We need to talk about a serious disease spreading through the developer community: Resume-Driven Development (RDD). Symptoms include:
- Deploying Kubernetes for a project with five users
- Using AI for a basic CRUD app
- Choosing microservices when a monolith would work just fine
- Picking a tech stack based on what looks good on LinkedIn instead of what actually solves the problem
Sound familiar? If so, you or someone you know may be suffering from RDD. Let’s break down why this is killing good software.
How Resume-Driven Development Happens
Developers want to stay employable, which makes sense. The problem? Too many are optimizing for their next job instead of their current one. Instead of thinking, What’s the best solution for this project? they’re thinking, Will this look good on my resume?
That’s how you end up with things like:
- Serverless for Everything – Even when a simple server would do the job better.
- Microservices Madness – Breaking an app into 50 tiny services… maintained by two devs.
- Over-Engineering the Frontend – Using five state management libraries when local state was enough.
- Blockchain Where It Makes No Sense – “What if we put to-do lists on the blockchain?” No. Just no.
- AI for Basic Logic – Not everything needs machine learning. Sometimes, an if-statement is fine.
Why This Hurts Businesses
Resume-driven choices don’t just make projects more complicated—they waste time, money, and energy. Here’s how:
- Slower Development: Complex stacks = slower delivery. And businesses care about results, not whether you used the latest buzzwords.
- Harder Maintenance: That trendy framework might not be supported in two years, leaving the team to deal with your “resume-driven legacy code.”
- Unnecessary Costs: Running a Kubernetes cluster for a small app isn’t impressive—it’s expensive.
How to Avoid Resume-Driven Development
If you want to build real value instead of just padding your resume, ask yourself these questions before choosing a tech stack:
- Does this actually solve a business problem? If the answer is “no, but it’s cool,” don’t do it.
- Can the team support this long-term? If you’re the only one who understands the tech, you’re just creating future problems.
- Is this overkill? If you need a screwdriver, don’t bring a sledgehammer.
- Would I still pick this if it didn’t go on my resume? Be honest. If not, reconsider.
Final Thought: Build Smart, Not Trendy
Tech changes fast, but solid fundamentals don’t. The best developers don’t chase buzzwords—they build solutions that work. Your resume shouldn’t be the driving force behind your architecture. Solve real problems, and the career growth will come naturally.
And if you really want to make an impact? Build something simple, scalable, and maintainable. That’s way more impressive than a Frankenstein system no one else can manage.
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