Today I went to do a paired iterative coding exercise using TDD as part of a job application. It was in Java, a language that I haven’t looked at before, but the idea was that I would speak generally about how the tests would be written and the problem solved, as a Senior Developer wrote the code for me. Seems simple right? But I couldn’t get my head around it, especially in the nerves of the moment. It was not a complete disaster, but it really proved to me how much more familiar with Test Driven Development I must become.

I had not done enough TDD exercises that it was yet natural. In an interview situation it is not enough to have learnt the concept, I ideally should have been so saturated by the concept that I was almost sick of it. From this I may have had more confidence, which of course is what you really need to be charming. And of course, even if you are unsure of yourself, it is still important to relax.

I was not relaxed. I felt like I was sitting weirdly and I didn’t know what my face was doing. Don’t be like me, relax.

So now I know what I must do!

Over and over and over again: