It all started with a video by Eng.Tariq. I had been following his channel for a while, and it quickly became one of the most enjoyable ones I’ve come across. In that particular video, he announced he was coming to Jordan and hosting a small meetup for those interested. I jumped at the opportunity, filled out the registration form, and eagerly awaited the gathering, simply hoping to get to know the engineer better and build some connections.

I arrived at the morning meetup, and after breakfast, I started mingling with a wonderful group of friends and fellow engineers. It quickly became apparent that many of them were seasoned participants in programming competitions and hackathons, some had even reached the global stage.

Then came the “Salam Hack” segment. I was completely caught off guard. I had no idea there would be a coding challenge at this meetup. I remember it vividly it was the very first coding challenge I had ever participated in, and I felt a chaotic mix of excitement and dread. I was afraid of the unknown. Here I was, stepping into a challenge without any prior preparation or deep expertise in a specific language, surrounded by a large group of die-hard programmers. Yet, beneath that fear, a wave of overwhelming enthusiasm washed over me. I was actually doing this.

Right before we started, we divided ourselves into teams of three. Thankfully, I was already acquainted with my teammates. The rules were laid out clearly: no phones, no external help. All solving had to be done on paper, and we only had two attempts to submit our final answer. The clock was set for about 40 minutes to an hour.

The challenge itself was fascinating: we had to uncover the name of a capital city by following a trail of clues. Each clue we solved unlocked the next question, ultimately leading to the final answer. The catch? Every single question was written in a different programming language. We cycled through C++, Java, Python, SQL, and JavaScript. To say this was strange and intimidating to me would be an understatement.

We navigated through several hurdles and roadblocks, and I clearly remember stepping up and strongly contributing to solving several questions. But as other teams started handing in their papers, the pressure cranked up. We had to move fast. We agreed on an answer, submitted our first attempt, and unfortunately it was wrong.

Time was running out. More teams were submitting their answers while we desperately went back to review the questions we had previously debated. Suddenly, a spark of inspiration hit me regarding the JavaScript question. It had to do with how the language handles numeric values stored as integers versus those stored as strings a classic type coercion trick. I pitched the idea, we tested the assumption, and it led us to a new final answer. I remember it clearly: Damascus.

We submitted our paper, sitting on pins and needles. Then, the announcement came: “The third team for today has secured their spot”

I couldn’t believe it. How could our modest team clinch third place among a crowd of such seasoned veterans? Moments of pure joy and absolute disbelief followed, not just from us, but from the other teams as well. We actually did it, guys.

The event wrapped up with symbolic gifts for the top three teams oddly enough, they were boxes of luxury tea. But honestly, I couldn’t care less about the gift. What mattered was living this unique experience, crowned by an exhilarating and unexpected victory.

In life, we go through so many experiences plagued by doubt and hesitation. Self-defeating questions constantly echo in our minds: “Can I actually do this? I’m not as strong as them! What am I even doing here?”

It reminds me of a quote I read in The Psychology of Money: “Pessimism just sounds smarter and more plausible than optimism.” Yes, pessimists might be right 99% of the time, but they are 100% wrong in the grand scheme of things — Alex Hormozi’s timeless philosophy.

You will never truly know what you are capable of until you dive into the experience, with all its terrifying challenges. And honestly, that is exactly where the beauty lies.