Technology is a rapidly growing field, and having up-to-date knowledge is essential for success. As a result, it’s common for beginner programmers in the tech industry to feel overwhelmed and get stuck at some point in their careers. In this article, I will list some tips and tricks to help you adapt to the tech field and level up your career whether you are a novice or a pro, the tips provided will equip you with the necessary knowledge and skills to stay ahead in the highly competitive tech industry.

Having mindset of a craftmanship

Programming is not just about writing code all day. It’s about creating value and solving customer issues through the applications that you craft. This includes understanding customer requirements, delivering quality applications, collaboration with others, and creating a great user experience.

Just like Uncle Bob said in his legendary book Clean Code:

You don’t become a software craftsman by learning a list of heuristics. Professionalism and craftsmanship come from values that drive disciplines

Robert C. Martin

The checklist for professional craftsmanship behavior includes:

• Committing to delivering quality code.

• Being open to feedback.

• Understanding the big picture, such as architecture, dependencies, and workflow.

• Paying attention to details.

• Being a team player.

To develop a craftsmanship mindset, you can start by continually seeking challenges in your daily work, setting goals of clean and quality code, taking responsibility for your work, helping other colleagues and always finding opportunities to improve your programming skills through competitive events.

Having a clear goal of your career

Having a clear goal of your career is crucial for success as a programmer. It’s essential to understand what you want to achieve in the short and long term and work towards it. This can help you stay motivated and focused on your career path. You can start by identifying your strengths and weaknesses, research the industry trends and explore your area of interest.

One way to create your goals is to follow the SMART framework: set specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound goals. Prioritize your tasks by focusing your energy on high-impact projects that can help you develop specific skills to achieve your goals faster.

During the process, be sure to track your progress and achievements using management tools like Trello or Notion. This will help ensure that you stay consistent and organized.

Show your skill for the world

In a crowded market, particularly in rapidly growing industries such as technology, it is essential to demonstrate your programming skills in a unique way in order to distinguish yourself.

Having a personal website or blog is a great way to showcase your programming skills and share your projects, thoughts, and experiences. And in case, if you don’t have the funds or time to build your own website, there are many platforms built specifically for tech content where developers can contribute. Some examples include HackerNoon, DEV, HashNode, and HackerNews.

You can also contribute to open-source projects on platforms like GitHub, participate in hackathons or coding competitions, and attend industry events to network with other professionals and gain exposure. The more you showcase your skills, the more opportunities you’ll have to advance your career.

Also, online social network platforms such as Twitter, Medium and Quora can also a great place for you to connect and share your experience in the programming community.

Staying up-to-date with current tech trends

The tech industry is experiencing rapid growth, with new jobs emerging in fields such as Artificial Intelligence, Web3, Blockchain, and Big Data. It’s clear that technology is changing every day, making it essential for developers to adapt and continuously learn new skills to stay competitive and seize opportunities for growth. Some ways for developer keep up with up-to-date tech knowledge are:

• Having a habit read news about tech

• Join tech community events

• Learn new tech by building your own application and solve local problems

Stay hungry. Stay foolish.

Steave Job

Seeking chance to extend your network

Having a trusted network of connections can make it easier for everyone to find and take advantage of new job opportunities. In addition, having a trusted online portfolio can help build trust with recruiters and customers. Some key take away on how to build your trust and extend your network are:

• Join tech communities: You can easily find any tech event on your country and make some new connection. And if you cannot find any offline events nearby, online application like Meetup, YouTube, Discord can help you find one that match you.

• Contribute to opensource projects: A great way to gain practical experience and build your network. Look for projects that align with your interests and skills and reach out to the project maintainers to see if there are any opportunities to contribute.

• Build a ranking portfolio through coding competition sites: A lot of tech company require a strong problem solving skill in their job description, and a way you can have their trust is having a high ranking problem solving grade in site like LeetCode, Hackerrank

It’s also important to remember that once you have made connections, it’s essential to maintain those relationships by keeping in touch through chat, small interactions on social media, or attending follow-up events.

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