Ā #CareerAdvice #SoftwareEngineering #ProductManagement #DataAnalytics
Hey tech community! š Have you ever questioned if you were meant to be a software engineer? š¤ Let’s dive into this thought-provoking topic together:
Here’s a bit about my background:
– EU citizen šŖšŗ
– 26 years old š
– Attended a top uni in North America š
– 2.5 years of experience in tech (1.5 at an EU unicorn, currently at an Australian scaleup)
I enjoy coding, but not for the same reasons as my peers:
– Love solving problems and making an impact š”
– Not thrilled by complex bugs, see them as obstacles š
– Not into coding for the sake of coding, prefer the user impact š
I feel like a business-minded person in a technical career:
– Extroverted and interested in business š
– Don’t want to spend free time learning random tech skills š
Wondering if I should stick with software engineering or explore other paths like Product Management or Data Analytics:
– Can my personality and experience transition well into management roles? š¤
– Feeling like I can’t compete with tech enthusiasts who live and breathe system design š¤Æ
Any advice or insights from fellow techies? Is it normal to feel this way? Let’s share our experiences and help each other out! š¬āØ
Possible solution: Consider exploring roles in Product Management or Data Analytics that align more with your business-oriented mindset and interests. Networking with professionals in these fields can provide valuable insights and guidance on making a career transition. Good luck on your journey! šš
Sounds like you want to be a pm
No one is meant to do anything. Don’t think of any job other than the priesthood as a calling and never compare yourself to others. Both are the fast track to burning out. If you are a good developer and you like doing it, then go that way. As you gain experience and move up, you might fight tech management positions are more suited to you and that fine. The other track (the people you might be thinking about) are generally called “Individual Contributors”.
No one can tell you if you’d be better suited as a manager or an individual contributor. That’s entirely on you. Depending on the company, you might be able to switch back and forth easily.
Doesn’t sound like. I’m sure you can do it but you’ll be miserable solving coding problems everyday.
You can try other tech adjacent fields, product, design, management, etc. Or, you can try entrepreneur route and create/join startup and wear many hats.
As long as you focus on solving problems and delivering value, you can make advancements in tech career.
There are certainly advantages to being a more business-minded engineer.
One of the pitfalls many engineers fall into is chasing the latest shiny thing or overengineering something when a simple solution will work. I’ve seen developers with decades of experience who likely know better fall into this trap again and again.
If you are doing things primarily to accomplish business objectives, this could actually be seen in a very positive light, and may help your career more than hinder it.
And even if you aren’t interested in spending much of your free time chasing the latest and greatest tech thing, you can let your colleagues do that and then learn from them. Surround yourself with smart people and they’ll make you a better developer.
Once you transition to something like management, you will then be experienced in spotting when developers are not keeping business objectives in mind and you can help them course correct.
I don’t think you are the right person to be a SE. You should look into other careers.
>When I see a complicated bug, I get more annoyed than excited. The complex problem to me is an inconvenience that stands between me and the user impact. I notice other engineers get excited by it, coding itself seems to be the point for them.
I don’t understand. Are you under the impression that the other engineers don’t want to fix the bugs? Or that there is some other useful way to respond?
Itās a no from me and I didnāt even read the post
become an ABAP developer, lol
joke aside, it is legitimate to be more on a business side, as everyome has its preferences
Is anyone meant for anything?
probably not. probably not meant for tech or a pm even because you don’t like solving problems
There are ton of responsibilities that can suit you, for example in management positions.
Some management positions don’t even see code
This was a sobering post for me too. I share a lot of the sentiments and I think Iām more interested in being a PM than I thought. Thanks for sharing.
Nope. Better change to a different field.