A career in software engineering is not the same as only being good at coding.

Questions the course can help answer:

• How to build a software career without burning out?

• What should be plan B after FAANG/MAANG?

• How to build a fundamentals-oriented learning system to protect from recessions?

• How do I become a senior software engineer?

• What happens at startups?

• Does non-computer science degree hold back a career?

• What is the difference between mentoring and managing?

• How to improve on the job?

• How to network without spamming?

• How to set career goals?

• How to gauge competition in the market?

• How to avoid stagnating in your career?

• What job change opportunities are available at different phases of the career?

• Why should one learn what CxOs, Senior managers and Principal engineers do?

• How to mentor people as a technical lead?

• What does a tech lead do?

• When to decide between individual contributor and people management roles?

and many such nuances of a career that interview portals ignore.

The field of software engineering has been evolving for decades. As the technology frontier gathers momentum, professionals must continuously re-calibrate to fit in or become obsolete even before they realize it. This trend is inevitable. But, Is it avoidable?

Yes. Reinventing a career overnight is impossible but staying within a competing distance is possible. The answer is the same old boring strategy, planning. One has to define a flexible framework to tackle changing times.

On the other hand, the efforts to get a great professional life might cost personal space. Is this trade-off mandatory? 

No. Understanding the skill set, market fit, and opportunity cost can help develop a practical career plan that doesn't overwhelm the personal life. A good career plan is a key to peace of mind in the chaotic universe of software. One doesn't have to plan every day of their career. One cannot keep boosting skills with certifications. However, having periodic checkpoints and a set of goals to look forward to is a great start.

Loans, pandemics, recessions, and many other factors will impede progress. A simple Plan B will ensure you have enough to start again. Not all plans need to work; just the fallback shouldn't fail.

Software engineering is more about being human than about machines!

Key Takeaways:

• Understanding the software as a business hierarchy.

• Building a more holistic perspective around career.

• Learn to gauge competition and unpredictable factors at play.

• Starting kit to build a framework for future career planning

• Specific and relevant Do's and Don't appilcable to all software engineering professionals irrespective of role, technologies, and geographies.

  
  

What this course doesn't address:

• Interview strategies to crack any individual interviews.

• Short-term advice to get higher salaries.

• Any unsolicited advice to advance a career.

• Any biased opinion about a particular technology, framework, language, or company.