On Being a Software Engineer

Do you ever feel like you made the wrong decision being a software engineer?

Jan 28, 2022

Do you ever feel like you made the wrong decision being a software engineer? Things are not working out and, you've been on the same bug for hours if not days, and you have no idea why it is not working. You're even thinking, things could not get worse than this. Did I make the right decision to choose this career path?

As a software engineer, I can confidently say that that is where I am. It feels like I am walking one step forward and taking two steps backward. It's hard not to feel overwhelmed and think maybe my skills are overrated and I might not deliver as expected.

With all the new things happening every day, it is hard not to get confused. It is an ever-changing tech industry and, we have to keep up with it. I was to learn python yesterday because of the hype in data science and machine learning. Today it seems to be solidity because of the web3 hype. What happens next after I have masted the new thing?

That seems to be the trend, and still, I have chosen to do it probably for the rest of my life. They say, "choose your poison and let it kill you," and this is not the only poison I have chosen. I also choose to be ignorant of the outside noise - mark my word, not "ignorant" but "choose to be ignorant."

You must be wondering, why do I choose to be ignorant? If you've read "The Subtle art of not giving an F" by Mark Manson. He talks about the paradox of choice - or, what were the exact words he used. He argues that it is hard to make decisions when presented with many options. It is easy to decide whether live in Nairobi or Mombasa than where to live from 10 different places in Kenya. No matter the decision you make, you will always feel short-changed. You will always feel you missed out on something.

When you decide with few choices, you will always feel at peace that you made the right decision. And that is why I choose ignorance, that unless necessary that I act, I will always ignore whatever is happening in this tech space. And that is why I am a C# developer because it is the best programming language.

It is something that I decided back in 2017 that I am at peace. It made more sense to focus on one thing than be half pregnant in 2 or more languages. C# is a language that Microsoft puts a lot of effort and resources into making better. It is a language I am open-minded to the changes made into it. A language I strive to be better at, a tool I want to perfect using, and when the right time calls, unload all its potential to solve a given problem.