init 1 - Trying To Enter The Dev World

Introduction

Hello, Dev! This is my first post, so please forgive me if I am breaking any Dev best practices. I intend to write a set of articles in attempt to explore my current thoughts, and to seek wisdom from the Dev community as I try to grow in my career.

The Problem

I currently work in the field of RPA (Robotic Process Automation). While I've learned a lot while working in the field, I feel I may have reached a ceiling. It's not entirely too technical, and I do love the development part of it the most, so I figure I want to pivot more into a developer role. Additionally, I've come to realize that RPA most of the time is more of a hindrance than a boon (it only serves to increase technical debt within an organization). This is something I'm not comfortable with based on a morality standpoint.

So I'd love to get more into a traditional development role. No chance for that within my current organization: I've been pigeonholed as the RPA expert, as well as my group doesn't really have any true development roles available.

So I need to enter the world of development through another organization.

My Background

My primary coding language in the past has been python. I have used it in personal projects, as well as I have developed some machine learning POC's in the past for work.

I love Linux, and I use Arch Linux at home. I also am currently learning C/C++ & Rust.

My Goal

To find a role that falls more in line with my want of a developer career. I'd ideally like to work with Linux, but that is not a must. I'm open to learning any language, but I'm particularly attracted to more systems level languages. Beyond that I'm not really sure what kind of development work I want to be doing.

I need to figure out the following:

• What area of development I want to work in
• How I can build skills in that area

I'll spend the next month mulling over these points, but in the meantime if anyone has any insight, feel free to comment.

Comments

[aRtoo]

how about IOT devices? c/c++/rust are being used in that area. if you know robotics then it would be easy transition or IOT security (this is what I want) same languages but you need deep deep knowledge

[rewriteinrustpls]

Good advice! I should clarify though: the 'Robotic' in RPA is misleading: it is referring to software 'bots' that automate business tasks.