Our code works after a middle-of-the-night hotfix…do you still need reviews? — If you are newer to programming or work for companies that don’t do reviews, you may be wondering why code reviews are so critical. This question is more likely if you already have automated testing or a QA (Quality Assurance) team. Code reviews are necessary as they offer multiple benefits…

Working with code you’re unclear about is like wading through a swamp. You should attempt to get yourself on solid ground as quickly as possible – Jon Skeet One of the most frustrating things about bugs with computer software is you get a bug report, someone is breathing down your…

If I told you I spent all day trying to figure out how to design the solution to a problem in a language I worked in every day and made absolutely no progress, would you think I was a new or junior developer? What if I also told you that…

You need to do be able to do this before you can get your first client. — You need to be able show you can do the job. It is a simple as that. If you can’t do the job, you are going to have a rough time freelancing. Starting to freelance before you are ready is going to make it a 100x harder. I learned this the hard way by trying to freelance immediately after a web…

Even us introverts need other people. — I’m naturally an introvert that would be happy by myself forever, but I link many of my success to being extroverted. From my career to freelancing to content creation, I had to be an extrovert in some way to succeed. I received feedback that to move further up in my career that I would need to become known by the other managers by being more outgoing. I was only…

Your manager is the key to knowing what else you need to get promoted. — Many software developers I chat with don’t take advantage of the assistance their manager can provide to help them advance in their career. Being promoted as a software engineer can be a challenge. Even if you are the most talented developer and hardest worker on your team, there are no…

Taking a break and slowing down didn’t stop burnout from coming back. — I thought I had a handle on burnout until I realized repeatedly going through it meant I wasn’t close to handling it. I would slow down and take a break when burnout came around. I would recover and feel great for a bit. But it wasn’t long until burnout would…

We know not to reinvent the wheel, but avoiding doing it isn’t always easy. — This week I fell into the trap of reinventing the wheel when trying to code a feature. I was trying to develop my schema for storing recurring events. Thinking my problem was unique, I felt I had to make my own format. I ignored all the other apps and file…

Software changes can be as expensive as moving a room when a house is nearly complete. — Clients love to throw significant last-minute changes in software projects then get upset when they miss a deadline or go past their budget. Developing software is like building a house. The closer we are to the finish, the more changes cost. Clients don’t realize change can be like moving a…