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15 Tips to Help Software Developers Succeed
What to do to become a better developer
In this article, we’ll go through a list of habits and tips that could help developers become better versions of themselves — both personally and technically — and succeed in their roles.
These are some essential habits and things to know when working toward becoming a senior developer.
1. Focus on Becoming a T-Shaped Developer
Know a lot of things, and have in-depth knowledge of a few of those things.
I’ve done back-end development using Java for many years. Yes, I can get the job done in React or Terraform, but I’m not an expert in either.
Read more on the topic via “The ‘T-Shaped’ Engineer” (downloads a PDF).
2. Rely on Documentation Over Q&A Sites
In the early days of my development career, I heavily relied on Q&A sites, such as Stack Overflow, to find answers.
However, over time, I shifted toward the documentation-first approach.
3. Choose Quality Over Speed and Quantity — and Focus on Simplicity
Shift your focus from speed and quantity to quality, and follow software development best practices, such as SOLID, KISS, and DRY.
“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”
— Leonardo Da Vinci
Always take the effort to write dead-simple code that’s easy to read, understand, and maintain.
4. Always Test
An experienced developer knows the importance of testing and will always advocate for it.
