18 Tips for Your Young Self as a Software Engineer (Part 3)

If I travelled back in time to when I started my career, I would give my younger self one piece of advice: "Set a variety of goals for what you want to achieve. With the right plan and vision, no goal is too ambitious."

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Over the past 25 years, I have experienced both successes and failures. This journey has been fascinating, which is why I decided to write down some advice I would give to my younger self to help those who are just starting their career journey in software engineering work.

If I could go back in time, these are the 18 pieces of advice I would tell my younger self as a software engineer (Part 3 will show the rest of XI-XVIII).

XI. Software engineering is simple, but the human relationship is complex

It is critical for software engineers to study their work's social aspects. Most of the time, engineers do not realize the value of appreciating the social elements that can somehow limit a career after that.

One of the reasons is that we have to work with other people or teams, as communication and collaboration are more important than ever. That's why it's critical to focus on technical skills and interact with and understand the people around you.

Building a social network "social structure" is a group or community that is built around you and supports you. It can be your family, friends, colleagues or neighbours. It is a community that is there for you in your time of need. How the integrated values interact in each chain determines whether this is the social bond that binds people together.

The quality of a social structure determines how effectively one structures its organization to achieve prosperity. The key to creating a stronger, more cohesive social system lies not in creating rigid, inflexible values but in consciously renewing and supplementing the cohesive values that underpin the social structure.

XII. Finding a mentor

The right mentoring relationship can be a powerful tool for career development. It can lead to a new job, a promotion, or a better work-life balance. The best way to find a mentor is to understand your goals (both short- and long-term).

The clearer the goals, the easier to find the right mentor. The principles for creating practical and easily achievable goals can be found in SMART: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound.

The second best way to do this is to get to know your existing network. The more others know about your work and abilities, the more effective they can be in mentoring you. Of course, ensure that the person you want to find also possesses the expertise you need.

XIII. Academic advancement

Computer and information technology jobs are expected to grow by 12 per cent, adding 546,200 new jobs. A master's degree is a critical step in career development, mainly if you have limited professional experience but want a job-hopping or want to move to a new level even though you are already in the industry.

Academic advancement allows one to gain experience in systematic thinking, business ethics, and organizational strategy. It also can take your strategic thinking skills to a new level. In addition, this lifelong credential demonstrates one's expertise and dedication to the field while expanding professional contacts.

XIV. To JOMO, not FOMO

Fear of missing out(FOMO) is the possibility of missing out on a good time, and it is a feeling of anxiety or regret. But the fear of missing out can be replaced with a healthier, happier way: the joy of missing out (JOMO).

The joy of missing out teaches us the value of being in the right place and at the right time. It doesn't mean saying no to every social event or opportunity, but rather knowing when to say yes or no, i.e., the right to choose.

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XV. Software Engineering Ethics

Software developers are an integral part of protecting our critical infrastructure. Their job is to write algorithms that greatly influence people's lives. Academic and professional associations are uniquely positioned to develop codes of ethics for software engineers, but they haven't made much of an impact. Software engineers' code of ethics should not be a list of codes.

It should be more like "all software developers should know about programming biases and their potential hazards, examine their plans and subsequent code, be able to explain how they deal with these issues, be willing to accept review of their code, claim responsibility for defects found in code, and address issues raised by the oversight committees. "

XVI. Choosing the right career direction

There are many different ways of thinking to solve the problems of scaling a business. Fortunately, software engineers have access to a wide variety of work environments to shape their ideas on the right track and move forward.

XVII. Solving motivational problems

To answer the question of work motivation, a software engineer needs to be able to clearly understand how his day-to-day work fits into the bigger picture and whether he wants to know that the work they do is relevant.

The first step is to list why you want to achieve your goals. That's why you need to be assertive in your plans. Moreover, be prepared for temporary setbacks or sheer exhaustion, don't take it into your mind but move forward with complete determination.

XVIII. Spending time in software engineering mode

Observability: A tool or technical practice enables engineering teams to debug their systems diligently. It explores new patterns and properties that may not be predefined or determined. Since code may perform differently in a production environment, it is important to proactively observe what is happening in a production environment that affects users. The code needs to be tested to generate telemetry techniques to achieve true system observability.

Monitoring as code: This practice enables teams to observe and study the different states of their systems, usually through predefined metrics and dashboard reports that are updated in real-time. The basis for providing data for these dashboards is assembling a set of predefined metrics or logs.

Over the next 18 months, individuals will study the following areas: Quantum Computing and Q#, Distributed Computing, RUST, Tensor Flow, Snowflake, Unity (for 3D modelling, AR, VR, MR), and 5G.

You may be wondering: why are these career suggestions so important? Isn't it enough to keep your immediate supervisor happy? The answer is usually no. There are unexplained challenges along the journey to success, but when moving in the right direction from the start, it's easier to deal with them.

In the long run, these career tips are feasible.