Mums in Tech – feat. Zahra Mohamoud

As a special edition of our ongoing series of interviews that shines a light on incredible working mums within tech, we are featuring mothers that have trained through Code First Girls.

This is our chat with Zahra Mohamoud, Data Visualisation Analyst at the Cabinet Office.

The purpose of our 'MotherBoard’ content series is to highlight incredible working mums within tech & data, as well as individuals and businesses that are supportive and progressive within their approach to creating more inclusive tech & data teams for women.

Sophie @ MotherBoard: Can you please introduce yourself and tell us a bit about your current role?

Zahra: My name is Zahra Mohamoud, mother to two beautiful children - aged 4 and 5. I am currently working at the Cabinet Office as a Data Visualisation Analyst and have been since last year June. 

Sophie @ MotherBoard: Please can you tell us about why you decided to career switch into (/ or embark on a career in) tech?

Zahra: My interest to persue a career in Tech started in 2020 when I was first introduced to web development. A friend of mine was doing a course on web development with a heavy focus on Python which interested me, and I wanted to give it a go. I was always someone who liked to try new things and more so things that are deemed on the more "challenging" side, so this was right up my street. Since then, I have started/completed courses in web development, data analytics, software and cloud. 

Sophie @ MotherBoard: Why did you choose a Code First Girls course?

Zahra: Having started off the journey doing self-paced courses with no real structure, no support and no sense of community; I found although I was grasping the concepts and taking in the information, I was missing something. I came to find that I preferred having a sense of community and a solid structure, not to mention I was hearing it is hard to find a job after a self-paced course. I went back into searching for other options while still doing my course on the side and that is how I found out about Code First Girls. It honestly seemed too good to be true the more I read about it.. and I am beyond glad that I came across it. I ended up choosing Code First Girls as the course followed a structure which was broken down throughout the 13 weeks; it included live lessons where I could ask any questions I had; there was a strong community among the girls via Slack; and more importantly, it wasn't just a course to complete and add to your name - but you would more than likely be employed come the end of the course.

Sophie @ MotherBoard: How did you manage the juggle of studying whilst being a mum?

Zahra: This is a question many people ask me and is a good question. After having become a mother, I believe everything is possible with good timing. When my children were younger and I had 2 under 2 years old, I would still be going out with the children with me as much as I used to before and people would often ask me "how?". The answer is time management and a positive mindset. This has been the case with everything from the day my children were born till now. During the course, I made sure they were asleep before my class started (usually 1825) which allowed me to fully focus on my class and allowed me to switch off mum-mode and switch on student-mode. After my class finished at 2030, I would get most of my work that I needed done and go over the lesson notes and digest all the information; as I'd have work in the morning, with school run, dinner making, bedtime routine etc. In a nutshell, time management is important, and I live by the Parkinson's Law in my everyday life.

Sophie @ MotherBoard: How do you manage the balance between parenthood and your career?

Zahra: Balancing parenthood and a career can be challenging but with good time management and a good plan, it is manageable. Having read a lot of self-motivation and self-help books, a common theme I learnt from them is the importance of your mindset. If you believe it is possible and you can do it, you will do it. I never tell myself I cannot do something and that is always the outcome, I can do it! I also time-block most of my day and week - block out the hours I need to work; block out my me-time (usually in the evenings after my children's bedtime) and I also block out time for my children. I make sure I always have a full cup to pour from, so that my children or my work (or my mental state) doesn't suffer, which is very important - which usually looks like having time off from everything at least a few days in the week before it reaches a point of burnout and exhaustion, which would leave me being less of an employee and mother. 

Sophie @ MotherBoard: What do you think businesses can do to support mums more in the workplace?

Zahra: I think we are in a time and industry where it is easier for businesses to support mums in the workplace more. This is due to the option of remote working, which can allow a mother to work from home a few days of the week as opposed to being in the office for 5 days - and her coming back home to her children tired and not being able to pour into her children. I think ultimately businesses can be there to listen to mothers and give them a safe space to speak without fear of judgement, but rather receive a welcoming hand.