Starting My DevOps Journey – Week 1: Linux, Mindset & The Phoenix Project

I’ve officially started my DevOps journey.

My goal is to become job-ready within the next year and instead of just learning quietly, I’ve decided to document everything I’m doing. I’ll be sharing weekly updates covering what I’ve studied, what I’m building, and what I’m struggling with. If you’re just starting out too, maybe this can help you feel less alone.

What I’m starting with:
This week, I’ve begun learning Linux. I’ll be using it as my foundation as everything in DevOps touches Linux, so it only makes sense to start here. I’m focusing on:

• Terminal navigation

• File system structure

• Permissions (chmod, chown)

• Useful commands like grep, top, df -h, and more

Funny enough, this isn’t my first time seeing Linux. I was introduced to it nearly 10 years ago during a research placement in my summer holidays whilst I was in sixth form. At the time, I never really understood how it could benefit me back then. Now, it feels like I’ve come full circle, and this time, I’m here to stay.

I’ve also just ordered The Phoenix Project - a novel that explains DevOps culture and systems thinking through storytelling. I’m hoping it helps me see beyond just the tools and into why DevOps matters in a real business.

What I’m hoping to learn from it:

• How DevOps fits into the bigger picture of IT & business

• Why “flow,” “feedback,” and “continuous improvement” are so important

• How to think like a systems engineer, not just a technician

I’ll be posting key takeaways as I go.

Wins this week:

• Installed Linux and started using the terminal

• Learned about file permissions and how to change them

• Set up this blog (hello world!)

Struggles:

• Remembering which command does what - muscle memory isn’t there yet

• Not getting distracted by shiny tools when I should focus on the basics

That’s all for now. Next post may be a recap of what I’ve learned about Linux commands, my first impressions of The Phoenix Project or something completely different. Stay tuned!