Introduction

You most likely have heard of a tech community or belong to one, so the concept of Tech Communities is not new to you. But if you are just a random person who stumbled upon this post, then I will be just fair to explain what is a Tech Community.

A Tech Community simply put is a gathering or a group of individuals related by a skillset or a common purpose. Every tech community exists for a purpose and every member of a community is there because they agree with the purpose of the community.

Tech Communities exist to provide all forms of support, ranging from technical support to information support, to moral support, and in some cases material support.

Tech Communities are the backbone of techies. And can somewhat be termed the "Techies Home".

I will be doing a series that will major on Tech Communities, and this particular article is an Introduction.

Why should I be in a Tech Community?

You may just be a Graphics Designer, a Frontend Developer, a Mobile Developer an Animator, etc., and may ask this question: " Why should I belong to a Community?". Every tech community is always centered around three basic things: Connect, Learn and Grow.

So in every tech community, you get the opportunity to connect with people. Firstly, you meet those who are into what you do, and also others who are into other amazing stuff in tech. Connecting with people is very important in this tech space.

A lot of job opportunities can be gotten by connecting with people.

Secondly, you learn in every tech community. You do this by attending meetups (tech events), hangouts, conferences, hackathons, etc. All these events in one way or another improve what you do. Learning always takes place in every tech community. Also know that soft skills are also acquired in tech communities, such as Proper Communication, Leadership, Organization, Presentation, Public Addressing, etc

Thirdly, you grow, ensure you don't remain stagnant. And in tech, you only grow when you build with what you have learned. So ensure you do not get stuck in following tutorials, but in building stuff after following a tutorial. And Tech Communities help you achieve this, through hackathons, build sessions, etc.

Another way you grow in a tech community is by giving back to the community. You give back to the community by organizing various training sessions and meetups to teach what you know. This is very important as a member of a community.

The importance of being in a Tech Community cannot be overemphasized, and you should be part of one!

Finally, a list of a few Tech Communities, I recommend:

1. Google Developer Student Clubs (GDSC)
2. Data Science Nigeria
3. Andela Learning Community
4. Google Developer Group (GDG)
5. She Code Africa
6. Open Source Community Africa (OSCA)
7. [Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors Community (MLSA)(studentambassadors.microsoft.com)
8. Codecademy Community
9. Women Will
10. Ingressive For Good
11. Diary of Hackers

An ending quote from me:

"A Tech Community is the Backbone of every Techie".

In my next article, I will be talking on the 7 P's of Tech Communities.

Ensure you share this article! Merry Christmas.