If you could go back and give advice to your younger self when you were just starting out as a developer, what would you say?
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Latest comments (28)
As a younger engineer I struggled a lot (more) with imposter syndrome, and found it difficult to ask for help "because I should know better". The advice I would therefore give my younger self is to not be afraid to ask for assistance sooner, especially if you can phrase it "X isn't working as expected, this is what I've tried so far..." - more senior engineers are (usually) always happy to help, especially if they've seen that the person hasn't just given up at the first sign of resistance.
run as fast as you can... go as hard as you can.. put that boundless energy on full display.
Cause all these years later, I can definitely say that my older self sure is exhausted a lot earlier in the evening than my younger self would have ever been!
I'd advise reading this book: Range
Advice I'd give to my younger self: Skip building an expertise in WordPress. You're destined for bigger and better things.
I would look back my student aged self and say...
"Take the opportunities to learn new languages, and find a way to enjoy it! Because that SQL course you're finding really boring is going to be super useful, that group project to build a dynamic website is the kind of programming you'll go on to love, and even that pointless language haskell you'll look back on as something which should have been interesting"
Making it more fun would've been effective for me as a student. I wish I'd known/discovered more about the communities and even London tech-scene drinking opportunities that tech topics can come with!
A few people have mentioned the thing of focussing on one language versus trying a few different ones. I think the balance between learning deep versus learning broad is really tricky. It's still tricky for me decades later, and I've repeatedly made the mistake of sticking with a language/approach too long when I should've been learning new tricks. Maybe I still need to tell myself "don't be grumpy about it. Take the opportunities to learn, and enjoy it!"
Embrace How Random the Programming Interview Is
Ben Halpern γ» Mar 4 '17
How to keep learning to program, over and over again, forever.
Ben Halpern γ» Sep 24 '17
Reading the comments to find advices from senior devs. πͺ
There are many but there's this one thing that I learnt very late. always focus on one thing at a time. Give it 3-4 months then hop on to other. Be it any language, tech stack, etc anything you want to learn.
Keep focusing on what you desire to achieve and never back down no matter what. It's a process and it takes time, Enjoy the journey, and seek help when need be.
Good advice
Start by choosing specialization and mastering the fundamentals of programming, then practice consistently and build projects to gain practical experience.
Embrace problem-solving challenges, study others' code, and stay updated with the latest trends while also developing soft skills, networking, and learning from failures. Prioritize clean code, continuous learning, and mentorship to navigate the ever-evolving tech landscape successfully.