physical health, family, and relationships. I asked myself questions that I created at the beginning of my coding journey. You can get lost along the way, so having a weekly reflection was big for me. I always made sure my most important things were the things I was dedicating myself to. I acknowledged the other things that fell down on the list and knew they needed to take a back seat. I asked others in the Formation community how they handled situations and expressed what I was going through. This all helped me create a structure where I could have my own reflection and get feedback from others on how they balanced it all.

I 4X’ed my total compensation!

How did your interview skills improve with your Formation training? Applying to a warehouse job is nothing like applying for a SWE role. In a warehouse interview, I’d be asked nothing about my background other than if I could work certain days, shifts, etc. Then, I’d land the job. So coming from this type of work, I didn’t know what to expect for SWE interviews. Formation taught me how to structure my answers, what companies are looking for, and how to prepare for an interview. I know what to say and how to say it, and I can control the interview by taking the interviewer on a journey to understand who I am, how I think, and what I can provide. Formation helped me with algos in the same exact way. I learned that it’s my job to help the interviewer understand my thought process and guide them through my response.

What team are you on in your new role?
P3 Software Engineer on the Confluence team at Atlassian

What was your % increase in your salary compared to your previous salary?
I 4X’ed my total compensation!

“Quick-Fire” Questions

First code you shipped?
The code I used to create my portfolio. It looked so ugly! But I was happy with it.

Proudest moment?
Starting the journey to becoming a SWE. I took a big chance, and it could’ve been a waste of time. I was really selfish, but I’m proud I thought about myself for once. I thought about how it could help my family if I worked on myself. Growing yourself is going to benefit everyone else around you. Yes, I had to sacrifice a little bit but I got a lot.

The biggest surprise about Formation was the community. I didn’t think there could be one like this, honestly. It felt like I was on a basketball team again, with all of us trying to help each other out.

Biggest mistake?
Getting too comfortable, especially in Las Vegas. I wasn’t trying to push myself to learn or grow. When things happen and you’re stagnant, you don’t know how to handle the changes. But when you’re growing and evolving, changing situations don’t feel as uncomfortable because you know you’ve been through them before. I was stagnant and comfortable, and I wasn’t ready for change.

Favorite “Lunch and Learn”?
I remember one where Tony Nguyen was interviewed as a system design interview candidate. It was my first time ever seeing a system design interview. There were lots of technical terms I didn’t understand yet, but it gave me exposure to the process. There was another one where Jerry interviewed Matt about making a sudoku board. Both of these showed me that other engineers struggle and gave me some idea of how they think.

In my community, there are a lot of kids who look up to adults and see the same thing over and over again...One of the most important things I’ve learned throughout this whole experience is that you can be the change for your community.

Favorite group session?
Daniel Tomko’s were so awesome. He’s such a great teacher and doesn’t make himself seem smarter than everyone else. His sessions kind of felt like he was trying to figure out the problem with us. That created a safe space for me to start figuring out the problem

Biggest surprise about Formation?
The biggest surprise about Formation was the community. I didn’t think there could be one like this, honestly. It felt like I was on a basketball team again with all of us trying to help each other out. At the end of the day, my community was trying to promote growth within each other. The Fellow Managers were so awesome, too. They’re such an important part of tying this community together. My FM, Cara, was so supportive. If I didn’t have family, it would’ve been Cara helping and supporting me throughout the whole experience.

Anything else you want to share?
You’re never going to feel ready, so just go ahead and do it. If you love something—no matter what your background is or how long the journey might take you—you have to explore the unknown. You’ll get rewarded for doing that. I had no technical experience at all before learning to code, I just explored it. In my community, there are a lot of kids who look up to adults and see the same thing over and over again. Growing up, I had adults around me who didn’t go with the norm because they were deaf, so they didn’t have those same thoughts that kept others down. One of the most important things I’ve learned throughout this whole experience is that you can be the change for your community.

Looking to land a life-changing role like Mitchell? Apply to join Formation's Fellowship today and change your career trajectory.