Hi, dev community!
I'm Alexey Bashkirov — a backend developer with over 8 years of professional experience. I’ve worked across different types of teams, from scrappy early-stage startups to large-scale enterprise projects. In this post, I want to share how I’ve built a sustainable career in tech — and more importantly, how I avoided burnout along the way.
The Early Days: Coding for the Sake of Code
When I first started out, I was coding day and night. I thought that the more lines of code I wrote, the better developer I’d become. I chased every new technology, joined every side project, and lived in my IDE.
Eventually, I realized: it’s not about how much code you write. It’s about why you write it — and whether you're solving real problems.
The Mistakes I Made
Here are some mistakes I ran into early in my career — maybe you’ll recognize a few:
Trying to learn everything. JavaScript, Python, DevOps, databases, system design, UI — I wanted to master it all. The result? Surface-level knowledge and a lot of stress.
Ignoring soft skills. I used to think only code mattered. But communication, empathy, and teamwork turned out to be just as important.
Working without boundaries. No vacations, late-night work, weekend deployments. Spoiler: that path leads straight to burnout.
What Changed
With time, I started building a more sustainable approach to my career:
Focused on depth over breadth. I chose to go deep on backend development — Go, PostgreSQL, gRPC, Kubernetes — and that focus gave me clarity and confidence.
Invested in tooling and documentation. Writing better internal docs and automating routine work saved hours and made life easier for my teammates too.
Set boundaries. These days, I don’t answer work messages after 7 p.m., I don’t work weekends, and I’ve let go of the guilt that used to come with it. Productivity actually went up.
Advice for Fellow Developers
Whether you’re just starting out or you’re already deep in the trenches of your tech career, here’s what I’ve learned:
Listen to yourself. If you feel drained, slow down. That’s not weakness — it’s your system giving you a signal.
Choose your stack and stick with it. You don’t need to chase every new framework. Focus matters.
Get involved in the community. Share your experience, write blog posts, join meetups. It keeps you inspired and sharp.
Final Thoughts
Being a developer isn’t just about code — it’s about mindset, communication, and taking care of yourself along the way. I’m grateful for the lessons I’ve learned, and I’m still learning every day.
If any of this resonates with you, hit ❤️, drop a comment, or feel free to connect with me. Always happy to chat with fellow devs.
See you around,
Alexey Bashkirov
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