Thursday July 2nd 2020 by SocraticDev
In a career, we often meet this type: the disillusioned guy who has seen everything and who likes to complain about everything and nothing. Personally, I am fascinated by their words because they are usually true and raw. The expression of a visceral (and suffering) truth for this individual. However, I will also be seen avoiding these people out of modesty in the face of the expression of acquired helplessness ...
Misery loves company and is contagious.
I am convinced that this ambivalence also inhabits this coach and software development consultant who developed the brand Healthy Software Developer. Jayme Edwards presents himself as a developer with twenty years of experience. By taking himself as a subject of study, he explores different difficulty experienced by most developers in the industry. Fortunately, he doesn't limit himself to criticism but also offers ideas and strategies to better manage difficult situations.
Promoting sustainable careers in software development
--Healty Software Developer
Some myths of the technology industry
Jayme Edwards presents five misconceptions maintained in the industry and suggests that we discard them in order to develop a harmonious career.
- Your technical skills will determine your success;
- Working at high intensity produces more results;
- Past successes determine future results;
- Industry giants have best practices;
- Promotions are proportional.
Seeing beyond these myths
In order to be happy and healthy, one has to learn to challenge conventional wisdom. Of course, work interviews focus on technical skills. However, it is not enough to be a good developer. Our work is essentially teamwork and our team will often work with other teams as well. Beyond technical skills, it is imperative to care about human relationships and improve our communication skills.
In Quebec, we call our profession: programmer-analyst. As a programmer, we often have the reflex to enter the code too quickly in order to make corrections or add functionalities to the developed product. Yet thinking calmly before acting will allow us to save our energy and produce simpler and more effective results. Code that will certainly be much more pleasant to maintain. Personally, when I take the time to read the documentation, the functional documents and the conceptual data model, I tell myself that I am in the process of being an analyst. Just because the keys on the keyboard don't click doesn't mean I'm not productive.
"Each team, each company, and each product present a unique challenge. There is no" miracle cure "in the world of software development"
It is not because we have succeeded on a former project by adopting certain practices that we can blindly recycle these practices in a new role. The context is no longer the same and trying to reproduce past successes by repeating the same recipe will not work. Colleagues are different, the way to communicate is different, code practices are different, etc.
Promotions bring about two things: an increase in responsibilities and an increase in salary. However, one should avoid believing that the increase in salary is always proportional to the new responsibilities to be assumed. Is a 15% to 20% salary increase worth it if it makes us stressed, tired and miserable?
Unless this promotion suits your career plan, it is imperative not to be seduced only by a salary increase to occupy a role that does not suit us.
Conclusion
The headline "Five big lies" is of course a little click bait. I do not believe that the industry conveys falsehoods on the job of developer. The idea of a puppeteer manipulating poor developers is wacky. However, these are ideas commonly shared in the community. I prefer the concept of myths. There is a basis of truth in the myths ... Indeed, in order to maintain a healthy career and a sustainable long-term lifestyle, we must examine these preconceived ideas in an informed way.
Translated from french by Google Translate
