Sometimes when you look around at engineers who are in a different place on their journey, it can seem like getting to where they are is unattainable.
How do you get to the point where you are like the senior engineers on your team who are so talented and knowledgeable? What does it take to be like one of the titans presenting at conferences on topics that go over your head? How does someone become a member of the team of engineers running that cool open source project that you regularly use in your work?
In other words, how do you grow as an engineer?
Growth is many things. Sometimes it’s slow. Sometimes it is messy. It can certainly be frustrating at times. Other times it can be down right embarrassing.
Wow, based on this list, growth sounds like a downer! That’s not the case, at all. Growth can certainly be exhilarating as well.
You never know which version of growth you will be interacting with at any given time. The key is to stick with it.
Show up even if you can’t tell how you’re getting better. Show up again even after you make an embarrassing mistake in the code base and everyone on your team knows.
If you show up day in and day out, growth will be inevitable.