In 2017, I had never exposed my code to anyone other than a select few before, and I was terrified. I had some functions made from a colleagues script that I thought might be useful for others, and dared myself to make a package and push it to github.
In stead of the dreaded ridiculing of poor code and development, people embraced the package and helped us make it better. Within just a couple of days, pull requests came from others to help us improve the code, implement tests, and improve documentation. I learned so much just by looking through the PRs and seeing how others worked.
Rather than make me shy off development, the R neuro community’s positive feedback has helped me find a new interest and joy in developing tools.
Athanasia M. Mowinckel is a staff scientist at the Center for Lifespan Changes in Brain and Cognition, at the University of Oslo. She has a background on cognitive psychology, and uses R for almost everything. She goes by the nickname "Mo" (closer to 'Mou' than 'Moe'), and is a member of the R-Ladies Global team.
