Dear new developer, Kindness is an unsung virtue for software development. I touched on it in this post on empathy, but wanted to emphasize it again. Practice kindness. When I was young, I thought scoring points and being right were important. They are, but being kind and a good human is even more important. Be … Continue reading Be kind
Dear new developer, I had a friend who brought me into a club. The specifics of the club don't matter, but like most clubs, it had a variety of executive roles. Someone had to run the meeting, other people had to take notes, someone needed to keep track of the finances. As I took on … Continue reading Always be replacing yourself
Dear new developer, In certain areas of software operations, the concept of an error budget makes an appearance. An error budget is a way of tracking how often errors occur. When the budget is exceeded, you spend time and energy to decrease them. Having a number like this is a good way to align different … Continue reading Think about your career risk budget
This is a guest post from Adam Steel. Enjoy. Dear New Developer, Getting your first developer job can feel like a big accomplishment. And it is! It can feel so big and you can feel so relieved to have any job at all that you might start to develop your worldview around that one job. … Continue reading Take jobs that help you grow
Dear new developer, If you are totally thrilled with your job right now, stop reading. This letter isn't for you. Okay. So you may be unhappy with some aspect of your current job. I have some advice for you. Take a tour with a different department at your current employer. This won't work for everyone. … Continue reading Take a tour with a different department
This is a guest post from Pariss Athena. Enjoy. Dear new developer, Honestly, I don’t think there’s one absolute answer. I believe the answer depends on you and the risk you’re comfortable taking. However, I do think there are things you should take into account before jumping the gun. This is how I personally knew … Continue reading When is it time to quit my 9-5?
Dear new developer, Perhaps you took the first job offered to you. Perhaps you joined a friend's company, then realized it wasn't quite what you were promised. Perhaps you joined a company as the only developer and didn't realize you should avoid working alone. You might feel trapped by the money, trapped because you believe … Continue reading If you’re trapped in your job, what should you do?
Dear new developer, I've written before about how being a developer sets you up for a lot of adjacent professions. Jobs like: Engineering managerTechnical trainerStartup CTOProduct managerDeveloper advocateSales engineer I have either direct personal experience or have watched a colleague or friend transition to those types of jobs. I'm sure there are many that I'm … Continue reading How to make a move to a related occupation
Dear new developer, For large long term life decisions, you should realize a few things. First, that few decisions are 100% irreversible. Second, that the choices you have in the future are based on the choices you make (this is called path dependence). Finally, that you should take time for important decisions. In fact, you … Continue reading Take time for decisions
This is a guest blog post, lightly edited, from Josh Doody. Enjoy. Dear new developer, Let's talk about jobs. My first job I was 25, and I wanted to move my career along as quickly as possible. I had my first real job, and had gotten three raises and a promotion in only two and … Continue reading The best career advice I’ve ever gotten
Letters To A New Developer 