✨ From PR Panic to Code Confidence

My first serious job was on a big e-commerce project.
Big team. Big codebase. Big expectations.

And then came my first pull request.

It felt like stepping into a storm I wasn’t prepared for.

They commented on everything.
I mean everything — naming, logic, imports, formatting, architecture, readability.
Even how I wrote if statements. Even spaces.

We didn’t have automatic linting. But we had strict conventions — rules for everything: how to name services, write functions, organize files, and think through logic.

At the time, it felt brutal.

Looking back?
That code review culture made me who I am.

I Hated It First

Every PR felt like a test. Sometimes like a failure.

It was hard not to take it personally. My experienced teammates would leave dozens of comments. No line was safe.

But over time, I realized — they weren’t trying to break me. They were trying to build me.

It wasn’t about showing off.
It was about raising the bar — and helping me reach it.

What I Learned (and Still Use)

Many habits I picked up back then are still with me.
They became the foundation of how I write and review code today.

• Name things as if someone else will read them — descriptive, specific, and never too clever.
• Use structure and patterns — services, helpers, constants — everything lives where it makes sense.
• Think about the reader — minimal comments, but the code speaks for itself.

Here’s a small example of how I write today:

// utils/sortProducts.ts
export const PRICE = 'price'
export const RATING = 'rating'
/**
 * Sorts products by price or rating
 */
export const sortProducts = (products: Product[], by: typeof PRICE | typeof RATING): Product[] => {
  return [...products].sort((a, b) => {
    if (by === PRICE) return a.price - b.price
    if (by === RATING) return b.rating - a.rating
    return 0
  })
}

Clean. Readable. Predictable.
No magic. No surprises.
Just kindness to the next person who touches this file — even if that person is me.

Now I’m That Reviewer

These days, I review PRs too.

I give clear suggestions, avoid harsh words, and always add a short comment when I really love someone’s solution.
Because I remember how it felt — the pressure, the fear, the learning curve.

Now, my PRs can be examples for others.
That means something to me.

I Still Love Working With Strong Engineers

Even now — after years in the field — I choose to work with people who are better than me.

Why?
Because every good engineer teaches me something.

A naming trick.
A performance tweak.
A smarter test.
A more elegant pattern.

There’s always something new to learn.
And I never want to stop.

Every PR is a chance to grow.

A Professor Once Told Me…

One of my professors once said something I’ll never forget:

“Having a good programming style is like having good handwriting.
It shows respect — for your craft and for your reader.”

And I carry that with me in every line I write.

Final Thoughts

If you’re a junior going through painful code reviews — you’re not failing. You’re leveling up.

Keep learning. Keep asking. Keep writing. One day, you’ll be the one giving kind, thoughtful reviews that help someone else grow.

Just like they did for me.

Find me on LinkedIn to stay in touch, share ideas, or collaborate.