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CONFESSIONS of a Software Engineer (what they don't tell you)
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Feb 6, 2024
"CONFESSIONS of a Software Engineer (what they don't tell you)" is a candid and insightful video where a software engineer shares personal experiences and insights into the profession. The video likely delves into aspects of software engineering that are not commonly discussed or may be surprising to newcomers. It may cover topics such as the challenges of working in a fast-paced and constantly evolving industry, the importance of continuous learning and adaptation, the prevalence of imposter syndrome, and the realities of navigating complex technical projects and team dynamics. Additionally, the video might offer advice, encouragement, and practical tips for aspiring and current software engineers based on the speaker's own experiences. By sharing honest reflections and confessions, the video aims to provide viewers with a deeper understanding of the software engineering profession and inspire them to navigate its challenges with confidence and resilience.
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0:00
Going from no code skills to my first dev job was really freaking hard
0:03
It was much harder than I anticipated. And when it came time to apply to jobs, I was beyond terrified and I felt completely unprepared to take the leap
0:11
I was developing more confidence in my ability to learn and figure things out. But that was not enough to overcome the pit in my stomach, the fear that I wasn't good enough and that no one would hire me
0:20
How do I prove I'm worth hiring? I mean, it made my stomach churn with anxiety just thinking about it
0:26
What if I couldn't make it? I would be stuck in construction forever
0:30
But maybe it's been easier for you. I love to hear your story. So if you share it in the comments, I will read it
0:35
Well, you can imagine the sigh of relief and excitement I felt when I got that first job offer
0:39
especially after going through the painfully challenging code interview. Woohoo! I was going to be a software engineer
0:46
Hard parts over, right? Well, sort of. Sometimes I think we get so focused on learning to code or getting that first developer job
0:53
that we kind of gloss over what we're actually signing up for. You see, as hard as that first step is
0:59
the harsh reality is that while some things will get easier, you'll also have other mountains to climb
1:04
There's kind of three ways around this next mountain. The first way is working for a smaller company that isn't really tech focused
1:11
You may very well be on your own trying to just figure everything out with little guidance
1:15
and high demands from a manager who swears you should be writing front-end code using Lisp
1:20
because his buddy used that to build air defense systems during Vietnam
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Which means this is going to be a crash course in learning software development and patience
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And as overwhelmed as you feel, you're going to be forced to develop the skills through trial by fire
1:33
And if you survive this phase, you're going to end up becoming an independent developer
1:37
but you might be like a leaky bucket full of best practices holes since you didn really have someone more experienced to mentor you Or you could end up working at a website mill cranking out smaller but flawless marketing sites or apps for other businesses You probably face a lot of pressure to deliver fast pixel web pages and you get really good at CSS and animations
1:57
but your JavaScript skills might not be that great depending on the kind of repetitive work
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you're doing. A third path is through the enterprise application world. You show up for your first
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day on the job only to find out you're working on a JavaScript framework that you have never
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heard of. The application is huge and complex. So many different coding styles, you don't even
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know where to start. So why not start with smacking that like button? But that is only the start
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of your pain. There are so many different pieces to the system, from data collection to processing
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to retrieving the data with 100 steps in between. And you're surrounded by computer science
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grads who speak a completely foreign language and drop acronym after acronym. You feel like a complete
2:36
idiot having to ask what everything means and you secretly wonder how long you have until they
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realize they hired a dud and send you out the door, or worse, to learn PHP
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Setting up your dev environment is a complete nightmare. The docs are outdated, and no one even remembers exactly what they did to get it working
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So they tell you you're on your own. Deploying the code is a beast with a bunch more tools that you've never heard of
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and maybe, just maybe, one day you'll stop feeling like a fraud and an idiot
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Doesn't matter which path you take, there is a universal truth that sooner or later
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you will encounter that condescending, opinionated, Haskell jerk that takes pride in making you feel like a moron
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that person who finds joy in making you look bad in front of everybody else
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or those snarky looks that you get from some of the other senior engineers
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Just when you think you start to get the hang of it, you get handed a critical bug that has to be fixed yesterday
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You pound your head into the keyboard until midnight. You so going to be fired if you don get this fixed soon The next day you yearn for even the slightest bit of praise for your late night dedication only to find out in your tired haste you introduced a bug that was worse than the first one
3:44
because you're working in JavaScript. Day after day, you feel like a failure, a fraud, an imposter
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You know you're getting faster at solving problems, but you don't feel worth the pay that you're
3:55
receiving until one day a new dev joins the team and starts asking you questions
3:59
and you actually have answers and he says, wow, you're good at this
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You feel that first spark of validation that you are good at some things
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and your confidence starts to grow and you wonder if you really are worth it
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as a software developer. It's been a year or two and you have a choice to make
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You're feeling comfortable with your current job so you could stay and coast for a while
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take the slower path to career growth, or you could jump ship, preferably to a job that's going to challenge you
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and up your skills, allowing you to solve harder problems. So that's what you do
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A new set of tools, different tech stack, you're doing everything differently
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You realize that you were underpaid at your last job, but now you feel like a fraud
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for making so much more at this company. How long until they realize it and fire you
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You shouldn't be feeling imposter syndrome, but you do. Around and around this vicious cycle
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you get better and better, but there's always something to make you feel dumb, like you're not sure
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if you'll be able to pull it off. the best talent rises with you
5:00
You start at the bottom, then became a big fish in a medium-sized pond, and now you're this little fish, lost in a sea of brilliant software engineers
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all working on really complicated stuff at one of the bigger tech companies
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You start to think that you're losing your mind because it's getting harder to remember things
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when really what you trying to hold in your mind is way more complex than anything at your last job You wonder if you should have coasted like some of your HTML buddies taking things a little bit slower rather than driving yourself to the edge of technology to chase a higher
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salary. But it doesn't matter. You can't go back. The reward for your effort is a pair of golden
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handcuffs. Even if you wanted to, the past is not an option. Lifestyle creep has you stuck
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And besides, why work the same number of hours for less pay? You start to realize that this whole
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self-taught devs versus computer science grads comparison doesn't matter because every successful
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software engineer is self-taught. It just never goes away. You got where you are because you are a
6:00
self-taught programming masochist. You know you should really pace yourself, but there's something
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satisfying about completing that next piece of the puzzle. Then one day you look around and realize
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that most of your buddies have burned out, moved on, or gone into management. There you are
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surrounded by a team of younger software engineers, making all the mistakes you've already made
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but they're fast, really fast, and they get things done. Maybe it's time
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Either go into management or become that dev out of place alone
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You feel like a different kind of imposter. You're now wearing glasses because you don't see sharp
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but you're still handcuffed a cog in a giant machine that never rests, always hungry for more code
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You look back at your accomplishments, only to realize that most of it has been rewritten with the latest and greatest silver bullet
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and you wonder if chasing the dream was really worth it. A thousand late nights completely forgotten
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and yet there's something about it that makes you still smile. So you create a video to share what you wish you knew when starting out
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to pay it forward to the next wave of self-taught programmers. Mine's right up here, you should check it out
7:11
Get your own tots
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